Chechens
Chechens (; '; Old Chechen: Нахчой "Naxçoy") are a Northeast Caucasian ethnic group of the Nakh peoples originating in the North Caucasus region of Eastern Europe. They refer to themselves as Vainakhs (which means "our people" in Chechen) or Nokhchiy (pronounced ; singular Nokhchi, Nakhchuo or Nakhtche). Chechen and Ingush peoples are collectively known as the Vainakh. The majority of Chechens today live in the Chechen Republic, a subdivision of the Russian Federation.
Chechens
In particular, the Chechens are descended from the "Durdzuks", a group well known in the Georgian chronicles ("Dourts" in the Armenian version). Other groups linked Amjad Jaimoukha traces the name Durdzuk to an ancient city north of Lake Urmia, near Nakhichevan (Nakhichevan is thought to be a Nakh placename by some). Other groups attributed to being the ancestors of the Chechens and Ingush include the "Kists" (in the Georgian chronicles), "Gargareans" (from the Nakh root "gergara"; reported by Strabo to have "returned" from the South Caucasus to the North Caucasus, fleeing the wars in the south) and the "Nakhchmateans" (Armenian chronicles).