—Kipchak Turks—
–Kazakhstan and Kazakhs
Population: Kazakhstan-10,098,600 (2009); China-1,400,000 (2008); Mongolia-101,526 (2010); Other countries with populations of Kazakhs are Ukraine, Iran, and Afghanistan.
Religion: Sunni Islam
Facts: Kazakhstan is the 9th. largest country in the world; Horses were first domesticated in Kazakhstan as early as 3,500 B.C.; Kazakhstan is the world’s leading uranium producer.
–Kyrgyzstan and the Kyrgyz
Population: Kyrgyzstan-3,804,800 (2009); China-143,500 (2008); Other countries with populations of Kyrgyz are Ukraine, Afghanistan, and Turkey.
Religion: Sunni Islam
Facts: Manas, a Kyrgyz epic poem, contains more verses than any other story in the world; Kyrgyzstan is the only country in the world which has both American and Russian military bases.
–Karakalpakstan and Karakalpaks
Population: Karakalpakstan (Uzbekistan)-504,301; Kazakhstan-5,000; Turkmenistan-5,000
Religion: Sunni Islam
Facts: Karakalpakstan is an autonomous region in Uzbekistan; Their name means ‘black hat’, kara=black, kalpak=hat.
–Karachay Turks
Population: Karachay-Cherkess Republic (Russia)-218,403 (2010); Turkey-50,000 (2010)
Religion: Sunni Islam
Fact: The Karachay-Cherkess Republic is an autonomous region in Russia’s Caucasus Mts. The name “Karachay” in Turkic means “Black River”.
–Balkar Turks
Population: Kabardino-Balkar Republic (Russia)-104,951 (2002)
Religion: Sunni Islam
Facts: The Kabardino-Balkar Republic is an autonomous region in Russia’s Caucasus Mts.; The Balkar and Karachay peoples are nearly indistinguishable from one another.
–Tatar Turks
Population: Kazan Tatars (Tatarstan, Russia)-2,012,571 (2010); Crimean Tatars (Crimea, Ukraine)-243,400 (2001), Turkey-150,000 – 6,000,000; Siberian Tatars (Siberia, Russia)-400,550 (2002); Lipka Tatars (Belarus, Lithuania, Poland)-15,000 (2013); Finnish Tatars (Finland)-1,000 (2013); Other countries with Tatar populations are Russia, Ukraine, Tajikstan, China, Afghanistan, Romania, and Bulgaria.
Religion: Majority follows Sunni Islam and a minority follows Russian Orthodox
Facts: The Tatars are the most widely spread out Turkic ethnic group, they’re populated in many regions and countries from western Europe to China and Siberia; The term ‘Lipka’ comes from the old Crimean Tatar name for Lithuania. In 1925, the Finnish Tatars founded the Finland Islamic Congregation, and Finland was the first country in the western world to officially recognize an Islamic congregation.
–Nogay Turks
Population: Russia-103,660 (2010); Dagestan (Russia)-38,168 (2002); Chechnya (Russia)-3,572 (2002); Romania-11,000 (2002); Turkey-90,000 (2012)
Religion: Sunni Islam
Fact: The Nogay are not officially recognized by Russia and are in danger of assimilation.
–Kumyk Turks
Population: Dagestan (Russia)-503,060 (2010)
Religion: Sunni Islam, with some pre-Islamic rituals and customs.
Facts: Some historians believe the Kumyk may be the descendants of the Khazar; Even though they follow Sunni Islam, they still have many pre-Islamic customs.
–Bashkortostan and Bashkorts
Population: Bashkortostan (Russia)-1,172,287 (2010); Kazakhstan-17,263 (2009)
Religion: Sunni Islam
Facts: The meaning of their name isn’t for certain, but it is believed by many that it means “leader of the pack”, bash=head, leader and kort=wolf.
–Karaim Turks
Population: Crimea (Ukraine)-1,196 (2001); Poland-346 (2011); Lithuania-241 (2011); Russia-205 (2010)
Religion: Karaite Judaism and Christianity
Facts: The Karaim language is endangered. There are three dialects of the language and in 2001 there were about only 200 people who could speak Karaim; The Karaim is the only Turkic group that follows Judaism and they’re believed to be descendants of the Khazars..