Encyclopedia of Islam

Further reading: Devin DeWeese, Islamization and 

Native Religion in the Golden Horde (University Park: 

Pennsylvania State University Press, 1994); Ahmed 

Rashid, Jihad: The Rise of Militant Islam in Central Asia

(New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press, 2002); Anna 

Zelkina, In Quest for God and Freedom: The Sufi Response 

to the Russian Advance in the North Caucasus (New York: 

New York University Press, 2000).

chador

  See 

burqa

; 

hijab

; 

purdah

; 

veil

.

charity

  See 

almsgiving

.

Chechnya

Chechnya is located on the northeastern slopes 

of the Caucasus Mountains, within the interna-

tionally recognized borders of the Russian Fed-

eration. The most recent Russian census placed 

Chechnya’s population at nearly 1.1 million, but 

many estimates place the actual number between 

600,000 and 780,000 people.

In the late 18th century, the Russian Empire 

started serious military incursions into the North 

Caucasus, and from the beginning, the fiercest 

resistance came from the people of Chechnya and 

neighboring Dagestan. The first major leader of 

this resistance was Shaykh Mansour, who com-

bined Islamic preaching with military struggle. 

The most successful uprising against the Russians, 

however, took place from the 1830s to 1859 and 

was led by Imam s

hamil

 (1796–1871). A Naqsha-

bandi Sufi leader, Shamil for a period was able to 

create an Islamic proto-state in most of present-

day Chechnya and Dagestan. With Shamil’s defeat, 

the region passed into Russian control and relative 

stability, though outbreaks of violence did occur. 

With the Russian Revolution of 1917 and the 

demise of central control, the Chechens declared 

their independence and were briefly a part of a 

federation of North Caucasian peoples called the 

Mountain Republic. The Bolsheviks were able to 

reestablish some control only after much costly 

fighting in the early 1920s, though sporadic resis-

tance continued. The Chechens were deported 

to Central Asia in 1944 for alleged collaboration 

with the Nazis, and as a consequence a quarter 

to a half of the population died. They were not 

allowed to return home until the 1950s.

With the demise of the Soviet Union, tension 

returned to the region. In 1991, the President of 

Chechnya, Jokhar Dudayev (1944–96) declared 

Chechnya independent and, though not recog-

nized by any foreign government or Russia, was 

de-facto independent until the Russians launched 

full military operations on New Year’s Eve 1994. 

An extremely bloody war ensued, with Russia ini-

tially making significant gains, but the Chechens 

launched a major counteroffensive in 1995. By 

1996 the Russians were defeated and agreed to 

a cease-fire. Altogether, there were an estimated 

70,000 casualties. The end of the war, however, 

did not bring political or economic stability to 

Chechnya. In 1999, following unexplained ter-

rorist bombings in Russia, which were blamed 

on Chechens, and a Chechen military incur-

sion into Dagestan, Russia invaded Chechnya 

again, sending almost 100,000 troops and creating