Encyclopedia
Azerbaijan , officially the
Republic of Azerbaijan , is a country in the South
Caucasus. Located at the crossroads of
Eastern Europe and
Southwest Asia, 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 the south. The
Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic borders Armenia to the north and east, Iran to the south and west, and
Turkey to the northwest. The
Nagorno-Karabakh region in the country's southwest declared itself independent from Azerbaijan in 1991, but it is
not recognized by any nation.
Azerbaijan is a secular state, and has been a member of the
Council of Europe since 2001. The
Azerbaijani people are the majority population, most of whom are adherents of
Shi'a Islam. The country is formally an emerging
democracy, however with strong authoritarian rule.
Etymology
There are several hypotheses regarding the origins of the name "Azerbaijan." The most common theory is that Azerbaijan was eponymously named after
Atropates, an
Iranian Median satrap , who ruled a region found in modern Iranian Azarbaijan called
Atropatene. Atropates name is believed to be derived from the
Old Persian roots meaning "protected by fire."
There are also alternative opinions that the term is a slight Turkification of
Azarbaijan, in turn an Arabicized version of the original Persian name
Âzarâbâdagân, made up of
âzar+âbadag+ân ; that it traditionally means "the land of eternal flames" or "the land of fire", which probably implies
Zoroastrian fire temples in this land. Some Azeri historians contend that the name is made up of four
Azerbaijani components:
az+er+bay+can, which means "the land of the brave Az people" or "an elevated place for the wealthy and exalted." Azerbaijan is also poetically called
Odlar Yurdu .
History
The earliest known inhabitants of what is today Azerbaijan were the
Caucasian Albanians, a
Caucasian-speaking people who appear to have been in the region prior to the host of peoples who would eventually invade the Caucasus. Historically Azerbaijan has been inhabited by a variety of peoples, including
Persians, Greeks,
Romans,
Armenians, Arabs,
Turks,
Mongols and
Russians.
The first kingdom to emerge in the territory of present-day Republic of Azerbaijan was Mannae in the 9th century BC, lasting until 616 BC when it became part of the
Median Empire, which later became part of the
Persian Empire in 549 BC. The satrapies of Atropatene and
Caucasian Albania were established in the 4th century BC and included the approximate territories of the present-day Azerbaijan nation-state and southern parts of
Dagestan.
Islam spread rapidly in Azerbaijan following the Arab conquests in the
7th–
8th centuries. After the power of the Arab Khalifate waned, several semi-independent states have been formed, the Shirvanshah kingdom being one of them. In the 11th century, the conquering
Seljuk Turks became the dominant force in Azerbaijan and laid the ethnic foundation of contemporary
Azerbaijanis. In the
13-
14th centuries, the country experienced
Mongol-
Tatar invasions.
Azerbaijan was part of the
Safavid Persian Empire during the
15th–
18th centuries. It also underwent a brief period of feudal fragmentation in the mid-18th to early 19th centuries, and consisted of independent khanates. Following the two wars between
Qajar Persian Empire, as well as the Ganja, Guba, Baku and other independent khanates, and the
Russian Empire, Azerbaijan was acquired by Russia through the Treaty of Gulistan in 1813, and the Treaty of Turkmenchay in 1828, and several earlier treaties between the Russian tsar and the khans concluded in the first decade of the 19th century. In 1873, oil was discovered in the city of
Baku, Azerbaijan's future capital. By the beginning of the 20th century almost half of the oil reserves in the world had been extracted in Baku.
After the collapse of the Russian Empire during
World War I, Azerbaijan together with Armenia and Georgia became part of the short-lived
Transcaucasian Democratic Federative Republic. When the republic dissolved in May 1918, Azerbaijan declared independence as the
Azerbaijan Democratic Republic. The name of the new state, which historically was mostly used to refer to the province of Iran, drew protests from some Iranians, who suspected that it was chosen with the purposes of detaching the
Azerbaijan province from Iran, even though the proclamation of independence of Azerbaijan limited the territory of the new state to the areas north of the Araxes river. The ADR was the first Muslim republic in the world and lasted only two years, from 1918 to 1920, before the
Soviet Red Army invaded Azerbaijan. In March 1922, Azerbaijan, along with Armenia and Georgia, became part of the
Transcaucasian SFSR within the newly-formed
Soviet Union. In 1936, the TSFSR was dissolved and Azerbaijan became constituent republic of the USSR as the
Azerbaijan SSR.
