Chechnya is a region in southwest Russia that occupies a small diamond-shaped area less than 93 miles across. The top part is plains and the lower part is in the northern Great Caucasian Mountain chain.

The Chechens have been in conflict with Russia over their independence for hundreds of years. In the past 15 years, there have been two wars between Russia and Chechnya.  Estimates of Chechen deaths during these two wars range from 25,000-200,000, depending on who you ask.  Even though currently they are not technically at war, Chechnya is still not a safe place.  There is still an ongoing struggle for power coming from many directions, few of which have the civilians’ best interest in mind. For this reason, many Chechens have fled Chechnya to try and find safety in another land.

Chechnya’s population under the age of 18 constitutes almost half of Chechen society and was born and raised after 1990, which means that these children, half of the population, have only known war in their country.

Chechens are ethnically, linguistically and religiously different than Russians. Chechen society has traditionally been organized around many autonomous local clans, called teips. Even today, many Chechens consider themselves loyal to their teip and tukkhum above all; this is one reason why it has been difficult to forge a united political front against Russia. From the 7th century through the 16th century, Chechens were mostly Christians and pagans but then the influence of Islam spread until Sunni Muslims became the majority. Today a very high percentage of Chechens are practicing Muslims.

Recent estimates state that there may be over 70,000 Chechen refugees in the European Union and that number continues to grow. There are approximately 17,000 Chechen refugees in Austria (as of January 2008), making Austria one of the European Union countries with the highest Chechen populations.

One of the biggest groups we see come through the Oasis are Chechens.  They come in family groups and generally have large families. It is rare to meet a Chechen who speaks English or German.  At first glance they seem somber and maybe a little intimidating, but as friendships develop and their self-protective walls come down, we see that they are a very relational people who love a chance to show their traditional dances and songs making any regular event feel festive!

For more information on Chechnya, see the links to the left.