MAIASP. 2025. No. 19 M.S. Gadjiev (Makhachkala, Russia) ARABIC EPIGRAPHY OF MOUNTAIN WALL: HISTORIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW The article discusses the issues of identifying and studying of Arabic epigraphic monuments located within the area of the Mountain Wall (Dag-bary), a key component of the Derbent defensive complex constructed in the late 560s — early 570s CE. The article highlights the contributions of scholars to the field, including K.K. Fezi (1840), A.V. Komarov (1870s), L.I. Lavrov (1950s), A.R. Shikhsaidov (1970s — 1980s). A significant number of new inscriptions, dating from the end of the 8th century (176 AH/792) to the 15th — 16th centuries, were identified during the surveys of the Mountain Wall in 2001—2004. Some of them are directly related to the defensive line, being applied to its walls, others are represented on the steles of medieval cemeteries located at certain forts and settlements of the Mountain Wall. Key words: Dagestan, Mountain wall, Dagh-bary, Middle Ages, Arabic epigraphy, epitaph. |