Constellations of the Caucasus

The Caucasus is a meeting point of East and West, Europe and Asia, Christiandom and Islam. The cultures include Greek, Slavic, Arabic, Turkish and Persian, just to name a few. It has served as realm of legend, myth, of wonderment and exotica. Yet at the same time the Caucasus can serve as mirror to the outside, at a site where one can trace the processes that have shaped the broader world. Caucasia marks the meeting place of East and West, Europe and Asia, Christendom and Islam. Indeed, the Caucasus Mountains are home to a bewildering diversity of languages and ethnicities. In the imaginations of multiple cultures and civilisations—Greek, Slavic, Arabic, Turkic, and Persian, to name a few—the region has served as a realm of legend and myth. Yet at the same time, Caucasia can also serve as a mirror to the outside, a site where one can trace the unfolding of processes that have shaped the broader world. Five leading scholars from around the globe explore the interaction of empires, peoples, and faiths in Caucasia throughout the centuries.