Lezghi

Lezghi (Lezghians, Lesghians), collective name of the east Daghestan tribes, Caucasus; Lekhi, the Georgian form, is applied by their southern neighbours to all the Daghestan peoples - Avars. Kazikumuks, Akashas, Kurines.Udes, etc., who differ greatly in speech, but closely resemble one another in their physical features. "A fine handsome race, well built, with black eyes and hair, but smaller in stature than the Georgians" (Monteith), There are altogether over fifty distinct Lezghian tribes, all of whom are Mohammedans except the Dido of the Andi district, whom their neighbours call Devilworshippers. The Avars, who are the most numerous and renowned of all the Lezghians, comprising nearly one-fifth of the whole nation, are by most historians regarded as akin to the mediaeval Avars, who founded an empire on the Danube overthrown by Charlemagne. But those Avars were certainly of Mongolic stock and speech, whereas all the Lezghians are of true Caucasic type, and speak extremely harsh languages, showing no kind of affinity with the Mongolo-Tartar linguistic family. Some of the dialects have an unpronounceable click, which occurs both in the beginning, the middle, and the end of words. Total Lezghian population, 707,000, of whom 155,000 belong to the Avar group.