The mountains north and west of Derbent: the Dargin uplands, the Kaitag (Qaytaq) and Tabasaran (Tabarsaran) hills behind the coast, and the Samur valley of the Lezgins (the Lakz of the Arabic geographers), with the Aghul and Rutul valleys under the main ridge.
Their lords and communities are partly Muslim since the Arab era and look to Derbent for trade; the emirs of Derbent (aze sheet) hold the city and its coastal strip but not these mountains. No ruler can be named for 1 January 1200.
Who holds it
- Name
- Not pinned (the Arabic sources of earlier centuries name lords of Lakz, Tabarsaran and Qaytaq; none is named for 1200)
- Title
- Highland lords and free communities
- Since
- Not pinned
- Confidence
- low
How things stand that morning
Self-governing.
Customs and assemblies
Free communities and their unions; local lords (thin).
Overlord claims
The emir of Derbent's influence; Shirvan's old claims to the Samur.
What the year holds
What happened next, if nothing in play changes it. Each event carries what it depends on and what would stop it.
- 1200No dated event recorded.
Where the sources disagree
Evidence: Almost nothing written for 1200; drawn so that the ground the aze sheet anchors to this realm has a record.
On the map: Rough.
Primary sources for Alans and mountain peoples
Chronicles, registers, sagas and inscriptions written in or near 1200 that cover this entry. Each has its own page with editions, translations and where to read it.
- The History of Derbent and Shirvan, as preserved in Munejjim-bashi's Jami al-duwal, Anonymous (an 11th-century author of Derbent, excerpted by Munejjim-bashi, died 1702) (about 1075; preserved in an Ottoman compilation of the 1670s). The only local history of the Shirvanshahs and the emirs of Derbent, surviving as extracts in a 17th-century Ottoman compilation.
- The Georgian Chronicles: the Histories and Eulogies of the Sovereigns, and the Life of Queen Tamar, Anonymous, attributed to the chancellor Theodore of Chqondidi and to Basili, master of the court (about 1210 to 1225). Two court histories of Queen Tamar written within a generation. Read online
Sources and studies
Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.