19:58, 22 May 2003

Archins

They call themselves arshishtib, Laks call them archi, Avars call them Rochisel. They are the aboriginal population of Dagestan. They live in the valley of the river Khatar (Charodinsky district). Their population is over 1 thousand people. They belong to the Balkan-Caucasus race of the big European race. According to traditional classification their language is of Lezghin subgroup of the Nakh-Dagestan group of the North Caucasus branch. Avar, Russian and Lak languages are common. The believers are Moslems-sunnits.

The ethnic history of Archins is closely connected with the ethnogeny of the population of the mountainous Dagestan. Their main occupations are pasture cattle-breeding (mainly sheep-breeding) and agriculture. They weave wool, make carpets, carve wood (instruments, utensils, dishes, etc.).

Archins? villages are in the mountains, they are rather crowded. Their flat-roofed stone houses have one, two or more floors, they have the household rooms and the cattle-shed. During the Soviet time there appeared the houses with a gallery along the facade, the number of floors and household rooms diminished.

The costume of the Archins has a lot in common with that of the Avars. There retained the following traditional elements of the costume: sheepskin coats-cloaks and hats for men, for women - the head gear with silver decorations (chukhta), head cover, long straight trousers and bright-colored belts.

National cuisine consists mainly of flour and milk dishes (less of meat and vegetable dishes). Khinkal is popular (a kind of dumplings), flat round cakes with cheese, khalva, etc.