Two world religions have existed in Russia since ancient times and have spread almost from the founding of Russia. Despite the fact that the Christianization of Russia occurred in antiquity, in 988 and Orthodoxy became akin to the state religion. But Islam has appeared earlier.
The appearance of Islam occurred in 922, when the Khan of Volga Bulgaria adopted it as the state religion. It was an independent state, later conquered by the Mongols. It was inhabited mostly by Finno-Ugric and Turkic tribes.
Today the territory of Volga Bulgaria is occupied by Tatarstan.
But if we take the territory of Russia in its modern borders, the first place where Islam spread was Dagestan. Its southern point is the city of Derbent. At the end of the 7th century it was conquered by Arab Muslims. That’s when the first mosques appeared there. But Dagestan was a territory where different peoples lived. It is difficult to establish who exactly adopted Islam as a religion then.
The capture of Derbent put its inhabitants in a forced position. During their conquests the Arabs always offered to accept Islam.
Those who refused, they levied a special tax. Wishing to avoid the tax, many people accepted their religion.
The spread of Islam in the Caucasus on a large scale came much later and lasted until the end of the 19th century. So we can determine that the ancestors of the modern Kazan Tatars were the first to accept Islam.
Arabs-Muslims spread Islam through conquests. Such were the conditions of the time. The entire Middle East was pagan. But the Bulgars adopted it peacefully, on their own initiative. Such things are unusual for the 10th century.
But if the dates are correct, in the territory of modern Russia, Islam appeared before Christianity by half a century.
Why the Russian Population Converts to Christianity?
A unique controversy arose as to why some members of the Russian society, who had embraced Islam, decided to convert to Christianity. The key figure in this shift was Vladimir, the leader of Russia at that time. He rejected Islam because it prohibited the consumption of alcohol (khamr), which was deeply ingrained in the Russian culture. They argued that Russia was accustomed to alcohol and life without it seemed unimaginable. Vladimir found Christianity, or Nasrani, more realistic as it allowed the consumption of alcohol, and his decision was followed by the people.
“The Muslims are powerful but seem glum. They pray too often and do not seem to enjoy life. They seldom dance or listen to music, and … they forbid drinking.”
Vladimir famously replied: “Drinking is a joy to the Rus, we can not do without it.” Islam and Judaism were out, and the Orthodox Christianity of the Eastern church was in.
A similar occurrence took place among the Arab population, who had a strong fondness for alcohol. While ordinary people live by drinking plain water (mineral water), the Arabs had a saying, “We grew up because of alcohol, not water.” This adage highlights the inseparable connection between the Arab society and alcohol during that time, and eventually, they came to accept that alcohol had more harm than benefit.
