Agstafa
Encyclopedia
Aghstafa is a rayon in the northwestern Azerbaijan
.
was created on 24 January 1939 as an independent administrative unit out of larger Qazakh region of Azerbaijan. On 4 December 1959, the status of the raion was abolished and it was incorporated into Qazakh Rayon. Then on 14 April 1990 by the decree of the Council of Deputees of Azerbaijan SSR
, it was split from Qazakh raion and was again re-established as a separate raion. The regional center of the raion is its capital
Ağstafa
. The raion is located in the northwestern part of the country, between Qabirri basin and Lesser Caucasus
mountain range, and Ganja-Qazakh
lowlands and Ceyrançöl
highlands. It is sandwiched by Qazakh raion in the west and Tovuz raion in east, and borders Armenia
on the southern frontier and Georgia
on the northern.
The area of the raion is 1,503.7 km2. There are 36 villages in the raion. There are 39 secondary schools, lyceum, musical school, 2 museums, 38 cultural clubs, State Arts Gallery, 49 libraries, 3 city and 10 village hospitals functioning in the raion. Ganja, Qazakh and Qarayazi lowlands make up the most of the raion's area, whilst its southwestern and northeastern parts comprise lesser mountain sites.
which include mainly the population of Azerbaijan
, Turkey
and Turkmenistan
.
Ağstafa is a merger of two words: Oğuz + tayfa (Oghuz + tribe). However, some people argue that it is a merger of the other two words which are: Oğuz + təpə (Oghuz + hill).
, sand
, raw cement material (volcanic ash
) and other resources which are considered a core of the Agstafa economy. Kura River
passes through the region. Lower sections of Aghstafa
and Həsənsu rivers also flow through the raion. Agstafa has always been in the spotlight because of the historic Silk Way trade which went through the region. Caravans from and to Georgia and Iran would stop in Agstafa. It was therefore named the "Camel route". In the 1990s, the caravan route was re-established within the TRACECA
project initiated by Heydar Aliyev
administration. Then Agstafa gained importance when it became a transit route on the Baku-Tbilisi railroad built in 1881. A railroad junction at Agstafa was built in 1914 thus creating leading to construction of Agstafa city. In addition to the existing railway, the geostrategic importance of Agstafa was enriched by Baku-Gazakh-Tbilisi gas pipeline, Baku–Tbilisi–Ceyhan pipeline, Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum gas pipeline
.
and Aşağı
Kəsəmən and the town of Agstafa.
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan is the largest country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west, and Iran to...
.
Overview
Agstafa raionRaion
A raion is a type of administrative unit of several post-Soviet countries. The term, which is from French rayon 'honeycomb, department,' describes both a type of a subnational entity and a division of a city, and is commonly translated in English as "district"...
was created on 24 January 1939 as an independent administrative unit out of larger Qazakh region of Azerbaijan. On 4 December 1959, the status of the raion was abolished and it was incorporated into Qazakh Rayon. Then on 14 April 1990 by the decree of the Council of Deputees of Azerbaijan SSR
National Assembly of Azerbaijan
The National Assembly , also transliterated as Milli Majlis is the legislative branch of government in Azerbaijan. The unicameral National Assembly has 125 deputies: previously 100 members were elected for five-year terms in single-seat constituencies and 25 were members elected by proportional...
, it was split from Qazakh raion and was again re-established as a separate raion. The regional center of the raion is its capital
Ağstafa
Agstafa
-Overview:Agstafa raion was created on 24 January 1939 as an independent administrative unit out of larger Qazakh region of Azerbaijan. On 4 December 1959, the status of the raion was abolished and it was incorporated into Qazakh Rayon...
. The raion is located in the northwestern part of the country, between Qabirri basin and Lesser Caucasus
Lesser Caucasus
Lesser Caucasus is one of the two main mountain ranges of Caucasus mountains, of length about 600 km....
mountain range, and Ganja-Qazakh
lowlands and Ceyrançöl
Ceyrançöl
Ceyrançöl is a village in the municipality of Saloğlu in the Agstafa Rayon of Azerbaijan....
highlands. It is sandwiched by Qazakh raion in the west and Tovuz raion in east, and borders Armenia
Armenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
on the southern frontier and Georgia
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
on the northern.
The area of the raion is 1,503.7 km2. There are 36 villages in the raion. There are 39 secondary schools, lyceum, musical school, 2 museums, 38 cultural clubs, State Arts Gallery, 49 libraries, 3 city and 10 village hospitals functioning in the raion. Ganja, Qazakh and Qarayazi lowlands make up the most of the raion's area, whilst its southwestern and northeastern parts comprise lesser mountain sites.
Etymology
The area's name comes from the name of the Oghuz TurksOghuz Turks
The Turkomen also known as Oghuz Turks were a historical Turkic tribal confederation in Central Asia during the early medieval Turkic expansion....
which include mainly the population of Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan is the largest country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west, and Iran to...
, Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
and Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan , formerly also known as Turkmenia is one of the Turkic states in Central Asia. Until 1991, it was a constituent republic of the Soviet Union, the Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic . Turkmenistan is one of the six independent Turkic states...
.
Ağstafa is a merger of two words: Oğuz + tayfa (Oghuz + tribe). However, some people argue that it is a merger of the other two words which are: Oğuz + təpə (Oghuz + hill).
Economy
The region is rich with bentoniteBentonite
Bentonite is an absorbent aluminium phyllosilicate, essentially impure clay consisting mostly of montmorillonite. There are different types of bentonite, each named after the respective dominant element, such as potassium , sodium , calcium , and aluminum . Experts debate a number of nomenclatorial...
, sand
Sand
Sand is a naturally occurring granular material composed of finely divided rock and mineral particles.The composition of sand is highly variable, depending on the local rock sources and conditions, but the most common constituent of sand in inland continental settings and non-tropical coastal...
, raw cement material (volcanic ash
Volcanic ash
Volcanic ash consists of small tephra, which are bits of pulverized rock and glass created by volcanic eruptions, less than in diameter. There are three mechanisms of volcanic ash formation: gas release under decompression causing magmatic eruptions; thermal contraction from chilling on contact...
) and other resources which are considered a core of the Agstafa economy. Kura River
Kura River
Kura is a river, also known from the Greek as the Cyrus in the Caucasus Mountains. Starting in north-eastern Turkey, it flows through Turkey to Georgia, then to Azerbaijan, where it receives the Aras River as a right tributary, and enters the Caspian Sea...
passes through the region. Lower sections of Aghstafa
Aghstafa River
Aghstafa is a river in Armenia and Azerbaijan, and is a right tributary of the Kura River.Aghstafa has a length of 133 km, and a basin area of 2589 km². Along the river lie the cities of Dilijan, Ijevan, Gazakh and Aghstafa.-See also:...
and Həsənsu rivers also flow through the raion. Agstafa has always been in the spotlight because of the historic Silk Way trade which went through the region. Caravans from and to Georgia and Iran would stop in Agstafa. It was therefore named the "Camel route". In the 1990s, the caravan route was re-established within the TRACECA
TRACECA
TRACECA is an international transport programme involving the European Union and 14 member States of the Eastern European, Caucasian and Central Asian region. It has a permanent Secretariat, originally financed by the European Commission, in Baku, Azerbaijan, and a regional office in Odessa,...
project initiated by Heydar Aliyev
Heydar Aliyev
Heydar Alirza oglu Aliyev , also spelled as Heidar Aliev, Geidar Aliev, Haydar Aliyev, Geydar Aliyev was the third President of Azerbaijan for the New Azerbaijan Party from June 1993 to October 2003, when his son Ilham Aliyev succeeded him.From 1969 till 1982, Aliyev was also the leader of Soviet...
administration. Then Agstafa gained importance when it became a transit route on the Baku-Tbilisi railroad built in 1881. A railroad junction at Agstafa was built in 1914 thus creating leading to construction of Agstafa city. In addition to the existing railway, the geostrategic importance of Agstafa was enriched by Baku-Gazakh-Tbilisi gas pipeline, Baku–Tbilisi–Ceyhan pipeline, Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum gas pipeline
South Caucasus Pipeline
South Caucasus Pipeline is a natural gas pipeline to transport natural gas from the Shah Deniz gas field in the Azerbaijan sector of the Caspian Sea to Turkey...
.
Demography
The population of Agstafa raion is 78,983. Mostly populated villages are Dağ Kəsəmən, Köçəsgər, MuğanlıMuganli, Agstafa
Muğanlı is a village and municipality in the Agstafa Rayon of Azerbaijan. It has a population of 2,445....
and Aşağı
Kəsəmən and the town of Agstafa.
