The Circassian genocide (Adyghe: Адыгэ лъэпкъгъэкӏод, romanized: Adıgə tləpqğək'od; Kabardian: Адыгэ лъэпкъгъэкIуэд, romanized: Adıgə tləpqğək'wəd; Russian: Черкесское мухаджирство, lit. 'Migration of the Circassians') was the Russian Empire's systematic mass murder, ethnic cleansing, forced migration, and expulsion of 800,000–1,500,000 Muslim Circassians (at least 75% of the total population) from their homeland Circassia, which roughly encompassed the major part of the North Caucasus alongside the Black Sea. This occurred in the aftermath of the Russo-Circassian War in the second half of the 19th century. It has been recorded that during the events, the Russian and Cossack forces used various brutal methods to entertain themselves, such as tearing the bellies of pregnant women and removi