House of Berzeg

House of Berzeg Барзагь
Circassian house of princely origin
Country	Circassia (formerly)  Russian Empire (formerly) Mountainous Republic of the Northern Caucasus (formerly)  Soviet Union (formerly)  Russia  Turkey
Place of origin	Mytykhuasua (now Plastunka), Ş̂açə, Circassia
Founded	Unknown (Unknown)
Traditions	Khabzeism Sunni Islam

House of Berzeg (ਨ) (Ubykh: Барзагь, Adyghe: Бэрзэдж, Russian: Берзег, Turkish: Berzeg Ailesi) is a Circassian princely house of Ubykhia of Circassia, who controlled the entirety of valley of the Sochi River (on its right bank, two hours from the sea) and entirety of the Mytykhuasua[1] (now Plastunka) village of Ş̂açə (Sochi) until the end of Russo-Circassian War.[2][3]

According to a story compiled by Kazim Berzeg from his family members, about 1500 years ago, a blood feud between two noble families led to the complete extinction of one and leaving only women in that family. One of these women gave birth to a boy named Berzeg, and the Berzeg tribe is said to descend from him. However, there is no source to verify the accuracy of this story.[4]

The Berzeg family was the most influential among the Ubykh.[5] While the family is Ubykh and originated in Ubykhia, there are branches among other Circassian tribes.[6] They were known for their privateer activities along the Black Sea coast of Circassia. After the death of Saad-Girey in 1823, Ismail Berzeg was elected the leader of the House of Berzeg and the leader of Ubykhia. After 1838, Ismail Berzeg acted as a diplomat between Circassia and England.[7] After the death of Ismail Berzeg in 1846, Gerandiqo Berzeg was elected as the leader of Ubykhia.

Berzeg members are found in Adygea and Krasnodar Krai within Russian Federation; as well as in Republic of Turkey due to Circassian genocide in the present day.[8] Unlike most Circassians, some members of House Berzeg who live in Turkey (as Korhan Berzeg) were exempt from the Surname Law of the Republic of Turkey possibly because one of Atatürk's aide-de-camp was from Berzeg family (Canbulatoglu Ekrem Berzeg).[9][10] The Surname Law abolished the use of non-Turkish surnames.

Notable members

• Ismail Berzeg (1763–1846)
• Gerandiqo Berzeg (1804–1881)
• Canbulatoglu Ekrem Berzeg (1887–1919)[11]
• Kazim Berzeg (1938–2016)[12][13]
• Korhan Berzeg (1940–2023)

Images

• 
  Ismail Berzeg and friends (1840's)
• 
  Ismail Berzeg and Circassian princes (1847)
• 
  Gerandiqo Berzeg (1880's)

References

1. "Giranduko Berzeg". kafkasevi.com. 2019-05-31. Archived from the original on 2019-07-31.
2. Ворошилов, В. И. (2006). История убыхов: очерки по истории и этнографии Большого Сочи с древнейших времен до середины (in Russian). Vol. XIX. Майкоп: Афиша. ISBN 5-7992-0377-1.
3. Филипсон, Г. И. (2019). "Военные мемуары". Воспоминания (in Russian). М.: Кучково поле. pp. 236, 238, 316, 321. ISBN 978-5-9950-0989-4.
4. Berzeg, Kâzım (1990). 1829 Edirne Muahedesinden Sonra Osmanlı Devletinin Çerkez Politikası (in Turkish). Ankara: Şafak Matbaacılık.
5. James Bell (1840). Journal of a Residence in Circassia: During the Years 1837, 1838 and 1839. pp. 344–346. Barzek Hadji Dakhûm-okû ... this Circassian Washington
6. Şıble, Ferhatıko (2022). Batı Çerkesya'nın Türkiye'deki evlatları (in Turkish). APRA. ISBN 978-605-71993-1-7.
7. "Haji Ismail Berzeg "Circassian Washington" from the Ubykh clan". Haji Ismail Berzeg "Circassian Washington" from the Ubykh clan. Vitality Shtybin. 27 June 2018. Retrieved 9 November 2021.
8. "Giranduko Berzeg". Muammer Dursun Erer. 2013. Archived from the original on 24 April 2020.
9. "Kayıplara karışan Korhan Hoca 'Grandük'ün torunu çıktı". www.hurriyet.com.tr (in Turkish). 2023-08-06. Archived from the original on 2024-12-17. Retrieved 2024-12-17.
10. YAZGAN, Recep (2016-02-25). Samsun'daki Türklerin Samsun'daki İlk İmzası Samsun Kalesi (PDF) (in Turkish).
11. "Çerkez Ekrem Bey". kavakhem.meb.k12.tr (in Turkish). Archived from the original on 2024-12-17. Retrieved 2024-12-17.
12. Barış, Haldun. Hukuk ve Özgürlük Mücadelesine Adanmış Bir Ömür: Kâzım Berzeg (in Turkish).
13. Kilercioğlu, Can (2021-03-25). "Kâzım Berzeg'in Hukuk ve Özgürlük Düşünceleri". Liberal Düşünce Dergisi (in Turkish). 26 (101): 209–223. ISSN 1300-8781.