Based on analysis of the data obtained by Russian and West European authors of the XVIII-XIX^th centuries the study considers the boundaries and the population of large and influential Dagestan political union - Tarkovsky Shamakhalstvo. Due to its favorable geographical position Tarkovsky state played an important role in the political processes that took place in Dagestan. A considerable segment of the trans-Caucasus Caspian rout which had a significant impact on the socio-economic and cultural-historical development of the province’s population laid through its territory.

Key words: Caucasus, Kumykiya, Tarkovsky Shamhalstvo, Tarky, Biylick, feudals, rural society.