What is the shortest blade you all have encountered on a shashka?

[Nihl]

I feel as though the reason for these atypical *cough* Didi Xami *cough* mountings and blade variations is probably due to the fact they were considered to be a significant item of cultural expression/identity for the region. Similar to the many ethnic groups of the Caucasus identifying with the kindjal/qaddara as being their "national weapon", so too for transcaucasian people it seems that the didi xami was "their" weapon.

I say this, in case it isn't clear, because due to the various waves of turkish-fueled ethnic cleansing and assimilation, most people from this region seem to have forgotten about these weapons in the modern day, at least to the point where there is no longer any communication with the west in regards to their existence. I am of the opinion that these idiosyncratic yatagans come from the last attempts of these people to still make their "national weapon", recycling old bayonet and saber blades into crudely contorted vestiges of their formerly graceful sword type. The same notion goes for molding horns into forms that vaguely resemble the handles of traditional didi xami, but are missing the refined elegance that the old artisans were capable of when they were still permitted to craft the originals.

In other news, similar again to one of the examples Jim shared, I found on my computer another image of one of these neat little swords, though this one is much less decorated than the others.

PS - my term for these guys is "surmene qaddara", as I feel they match the surmene "style" the best, and in form most closely resemble the wide, single edged blade of the qaddara.