During
World War II,
Nazi Germany invaded the Soviet Union. The primarily objective of
Adolf Hitler's
Operation Edelweiss offensive was to capture Azerbaijan's oil-rich capital of Baku. For the war effort, Soviet oil workers were obliged to work non-stop and citizens were to dig entrenchments and antitank obstacles into order to block a possible enemy invasion. However, Operation Edelweiss was unsuccessful. The German army was at first stalled in the mountains of
Caucasus, then decisevely defeated at the
Battle of Stalingrad.
In 1990, Azeris gathered to protest Soviet rule and push for independence. The demonstrations were brutally suppressed by Soviet intervention in what Azeris today refer to as Black January. In 1991, however, Azerbaijan re-established its independence upon the collapse of the Soviet Union. Unfortunately, the early years of its independence were overshadowed by a
war with Armenia and separatist Armenians over the region of
Nagorno-Karabakh. Despite a
cease-fire in place since 1994, Azerbaijan has yet to resolve its conflict with Armenia over the predominantly ethnic Armenian territory. Since the end of the war, Azerbaijan lost control of 14 - 16% of its territory including Nagorno-Karabakh itself. As a result of the conflict, both countries faced problems with
refugees and internally displaced persons as well as economic hardships.
However, former Soviet Azeri leader
Heydar Aliyev changed this pattern in Azerbaijan and sought to exploit its wealthy oil reserves in Baku, something that Azerbaijan has become famous for. Aliyev also cleaned up gambling and was able to cut down the country's unemployment rate substantially. He also sought closer relations with Turkey while simultaneously making efforts to resolve the Karabakh conflict peacefully with Armenia. However, the political situation in Azerbaijan remains tense especially after Aliyev, upon his death, selected his son Ilham to assume the duties of president. Azeri opposition forces are not satisfied with this new dynastical succession and are pushing for a more democratic government.
Politics
Azerbaijan is a
presidential republic. The
head of state and head of government are separate from the country’s law-making body. The people elect the president for a five-year term of office. The president appoints all cabinet-level government administrators. A fifty-member national assembly makes the country’s laws. The people of Azerbaijan elect the National Assembly. Azerbaijan has universal suffrage above the age of eighteen.
After the presidential elections of October 15, 2003, an official release of the Central Election Committee gave
Isa Qambar — leader of the largest opposition bloc, Bizim Azarbaycan — 14% percent of the electorate and the second place in election. Third, with 3.6%, came Lala Sövkat, leader of the National Unity Movement, the first woman to run in presidential election in Azerbaijan. Nevertheless, the
OSCE, the
Council of Europe,
Human Rights Watch and other international organizations, as well as local independent political and NGOs voiced concern about observed vote rigging and a badly flawed counting process.
Several independent local and international organizations that had been observing and monitoring the election directly or indirectly declared Isa Gambar winner in the 15 October election. Another view shared by many international organisations is that in reality a second tour of voting should have taken place between the two opposition candidates Isa Gambar and Lala Shevket.
- Human Rights Watch commented on these elections: "Human Rights Watch research found that the government has heavily intervened in the campaigning process in favor of Prime Minister Ilham Aliev, son of current President Heidar Aliev. The government has stacked the Central Election Commission and local election commission with its supporters, and banned local non-governmental organizations from monitoring the vote. As the elections draw nearer, government officials have openly sided with the campaign of Ilham Aliev, constantly obstructing opposition rallies and attempting to limit public participation in opposition events. In some cases, local officials have closed all the roads into town during opposition rallies, or have extended working and school hours—on one occasion, even declaring Sunday a workday—to prevent participation in opposition rallies".
Azerbaijan held parliamentary elections on Sunday, 6 November 2005.
U.S. President George W. Bush noted, that "Azerbaijan is a modern Muslim country that is able to provide for its citizens and understands that democracy is the wave of the future".
Azerbaijan was elected as one the members of the newly established Human Rights Council by the General Assembly on 9 May 2006. Term of office will begin on 19 June 2006.
