The Bagvalal people are a small ethnic group indigenous to the mountainous regions of Dagestan, in the North Caucasus of Russia. Numbering around 5,000 individuals, according to a 2002 estimate, they are part of the broader Northeast Caucasian peoples, sharing linguistic and cultural similarities with neighboring groups such as the Avars, Andis, and Didos. The Bagvalals speak the Bagvalal language, which belongs to the Avar–Andi–Dido branch of the Northeast Caucasian language family. The Bagvalals primarily reside in the Tsumadinsky District of Dagestan. Their traditional villages include Kvanada, Gimerso, Tlisi, Tlibisho, Khushtada, and Tlondada, located in rugged mountain terrain that historically provided isolation and protection. This geographic setting has helped preserve…