Nogais

Nogais, also called Nogai or Nogays, refers to a Turkic ethnic group native to the North Caucasus region of Russia and to the Nogai language spoken by them. The Nogai people emerged from Turkic and Kipchak lineages that settled in the Pontic-Caspian steppe. Between the 15th and 17th centuries they formed the Nogai Khanate, a semi-nomadic polity that played a significant role in the region's politics and served as a frontier between the expanding Russian state and neighboring Caucasian communities. After the Russian Empire consolidated the region in the 18th and 19th centuries, Nogai settlements were incorporated into imperial and later Soviet administrative units; population movements and conflicts led to dispersal, including a diaspora in Turkey and other areas.

The Nogai language is a Turkic language in the Kipchak-Nogay subbranch, with several dialects. It is spoken by a portion of Nogai people, with many speakers bilingual in Russian or other local languages; language vitality varies, and there are efforts to document and revitalize it.

Today, Nogais are primarily found in Russia's North Caucasus region, particularly Dagestan and surrounding areas, with smaller communities in other parts of the Caucasus and the former Soviet Union. They are predominantly Sunni Muslims of the Hanafi tradition, and traditional social organization centers on kinship networks and tribal affiliations. Economies have shifted from nomadic and pastoral livelihoods to mixed agriculture, trade, and urban employment.