Karachays

This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. (Learn how and when to remove these template messages) This article relies excessively on references to primary sources. Please improve this article by adding secondary or tertiary sources. Find sources: "Karachays" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (November 2022) (Learn how and when to remove this message) This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Karachays" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (November 2022) (Learn how and when to remove this message) This article's lead section may be too short to adequately summarize the key points. Please consider expanding the lead to provide an accessible overview of all important aspects of the article. (November 2022) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

Karachays

Къарачайлыла
Karachay men in the 19th century
Total population
c. 250,000
Regions with significant populations
Russia  Karachay-Cherkessia	226,271 205,578[1]
Turkey	20,000[2]
Kazakhstan	995[citation needed]
Languages
Karachay, Kabardian, Russian, Turkish (diaspora)
Religion
Sunni Islam
Related ethnic groups
Balkars, Nogais, Kumyks, Circassians, Abazins, North Caucasian peoples

The Karachays or Karachai (Karachay-Balkar: Къарачайлыла, romanized: Qaraçaylıla or таулула, romanized: tawlula, lit. 'Mountaineers')^[3] are an indigenous^[4] North Caucasian-Turkic ethnic group native to the North Caucasus. They are primarily located in their ancestral lands in Karachay–Cherkess Republic, a republic of Russia in the North Caucasus. They have a common origin, culture, and language with the Balkars.^[5]