Barda, Azerbaijan
Encyclopedia
Barda is the capital city of the Barda Rayon in Azerbaijan
, located south of Yevlax and on the left bank of the Terter river. Once an Armenian town, and later the capital of Caucasian Albania
perhaps since the end of the fourth century, Barda became the chief city of the Islamic province of Arran, the classical Caucasian Albania, remaining so until the tenth century.
, acting under the orders of the Sasanian Emperor Peroz I
, had founded the settlement of Barda, which was initially called Perozabad, and replaced Qabala
as the capital of Caucasian Albania. According to the seventh century atlas, the Ashkharhats'uyts'
, attributed to Anania Shirakatsi
, Barda was known by the name of Partav (Partaw) during the period of late antiquity and was located in the region of Uti Aṛandznak in the province of Utik
', which was at that time in the possession of Albania. (The same author also mentions it among the provinces of Armenia). In 552, Partav was made the catholicosal seat of the Church of Caucasian Albania
. In the mid-seventh century, Javanshir
, the lord of Gardman
, led a movement that expelled the Persian marzpan from the province of Utik' and made Partav his capital and constructed churches and other buildings. His deeds were chronicled by the Armenian historian Movses Kaghankatvatsi
who hailed from a neighboring village.
) of the governor (ostikan
) of the province of al-Arminiya
. Its governors strengthened the defenses of the city in order to counter the invasions of the Khazars
attacking from the north. In 768, Catholicos of All Armenians Sion I Bavonats'i convoked an ecclesiastical council at Partav, which passed 24 canons largely concerning the administration of the Armenian Church and marriage practices. By the ninth to tenth centuries, Barda largely lost its economic importance to the nearby town of Ganja
; the seat of the Catholicos of the Church of Albania was also moved to Bardak (Berdakur), leaving Partav as a mere bishopric. According to the Muslim geographers Estakhri
, Ibn Hawqal
, and Al-Muqaddasi
, the distinctive Caucasian Albanian language
(which they called al-Raniya, or Arranian) persisted into early Islamic times, and was still spoken in Barda in the tenth century. Thus, Ibn Hawkal mentioned that the people of Barda spoke Arranian, while Estakhri stated that Arranian was the language of the "country of Barda". During this time, the city boasted a Muslim Arab population, as well as a substantial Christian community.
Referring to events in the late eleventh century, the twelfth-century Armenian historian Matthew of Edessa
described Partav as an "Armenian city ["K'aghak'n Hayots'"], which is also called Paytakaran
and located near the vast [Caspian] Sea."
The same Muslim geographers describe Barda as a flourishing town with a citadel, a mosque (the treasury of Arran was located here), a circuit wall and gates, and a Sunday bazaar
that was called "Keraki," "Korakī" or "al-Kurki" (a name derived from Greek kuriakos, the Lord’s Day and Sunday, as the Armenian word kiraki is). In 914, the city was captured by the Rus
, who occupied it for six months. In 943, it was attacked once more by the Rus and sacked. This may have been a factor in the decline of Barḏa in the second half of the 10th century, along with the raids and oppressions from the rulers of the neighboring regions, when the town lost ground to Beylaqan.
Although still the capital of a raion
, centuries of earthquakes and, finally, the Mongol invasions
destroyed much of the town's landmarks, with the exception of the fourteenth century tomb of Ahmad Zocheybana, built by architect Ahmad ibn Ayyub Nakhchivani. The mausoleum is a cylindrical brick tower, decorated with turquoise tiles. There is also the more recently built Imamzadeh Mosque, which has four minarets.
in 1994, is just a few kilometers west of Barda, near Terter.
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...
, located south of Yevlax and on the left bank of the Terter river. Once an Armenian town, and later the capital of Caucasian Albania
Caucasian Albania
Albania is a name for the historical region of the eastern Caucasus, that existed on the territory of present-day republic of...
perhaps since the end of the fourth century, Barda became the chief city of the Islamic province of Arran, the classical Caucasian Albania, remaining so until the tenth century.
Etymology
The name of the town derives from Old Armenian Partaw (Պարտաւ), itself from Iranian *pari-tāva- 'rampart', from *pari- 'around' and *tā̆v- 'to throw; to heap up'.Ancient
In the 460s AD, King Vache II of Caucasian AlbaniaCaucasian Albania
Albania is a name for the historical region of the eastern Caucasus, that existed on the territory of present-day republic of...
, acting under the orders of the Sasanian Emperor Peroz I
Peroz I
Peroz I Peroz I Peroz I (also Pirooz; Peirozes (Priscus, fr. 33); Perozes (Procopius, De Bello Pers. I. 3 and Agathias iv. 27; the modern form of the name is Perooz, Piruz, or the Arabized Ferooz, Firuz; Persian: پیروز "the Victor"), was the seventeenth Sassanid King of Persia, who ruled from 457...
