Kumyks (,
qumuqlar, ) are a
Turkic people living in the Kumyk plateau in north
Dagestan and south
Terek, and the lands bordering the
Caspian Sea. They comprise 14% of the population of the
Russian republic of Dagestan. They speak the
Kumyk language. Kumyks practice folk Islam, with some religious rituals that trace back to pre-Islamic times.