Amjad Jaimoukha (Circassian: Жэмыхъуэ Амджэд, [ʒaməχʷa aːmd͡ʒad]; sometimes quoted as "Амыщ", the Circassian personal name)^[2] was a Circassian writer, publicist and historian, who wrote several books on North Caucasian – specifically Circassian and Chechen – culture and folklore. According to the Circassian Encyclopedia, "Jaimoukha was perhaps the most important writer on Circassian issues."^[3] He has been credited with inspiring several new writers who are working on raising the profile of Caucasian issues.

Works

• The Circassians: A Handbook (London and New York: Routledge; New York: Palgrave, 2001):^[4] It has become the prime reference work on the Circassians. It has been reviewed in more than a dozen international journals.^[5][6]"
• The Chechens: A Handbook (Routledge, 2005) with contributions from the Canadian writer and poet JonArno Lawson. The book sheds light on some obscure aspects of Chechen culture and folklore, and includes an account of the ancient native religion and beliefs of the Nakhi peoples (Chechens, Ingush, Kist and Batebi [Tova-Tush]). According to the publishers, it is "the only comprehensive treatment of this subject available in English".^[7]
• Kabardian-English Dictionary, Sanjala Press, 1997. (Some 22,000 words, 574 pages. Principally based on: Kardanov (Qarden), B. M. (ed.), КЪЭБЭРДЕЙ-УРЫС СЛОВАРЬ. Kabardino-Russkiy Slovar’ [Kabardian-Russian Dictionary], Kabardino-Balkarian Science and Research Institute, Moscow: State Press of Foreign and National Dictionaries, 1957.
• Parlons tcherkesse: Dialecte kabarde [Let's Speak Circassian: Kabardian Dialect], (Paris: L'Harmattan, 2009) Co-authored with Michel Malherbe. This book is the only treatment of the Kabardian dialect of Circassian in the French language.
• Circassian Culture and Folklore: Hospitality Traditions, Cuisine, Festivals & Music (Kabardian, Cherkess, Adigean, Shapsugh & Diaspora), London: Bennett and Bloom, 2010.^[8]
• Circassian Customs and Traditions, The International Center for Circassian Studies, 2009.^[9]
• Circassian Religion, The International Centre for Circassian Studies, 2009.^[10]
• Circassian Bibliography, The International Centre for Circassian Studies, 2009.^[11]
• Circassian Proverbs and Sayings, Sanjalay Press, 2009.^[12] (Has some 3,000 entries in Kabardian [in Cyrillic and Latin orthographies] with corresponding English expressions)

Jaimoukha published with the following Western publishing houses: Routledge [RoutledgeCurzon], Curzon, Bennett and Bloom, Palgrave (Macmillan) [St. Martin's Press], L'Harmattan. He also worked with Sanjalay Press and the International Centre for Circassian Studies.

International Centre for Circassian Studies (ICCS)

Jaimoukha was the director of the International Centre for Circassian Studies (ICCS), an institute specializing in the dissemination of Circassian culture and folklore. The Center was founded by the famous Circassian writer, film producer, and director Mohydeen Quandour. The principal aim of the ICSS is the development and dissemination of Circassian literature, culture, and folklore. There is a particular emphasis on boosting the status of the Circassian language and on promoting its teaching and use. The ICSS publishes a bilingual journal (in Circassian and English) called "The Hearth Tree".

Jaimoukha devised a Latin orthography for Kabardian (Eastern Circassian)^[13] that's characterized by relative simplicity (considering the complexity of the language). An advantage of this system is that it has a one-to-one correspondence with the current Cyrillic orthography used for Kabardian, and a software has already been designed to render one orthography into the other, making it possible to turn works already published in Cyrillic Kabardian into the new orthography, and vice versa, facilitating transition from one system to the other.

Work at the Royal Scientific Society

Jaimoukha previously held the position of Assistant President of the Royal Scientific Society (RSS) from 2003 to 2007. During his tenure at the RSS, he published several studies and bibliographic tomes, including 'Scientific Integrity', 'Intellectual Capital Report', and 'Bibliography of the Publications of the Royal Scientific Society'.

Circassian culture and folklore

Jaimoukha was a strong advocate of the revival of Circassian culture and folklore, including defunct genres of art and culture. He wrote several books and articles promoting the Circassian language in both the Circassian republics in the Northwest Caucasus (where about one million Circassians live) and in the diaspora (principally in Turkey, Syria, Jordan, Egypt, Iraq, USA, Germany, France, and the Netherlands), which has a population of around 5 million. Jaimoukha was among the vocal Circassians actively engaged in raising awareness of Circassian issues amongst Circassians themselves and at a global level. He planned to publish a book on the controversial issue of the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics, to be held in Circassia.

Jaimoukha was a proponent of North Caucasian unity and independence (from Daghestan in the east to Abkhazia in the west). He advocated Circassian independence in several media outlets. He referred to the historical lands of the Circassians as "Circassia". Despite their linguistic diversity, he argued, the peoples of the North Caucasus share similar traditions, beliefs and culture. His work "Thoughts on North Caucasian Federation" maps a plan for the unification of the western part of the region (the historical lands of the Circassians (Adiga), Abkhaz-Abaza [Apswa] and the Ubykh). According to this scheme, the Adiga entities (perhaps with the inclusion of the Abaza) would be united into one independent state that might eventually opt to enter into federative arrangements with the already independent Abkhaz and Karachai-Balkar states. This would remove the tensions that might develop into open conflict between the Kabardians and Balkar in Kabardino-Balkaria and the Karachai and Cherkess in the Karachay–Cherkess Republic. The Adigeans would become more secure and more resistant to the Russian drive to undo their republic.

Collaborations

Principal literary collaborations included work with Nicholas Awde, the editor of the Caucasus World series published by Routledge and co-owner of the publishing house Bennett and Bloom, JonArno Lawson, the writer of several books, and Michel Malherbe, the writer and editor of the Parlons... series published by the French publishing house L'Harmattan. A work on the Adigean dialect of Circassian was scheduled to be published by L'Harmattan in 2010. Jaimoukha^[14] contributed five articles (on the Circassians, Kabardians, Karachai, Dagestanis, and Jordan) in Carl Skutsche's seminal three-volume work Encyclopedia of the World's Minorities,^[14] published by Routledge ^[14] in 2004 in New York.

There was a close co-operation with the Circassian writer Luba Belaghi (Balagova; publications in Circassian and Russian) in the framework of the publications of the International Centre for Circassian Studies.

References

• Mamser, M., The Circassian Encyclopaedia, 2009, vol. IV, entry "Amjad Jaimoukha". [There are two entries for Amjad Jaimoukha: one concerning his work at the Royal Scientific Society and the other on his career as a writer and publicist]

External links

• The International Centre for Circassian Studies website
• Personal website
• Circassian Culture and Folklore website
• "The acclaimed book by Amjad Jaimoukha is available at eBooks.com in several formats for your eReader."