, had founded the settlement of Barda, which was initially called Perozabad, and replaced Qabala
Qabala
Qabala is a rayon of Azerbaijan. Its administrative center is the historic town of Qəbələ, which in ancient times was known as the capital of Caucasian Albania....
as the capital of Caucasian Albania. According to the seventh century atlas, the Ashkharhats'uyts'
Ashkharatsuyts (Anania Shirakatsi)
Ashkharatsuyts is an early Medieval Armenian illustrated book by Anania Shirakatsi. It is about the geography of Armenia, Georgia, Caucasian Albania, Iran, Mesopotamia, etc....
, attributed to Anania Shirakatsi
Anania Shirakatsi
Anania Shirakatsi was an Armenian mathematician, astronomer and geographer. He is commonly attributed to having written the Geography .-Life:Scholars are split on where exactly Anania was born...
, Barda was known by the name of Partav (Partaw) during the period of late antiquity and was located in the region of Uti Aṛandznak in the province of Utik
Utik
Utik was a historic province of the Kingdom of Armenia and a region of Caucasian Albania. Most of the region is located within present-day Azerbaijan immediately west of the Kura River while a part of it lies within the Tavush province of present-day northeastern Armenia.-History:According to...
', which was at that time in the possession of Albania. (The same author also mentions it among the provinces of Armenia). In 552, Partav was made the catholicosal seat of the Church of Caucasian Albania
Church of Caucasian Albania
The Albanian Apostolic Church or the Church of Caucasian Albania was an ancient autocephalous church under the religious jurisdiction of the Armenian Apostolic Church that existed from the fifth century to 1830 and was centered in Caucasian Albania, a region mostly located in present day Azerbaijan...
. In the mid-seventh century, Javanshir
Javanshir
Javanshir , in old Albanian Our Lion, in Persian young lion, was the prince of Caucasian Albania from 643 to 681, hailing from the region of Gardman. His deeds are the subject of legends and epic...
, the lord of Gardman
Gardman
Gardman was one of the eight districts of the ancient province of Utik' in the Kingdom of Armenia and simultaneously, together with the district of Tush, an Armenian principality. In the Early Middle Ages a feudal state of Gardman emerged on the area of Caucasian Albania...
, led a movement that expelled the Persian marzpan from the province of Utik' and made Partav his capital and constructed churches and other buildings. His deeds were chronicled by the Armenian historian Movses Kaghankatvatsi
Movses Kaghankatvatsi
Movses Kaghankatvatsi , or Movses Daskhurantsi , is the reputed author of a 10th-century Old Armenian historiographical work on Caucasian Albania, known as The History of the Country of Albania .- Authorship :...
who hailed from a neighboring village.
Medieval
In about 645, Partav fell under the control of the Muslim Arabs and was referred to as "Barda" or "Barda'a" in Arabic. In ca. 789, it was made the second alternate capital (after DvinDvin
Dvin was a large commercial city and the capital of early medieval Armenia. It was situated north of the previous ancient capital of Armenia, the city of Artaxata, along the banks of the Metsamor River, 35 km to the south of modern Yerevan...
) of the governor (ostikan
Ostikan
Ostikan was the title of various oriental provincial governors.-Arab caliphate:After the prophet Mohammed and his testator heir and successor Abu Bakr has established the theocratic rule of Islam on most of the sparsely populated Arabian peninsula, the armies of the next caliphs victoriously...
) of the province of al-Arminiya
Emirate of Armenia
The Emirate of Armenia , also called the Principality of Armenia, refers to an aristocratic regime in early medieval Armenia that flourished in the period of interregnum between the seventh and ninth centuries, following the Marzpanate Period when the leading political authority was exercised by a...
. Its governors strengthened the defenses of the city in order to counter the invasions of the Khazars
Khazars
The Khazars were semi-nomadic Turkic people who established one of the largest polities of medieval Eurasia, with the capital of Atil and territory comprising much of modern-day European Russia, western Kazakhstan, eastern Ukraine, Azerbaijan, large portions of the northern Caucasus , parts of...
attacking from the north. In 768, Catholicos of All Armenians Sion I Bavonats'i convoked an ecclesiastical council at Partav, which passed 24 canons largely concerning the administration of the Armenian Church and marriage practices. By the ninth to tenth centuries, Barda largely lost its economic importance to the nearby town of Ganja
Ganja
Ganja is Azerbaijan's second-largest city with a population of around 313,300. It was named Yelizavetpol in the Russian Empire period. The city regained its original name—Ganja—from 1920–1935 during the first part of its incorporation into the Soviet Union. However, its name was changed again and...
; the seat of the Catholicos of the Church of Albania was also moved to Bardak (Berdakur), leaving Partav as a mere bishopric. According to the Muslim geographers Estakhri
Estakhri
Abu Ishaq Ibrahim ibn Muhammad al-Farisi al Istakhri was a medieval Persian geographer in the 10th century.-Career:...
