On a crisp May evening in Damascus’s Umayyad Square, Syrian Circassian journalist Jansit Tam stood proudly amid a crowd holding banners that read, “We will never forgive”.

It was a momentous occasion for the people gathered at the iconic location as they publicly commemorated the Circassian Day of Mourning for the first time in more than five decades. 

The Circassians, self-designation Adyge and the oldest indigenous people of the North Caucasus, are a minority community who are the descendants of those who survived Tsarist Russia’s 19th-century genocide. 

The origins of this sombre memory trace back to 1864 in the Kbada Valley — the site of the final battle between Circassians and Tsarist Russia. 

Russia’s victory ended a 101-year war that claimed over 500,000 lives in the Caucasus. The victors then imposed a demographic overhaul, forcibly displacing hundreds of thousands of Circassians and other indigenous groups.

The 24-year-old journalist, honouring those slain in the war for the first time, said that in previous years, she felt profound frustration at their inability to commemorate this occasion as she sorrowfully watched Circassian communities in Türkiye observe this event every year.

“I dreamt of travelling to Türkiye to join this event, which I consider the most important for Circassians,” she told TRT World.

“But now, that dream has come true in Damascus—something I once thought impossible.”

Breathing Room

After the authoritarian Assad regime was toppled in December of last year, Circassians, like other Syrians, seized the newfound climate of freedom.

Hussam Awari, one of the event’s organisers, said that they easily obtained approval from the Damascus governorate, with support from public security.

“Since the Soviet-Syrian alliance formed in the 1970s, no one dared to request such a gathering. Doing so could lead to your disappearance into regime prisons,” he told TRT World.

But on May 21, Syrian Circassians proudly showcased their traditional costumes, folk dance and language in the heart of Damascus, holding banners that said, “History can’t be forgotten and massacres can’t be undone” and “Justice is a right and not a choice”.

“For over 50 years, we couldn’t hold any activities related to this day,” Awari said. 

“We are a group of Caucasus youth united to ensure our history isn’t forgotten. Our cause is just. We were among the first people forcibly displaced. We want the world to hear us and recognise our suffering, so we can secure a safer future for our ancient nation,” he added.

The event drew diaspora leaders like Mu’min Hajji Bayram, head of the Syrian Circassian Association in Türkiye (Adige Kafkas Dernegi), who noted grim parallels. 

“The same Russia that massacred us in the 1800s, also bombed Aleppo and shielded Assad at the UN Security Council.”

While his organisation has long collaborated with Turkish Circassian groups to mark the day through vigils and speeches, this was his first time participating in Syria. 

“We are an occupied people demanding liberation, self-determination, and an apology from Russia for the genocide committed by its tsars,” Bayram added.

A legacy of survival

The Circassian presence in Syria dates to the Ottoman era, following their 1864 expulsion from the Caucasus by Tsarist Russia. 

The Ottomans settled them in strategic regions like the Golan Heights (Quneitra), Damascus (Rukn al-Din), Homs, Marj al-Sultan, and rural Hama. Later waves arrived from Jordan and Türkiye during subsequent political upheavals.

They preserved their language, Adyghe, and traditions while integrating into Syrian society. Many joined the Ottoman and later Syrian military, including the special ‘Fedayeen Battalion’ that fought in 1948.

“We’re proud Syrians, but our roots span 6,000 years,” Syrian Circassian activist Deeb Qat told TRT, detailing how 90 percent of Circassians were displaced during Russia’s scorched-earth campaigns.

The Circassians’ ancestral homeland lies in the Caucasus mountains between the Black and Caspian Seas. Their roots stretch back 6,000 years, with Islam spreading among them via traders, not conquest. 

The term ‘Circassian’ historically encompassed 12 tribes, later including Chechens and Dagestanis in Syria.

The Ottomans initially deployed them as military defenders in Eastern Europe, but as the empire crumbled, many migrated to the Levant to guard trade and pilgrimage routes. Thousands perished crossing the Black Sea — a tragedy Qat likened to Syria’s modern displacement crises.

Dwindling population

During Syria’s 2011 revolution, Qat explained, Circassians were divided—some supported protests, others sided with the regime due to army ties. 

“But participants acted as individuals, not representatives of our minority,” he stressed. “In civil wars, minorities are the most vulnerable.”

Today, unofficial figures estimate the number of the Circassian population in Syria between 50,000-100,000, as many had fled the country during the uprising, while others evacuated to evade compulsory military service during the civil war.

“We are proud Syrian Circassians,” said Ahmed Safarbey, a 27-year-old from the Al-Kiswa suburb of Damascus. 

“We are overwhelmed. This memorial day is essential in our history and our identity and reviving it keeps our struggle alive.”

This piece is published in collaboration with Egab.