Besleney

The Besleney (Circassian: Bеслъэней, ; Бесленеевцы) are one of the twelve major Circassian tribes, representing one of the twelve stars on the green-and-gold Circassian flag. By character, culture and language, the Besleney are closest to Kabardians. The noble families of the Besleney were Kanoko and Shaloho, ancestors of Kabardian Prince Beslan, (the son of legendary Prince Inal), who established his own tribe of the same name.

Population
The majority of the Besleney live in the valley of Bolshaya and Malaya Laba Rivers and on the bank of Urup in the Russian Republics of Karachay-Cherkessia, Krasnodar Krai and Adygea. They also extend to the valleys of Chetem, Fars, Psefir, Kuban (Western Circassia).

Language
The Besleney people speak the Besleney sub-dialect (Бэслъыныйбзэ) of the Kabardian Adyghe dialect (East Circassian). However, because the Besleney tribe lived at the center of Circassia, the Besleney dialect also shares a large number of features with dialects of the West Adyghe dialect. Like the Adyghe Shapsug sub-dialect, there exist a palatalized voiced velar plosive, a palatalized voiceless velar plosive and a palatalized velar ejective , which were merged to ,  and  in other Circassian dialects. The Besleney dialect also has an alveolar lateral ejective affricate, which corresponds to an alveolar lateral ejective fricative in most other varieties of Circassian. The Besleney dialect has a voiceless glottal fricative [h] that corresponds to in other Circassian dialects.