, Ibn Hawqal
Ibn Hawqal
Muḥammad Abū’l-Qāsim Ibn Ḥawqal was a 10th century Muslim writer, geographer, and chronicler. His famous work, written in 977, is called Ṣūrat al-’Arḍ ....
, and Al-Muqaddasi
Al-Muqaddasi
Muhammad ibn Ahmad Shams al-Din Al-Muqaddasi , also transliterated as Al-Maqdisi and el-Mukaddasi, was a medieval Arab geographer, author of Ahsan at-Taqasim fi Ma`rifat il-Aqalim .-Biography:Al-Muqaddasi, "the Hierosolomite" was born in Jerusalem in 946 AD...
, the distinctive Caucasian Albanian language
Caucasian Albanian language
Caucasian Albanian, Aghwan or Old Udi, is an extinct member of the Caucasian language family. It was spoken in Caucasian Albania, which stretched from current day south Dagestan to Azerbaijan...
(which they called al-Raniya, or Arranian) persisted into early Islamic times, and was still spoken in Barda in the tenth century. Thus, Ibn Hawkal mentioned that the people of Barda spoke Arranian, while Estakhri stated that Arranian was the language of the "country of Barda". During this time, the city boasted a Muslim Arab population, as well as a substantial Christian community.
Referring to events in the late eleventh century, the twelfth-century Armenian historian Matthew of Edessa
Matthew of Edessa
Matthew of Edessa was an Armenian historian in the 12th century from the city of Edessa . Matthew was the superior abbot of Karmir Vank' , near the town of Kessoun, east of Marash , the former seat of Baldwin of Boulogne...
described Partav as an "Armenian city ["K'aghak'n Hayots'"], which is also called Paytakaran
Paytakaran
Paytakaran was the easternmost province of the Kingdom of Armenia. The province was located in the area of the lower courses of the rivers of Kura and Araks, adjacent to the Caspian sea. Today, the area is located in the territory of modern day southeastern Azerbaijan and northwestern Iran.-...
and located near the vast [Caspian] Sea."
The same Muslim geographers describe Barda as a flourishing town with a citadel, a mosque (the treasury of Arran was located here), a circuit wall and gates, and a Sunday bazaar
Bazaar
A bazaar , Cypriot Greek: pantopoula) is a permanent merchandising area, marketplace, or street of shops where goods and services are exchanged or sold. The term is sometimes also used to refer to the "network of merchants, bankers and craftsmen" who work that area...
that was called "Keraki," "Korakī" or "al-Kurki" (a name derived from Greek kuriakos, the Lord’s Day and Sunday, as the Armenian word kiraki is). In 914, the city was captured by the Rus
Caspian expeditions of the Rus
The Caspian expeditions of the Rus were military raids undertaken by the Rus' between 864 and 1041 on the Caspian Sea shores. Initially, the Rus' appeared in Serkland in the 9th century traveling as merchants along the Volga trade route, selling furs, honey, and slaves. The first small-scale raids...
, who occupied it for six months. In 943, it was attacked once more by the Rus and sacked. This may have been a factor in the decline of Barḏa in the second half of the 10th century, along with the raids and oppressions from the rulers of the neighboring regions, when the town lost ground to Beylaqan.
Although still the capital of a raion
Raion
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"...
, centuries of earthquakes and, finally, the Mongol invasions
Mongol invasions
Mongol invasions progressed throughout the 13th century, resulting in the vast Mongol Empire which covered much of Asia and Eastern Europe by 1300....
destroyed much of the town's landmarks, with the exception of the fourteenth century tomb of Ahmad Zocheybana, built by architect Ahmad ibn Ayyub Nakhchivani. The mausoleum is a cylindrical brick tower, decorated with turquoise tiles. There is also the more recently built Imamzadeh Mosque, which has four minarets.
Modern
Agriculture is the main activity in the area. Local economy is based on the production and processing of cotton, silk, poultry and dairy products. The cease fire line, concluded at the end of the Nagorno-Karabakh WarNagorno-Karabakh War
The Nagorno-Karabakh War was an armed conflict that took place from February 1988 to May 1994, in the small enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh in southwestern Azerbaijan, between the majority ethnic Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh backed by the Republic of Armenia, and the Republic of Azerbaijan...
in 1994, is just a few kilometers west of Barda, near Terter.
Further reading
- Ter-Ghevondyan, Aram NAram Ter-GhevondyanAram Ter-Ghevondyan was a preeminent Armenian historian and scholar who specialized in the study of historical sources and medieval Armenia's relations with the Islamic world and Oriental studies. His seminal work, The Arab Emirates in Bagratuni Armenia, is an important study on the Bagratuni...
. (1976). The Arab Emirates in Bagratid Armenia. Trans. Nina G. Garsoïan. Lisbon: Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation. - Ulubabyan, Bagrat. Դրվագներ Հայոց արևելից կողմանց պատմության (Episodes from the History of the Eastern Regions of Armenia). Yerevan: Armenian Academy of Sciences, 1981.