- Azeris - 98.7%
- Turks - 0.6 %
- Other - 0.7%
Prehistoric monuments
- Paleolithic tent settlement(Paleolithic)- village Kochesker
- Open Palaeolithic tent(Paleolithic)- village Tatli
- Toyratepe settlement(neolith(late Stone Age)-Bronze Age)-village Ashagi Goychali
- 1st Shomutepe settlement (neolith)-Aghstafa city
- Gargalar hill settlement (neolith)-village Girili
- Arzamastepe settlement (neolith)-settlement Vurgun
- Molla Nagi hill (Stone Age-eneolith)-village Kochesker
- Kichik tepe settlement (Stone Age, eneolith and Bronze Age)-village Ashagi Goyjali
- Chapiish settlement (eneolith-Bronze Age)-surrounding of Hasangulu river
- Chinlitepe settlement (eneolith)-village Tatli
- Ancient settlement and graveyard (choban dashi)(Bronze Age-Early Iron Age)-village Dagkesemen
- Jantepe settlement (Bronze Age)-Aghstafa city
- Sari gaznag graveyard (Bronze Age)- village Kochesker
- Alchagtepe settlement (Bronze Age-Iron Age)-village Tatli
- Alchagtepe settlement (Bronze Age)-village Tatli
- Gabagtepe settlement (Bronze Age-Iron Age)- village Pirili
- Yastitepe settlement (late Bronze Age)- Aghstafa city
- Durnatepe settlement(late Bronze Age-early Iron Age)- village Kochesker
- Boyuktepe settlement(late Bronze Age-early Iron Age)- village Kochesker
- Hasarlitepe settlement(late Bronze Age-early Iron Age)-village Yukhari Goyjali
- Saritepe settlement (late Bronze Age-early Iron Age)- village Yukhari Goyjali
- Goshatepe settlement (late Bronze Age-Iron Age)-village Yukhari Goyjali
- Hasarligala ancient settlement(late Bronze Age-Iron Age)-village Tatli
- 2nd Shomutepe settlement (Bronze Age-early Iron Age)- village Yukhari Goyjali
- Nadir bey hill settlement (late Bronze Age)-village Hasansu
- Agalig tepesi settlement (late Bronze Age-early Iron Age)-Aghstafa-Gazakh highway
- Aranchi hill settlement(late Bronze Age- Iron Age)- Aghstafa-Dagkesemen highway
- Deyirmantepe settlement (late Bronze Age- early Middle Age)- Dagkesemen highway
- Agtepe settlement (late Bronze Age-antic period)-village Ashagi Goyjali
- Maraltepe settlement (late Bronze Age-antic period)- village Ashagi Goyjali
- Shish Guzey sacred place (Iron Age)- village Kochesker
Ancient to modern monuments
- The David Gareja monastery complex (Keşiş Dağ in AzerbaijaniAzerbaijani languageAzerbaijani or Azeri or Torki is a language belonging to the Turkic language family, spoken in southwestern Asia by the Azerbaijani people, primarily in Azerbaijan and northwestern Iran...
) is partially located in this region and is subject to a border dispute between Georgian and Azerbaijani authorities. - Nekropol (antic period)-village Pirili
- Tatli Albanian temple (early Middle Ages)-between the villages Yukhari Goychali and Tatli
- Construction forked mountain air(middle age)- village Kochesker
- Settlement (4th-7th centuries)-village Dagkesemen
- Underground water-supply system(19th century)-village Kolkhalafli.
Prominent people from Agstafa
- Aslan Aslanov (1926–1995) - Doctor of philosophical sciences, the real member of the NA of the Republic of Azerbaijan, deserved scientific figure, rector of Azerbaijan State University of Arts (1977), the vice-president of the Azerbaijan Academy of Sciences and director of the Institute of Philosophy and Law(1988–1995).
- Baba Mirzayev (1940-2006) - The National artistNational ArtistNational Artist is a honorary title issued by some states as a highest recognition of artists for their significant contributions to the cultural heritage of the nation....
of the Azerbaijan Republic
- Bayram Bayramov (1935) - Candidate of technical sciences, owner of the order of "Glory", pensioner by the President, deserved rationalizer of Azerbaijan, the deputy of the chairman of Oil and Gas Extraction Office "Neft Dashlari" (from 1987).
- Huseyn Arif (1924-1992) - poet
- Ibrahim Rahimov (1849–1927) - The first psychiatrist-doctor of Azerbaijan.
- Ilyas Abdullayev (1913) the academician of NA of Azerbaijan SSR, the deputy of the chairman of the Council of the Ministers of Azerbaijan SSR (1948–1950), Minister of Agriculture (1950–1953), the first deputy of the chairman of the Council of the Ministers (1954–1958), the chairman of Presidium of the Supreme Council of Azerbaijan SSR (1958–1959), the deputy of the Supreme Councils of USSR and Azerbaijan SSR.
- Isa Huseynov (1928) - writer
- Museyib Allahverdiyev (1909–1969)- Hero of the Soviet Union(1945), commander of detachment.
- Nariman Hasanzade (1931) - poet
- Nizami Jafarov (1954) - philologist
- Nusrat Kasamanli (1946-2003) - poet
- Samedaga Agamalioglu(1867–1930)-famous revolutionary, the first deputy of Azerbaijan CEC (1921), the chairman of CEC of Azerbaijan SSR, one of the chairmen of CEC of TSFSR (1922–1929), the chairman of the committee of All-Union New Tukrish alphabet.
- Suleyman Tatliyev (1925)-the chief of the department of the affairs at the Council of the Ministers (1970–1978), the 1st deputy of the chairman of the Council of the Ministers (1978–1985), the chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Council of the Republic (1985–1989), the president of the House of Commerce and Industry of the Republic of Azerbaijan(from 1994), deputy of the Supreme Council of Azerbaijan SSR.
- Vidadi Babanli (1927) - writer