[3] The most ancient part of "Tarikh Dagestan" can be considered its beginning – a story about the pagan Avar lands, about the income of Nutsal (ruler) and the former greatness of the rulers of Avar lands, known in Arabic historical and geographical literature of the 9th–10th centuries under the name Sarir.
[6] In the structure of the chronicle, four independent directions of narration can be distinguished:[7] the fate of paganism and the rulers of the Avar region (Avaria), Islamization of the Dagestan population; the struggle of the Dagestanis against the Mongol invaders,[8] feudalism in Dagestan and the shamkhal rulers of the 14th-century.
[9][10] Vladimir Minorsky suggested dating the work to the 13th-century,[11] with which the Soviet Caucasian specialist L. Lavrov agreed.
[13] It is noteworthy to mention that list No.38 was used by Abbasgulu Bakikhanov in "Golestan-e Eram".
[4] Vladimir Minorsky also wrote: “This is a collection of local legends about some descendants of the “Uncles of the Prophet”, who allegedly emigrated to Dagestan from Syria.