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The termsRussians of the Caucasus;Caucasus Russians;Caucasian Russians; orKrasnodar Russians all refer to ethnicRussians living in theCaucasus. These terms are specific to a community of Russians because the North Caucasus is part of theRussian Federation, and Russians here are not outside of Russia, but they are in a part of Russia where as a whole Russians are an ethnic minority. The regions ofKrasnodar Krai;Stavropol Krai;Astrakhan Oblast; andRostov Oblast are not considered ethnic territories unlike most other Caucasian republics because they have a Russian majority, and they are part of Russia.
There was always a small Russian community in the north of the Caucasus, whose boundary is generally accepted as theVolga river. This is due to its location nearRostov, a prominent Russian city in medieval times, and today an important city. The existence of a large and notable Russian community is generally thought to have come about during theRussian conquest of the Caucasus. The vast expanses of the north with no dominant native ethnic group with today a Russian majority were probably inhabited byTatars, who in fact still form the majority in parts of the northern Caucasus.