Administrative divisions
Azerbaijan is divided into fifty-nine raions , 11
cities , and one autonomous republic ,
Nakhichevan. Nakhichevan itself is subdivided into seven rayons and one city. The city of
Baku is the capital of Azerbaijan.
Geography
Azerbaijan contains 9 out of the 11 climatic zones. It is arid, dry, and subtropical with hot summers and mild winters. Temperatures vary by season and area. In the southeast lowland, temperatures average 6 °
C in the winter and 26 °C in the summer — though daily maxima typically reach 32 °C . In the northern and western
mountain ranges, temperatures average 12 °C in the summer and –9 °C in the winter.
Annual rainfall over most of the country varies from 200 to 400 millimetres and is generally lowest in the northeast. In the far southeast, however, the climate is much moister and annual rainfall can be as high as 1300 millimetres . For most of the country, the wettest periods are in spring and autumn, with summers being the driest.
Economy
Azerbaijan's economy is largely based on
industry. Industries include machine manufacture,
petroleum and other
mining, petroleum refining,
textile production, and chemical processing.
Agriculture accounts for one-third of Azerbaijan’s economy. Most of the nation’s farms are
irrigated. In the lowlands, farmers grow such crops as
cotton,
fruit,
grain,
tea,
tobacco, and many types of
vegetables.
Silkworms are raised for the production of natural
silk for the clothing industry. Azerbaijan’s herders raise
cattle,
domestic sheep and
goats near the mountain ranges.
Seafood, including
caviar and
fish are obtained from the nearby
Caspian Sea. Azerbaijan has a highly dynamic economy, mainly because of oil, and has a GDP growth rate of up to 11% a year.
Demographics
Azerbaijan has population of 8.5 million , 90.6% of whom are ethnic
Azerbaijani . Azeris also form the second biggest ethnic group and around 24% of the population of
Iran, predominating in the northwestern regions of the country. The second largest ethnic group is
Russians, who now form roughly 1.8% of the population, most having emigrated since independence. Numerous 'Dagestani' peoples live around the border with
Dagestan. The main peoples are the
Lezgis,
Avars and the Tsakhurs. Smaller groups include the Budukh, Udins, Kryts and Khinalug/Ketsh around the village of
Xinaliq.
Azerbaijan also contains numerous smaller groups, such as
Georgians,
Kurds, Talysh,
Tatars and
Ukrainians. Some people argue that the number of Talysh is greater than officially recorded, as many of them are counted as Azerbaijanis.Around the town of
Quba in the north live the Tats, also known as the
Mountain Jews, who are also to be found in Dagestan. Many Tats have emigrated to
Israel in recent years, though this trend has slowed and even reversed more recently.
The country’s large Armenian population mostly fled to
Armenia and to other countries with the beginning of the Armenian-Azeri conflict over
Nagorno-Karabakh. During the same period, Azerbaijan also received a large influx of Azerbaijanis fleeing Armenia and later Nagorno-Karabakh and adjacent provinces occupied by the Armenians. Virtually all of Azerbaijan’s Armenians now live in Nagorno-Karabakh.
Azerbaijan is 93.4%
Muslim and most Azerbaijanis are very nominal Twelver Shia
Muslim. They represent about 60–70% of the Muslim population. Other
religions or beliefs that are followed by many in the country are the orthodox Sunni Islam, the
Armenian Apostolic Church , the
Russian Orthodox Church, and various other Christian and Muslim sects. The Tats in
Quba, as well as several thousand
Ashkenazim Jews in Baku, follow
Judaism. Adherence to religious dogmas is nominal for the majority of the population and attitudes are secular. Traditionally, villages around Baku and the
Lenkoran region are considered stronghold of Shi‘ism, and in some northern regions populated by Sunni Dagestani people, the Salafi sect has gained a following. Folk Islam is widely practiced, but an organized
Sufi movement is absent.
Culture
The official language of Azerbaijan is
Azerbaijani, a member of the
Oguz subdivision of the
Turkic language family, and is spoken by around 95% of the republic’s population, as well as about a quarter of the population of Iran. Its closest relatives in language are
Turkish and
Turkmen. As a result of the language policy of the
Soviet Union,
Russian is also commonly spoken as a second language among the urbane.
Photographs of Azerbaijan
See also
References
- Forrest, Brett . "Over a Barrel in Baku". Fortune, pp. 54–60.
External links
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