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Of the nation's religious minorities, the estimated , Christians 3. State Department report on the matter mentions detention of members of certain Muslim and Christian groups, and many groups have difficulty registering with the SCWRA. A relatively high percentage of Azerbaijanis have obtained some form of higher education, most notably in scientific and technical subjects. According to Soviet data, percent of males and females ages nine to forty-nine were literate in Since independence, one of the first laws that Azerbaijan's Parliament passed to disassociate itself from the Soviet Union was to adopt a modified-Latin alphabet to replace Cyrillic.
Initial alterations have included the reestablishment of religious education banned during the Soviet period and curriculum changes that have reemphasized the use of the Azerbaijani language and have eliminated ideological content. In addition to elementary schools, the education institutions include thousands of preschools, general secondary schools, and vocational schools , including specialized secondary schools and technical schools. Education through the eighth grade is compulsory.
The culture of Azerbaijan has developed as a result of many influences. