Caucasia

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The mountainous region in western Asia bounded by the Black Sea to the west and the Caspian Sea to the east, encompassing parts of Russia, Georgia, Azerbaijan, and Armenia
2. A geographic area in Asia Minor situated between two major seas and characterized by the Caucasus Mountains, inhabited by numerous ethnic groups and nations
3. The territorial region of Asia spanning from the Black Sea westward to the Caspian Sea eastward, containing diverse peoples and covering portions of modern Russia and the South Caucasus countries

Etymology: Caucasia is a place name rather than a common word, so its history is a geographical one. The name comes from the Caucasus Mountains, which stretch between the Black and Caspian Seas. The mountains' name is generally traced to ancient Greek "Kaukasos," though its ultimate origin is uncertain, and it may be a pre-Greek or Iranian-influenced term. Classical writers used the name for the range itself, and the region on its slopes and in the surrounding lowlands came to be called Caucasia in Latin and English as a broader geographical term. In English, "Caucasia" is also used as a historical term for the region, and in the twentieth century it became a name for the Caucasus area in various contexts. The derivative "Caucasian" was applied to people from the region and later, in the eighteenth century, adopted in European racial classifications, a usage now widely rejected as scientifically baseless and socially harmful. Its geographical sense remains the sound basis of the name.