The ethnic structure of Abkhazian society has been fundamentally altered several times over the last two centuries.Nevertheless, Abkhazians and Russians, Georgians and Armenians, Jews and Greeks are all believed to be the native population. Even though the republic is now trying to overcome its Georgian heritage, the country's authorities are stressing the point that the republic will always remain polyethnic and multicultural.
The Russian diaspora is one of the most influential. The decision to establish the "Russian Community of Abkhazia" association was made before the official recognition of Abkhazian independence by Moscow. Now the association plays an important role in supporting Russian language and culture in the republic.
The Jewish diaspora before the 1990s was very numerous. The number of Jews living in Abkhazia was, in those times, about 2 and a half million people. After the beginning of the Georgian-Abkhazian war, most of them left for Israel. Those who stayed managed to obtain Russian citizenship.
The German diaspora isn't a numerous one these days, as the Soviet authorities ordered the deportation of all Germans to Kazakhstan in 1941. However, even now some Germans live in Abkhazia. The evangelical church of St. John was built in Abkhazia, a symbol of the cultural revival of people of German heritage.
The Armenian Diaspora community, consisting of Amshen Armenians (named after a historical district of Turkey), was formed in 1915-1916, during the flight from the Ottoman Empire. In the early 1990s, many Armenians had to flee from Abkhazia. Some 250,000 Amshen Armenians live compactly in Krasnodar Territory, the Kuban region and Adygei. The Armenian public organization "Armenian community of the Adygei Republic"was created 6 years ago. The community tries to protect the Armenian language and traditions and promote cultural interaction with the local Adygei cultural community.
To be continued