Kalmyks
The Kalmyks (Kalmyk: Хальмгуд, Xaľmgud; Mongolian: Халимагууд, romanized: Halimaguud; Russian: Калмыки, romanized: Kalmyki; archaically anglicised as Calmucks) are a Mongolic ethnic group living mainly in Russia, whose ancestors migrated from the Dzungaria region of Mongolia. They created the Kalmyk Khanate from 1635 to 1779 in the south of the European part of Russia territory. Today they form a majority in Kalmykia, located in the Kalmyk Steppe, on the western shore of the Caspian Sea.
Хальмгуд / Xaľmgud | |
|---|---|
Kalmyks in the late 19th century. Picture taken in the Salsky Raion of the Don Host Oblast. | |
| Total population | |
| 196,433 | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Kalmykia (Russia) | |
| Russia | 183,372 |
| Kyrgyzstan | 12,000 |
| Ukraine | 325 |
| United States | 3,000 |
| Languages | |
| Kalmyk Oirat, Russian | |
| Religion | |
| Predominantly Buddhism Minority Russian Orthodox Christianity, Tengrism, Mongolian shamanism, Islam | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Mongols, especially Oirats, other Mongolic peoples | |
They are the only traditionally Buddhist people who are located within Europe. Through emigration, small Kalmyk communities have been established in the United States, France, Germany, and the Czech Republic.
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