Alban Church at Kish Village
The Church of Kish, also known as the Church of Saint Elishe, is a 12th century Caucasian Alban church located in the village of Kish (Kiş) approximately 5 km north of Sheki, Azerbaijan. It has also served as a Caucasian Alban Apostolic Church.
After its use as a place of worship, the Church was turned into the private residence of a Georgian bishop until the 17th century. When Russia conquered the region in the early 18th century most of the people living in the village were Udis, an ancient native people of the Caucasus.
According to Robert Hewsen, an American historian and expert on the history of the South Caucasus, the Udi language was prevalent in north of the Kura River - an east-flowing river south of the Greater Caucasus Mountains, which drains the southern slopes into the Caspian Sea, until the 19th century.
