Chuvash

The Chuvash (чӑваш [čăwaş]) are the people of Chuvashia.

The population was 1,843,300 in USSR, according to the census of 1989; 907,000 of these were actually in Chuvashia. The remainder live in Tatarstan's Aqsubay, Bua, Nurlat, Täteş, Çirmeşän, Çüpräle rayons, Bashkortostan, Samara, Ulyanovsk, Tyumen, Kemerovo, Orenburg, Moscow oblasts of Russia, Krasnoyarsk Krai, Kazakhstan and Ukraine.

They are divided into 3 groups: Hill Chuvashs (вирьял, тури (viryal, turi)) (Northern and Northern-Eastern Chuvashia), Meadow Chuvashs (анат енчи (anat yenči)) (Central and Southern-Western Chuvashia), and Downer Chuvashs (анатри (anatri)) (Southern Chuvashia and outside of Chuvashia).

They speak the Chuvash language and are Orthodox Christians, with some traditions of pre-Christianity. The precent of knowlege of Russian and Tatar languages is also high.

By some scientistsö some part of Chuvash was converted to Islam in Middle Ages and then tatarificated.

They originate from the Volga Bolgars' Suar or Sabir tribe, mixed with local Mari tribes. In the 15th-16th centuries their lands were incorporated into the Khanate of Kazan, and then in 1550 annexed by Russia. From 1708 to 1920, the Chuvash lands were part of the Kazan governorate.

Chuvashs are the third nation in city of Kazan (1.2%).