Tatar, Crimean in Ukraine      Largest Religion  Main Language
Introduction / History  Crimean Tatars emerged as a distinct
ethnic group at the close of the 13th century, following the
Mongal invasion of Crimea in 1239. More than two hundred years
passed before the Crimean Khanate was officially founded. By
that time, Islam was firmly established in the the southern
areas of modern Ukraine, especially among the Crimean Tatars.
Strategically situated on the Black Sea, Crimean power increased
until 1783, when a series of wars between Russia and Turkey
resulted in Crimea's absorption into Russia. The Russian
government pursued the Muslim population, and more than 100,000
Tatars were compelled to leave their country. Then, in 1944,
Stalin's Soviet regime deported the entire Crimean Tatar
population to Central Asia and Siberia, accusing them of
cooperation with Germany. It wasn't until 1989 that repatriation
to their homeland began.  What are Their Lives Like?  Today,
Crimean Tatars are a minority group in Ukra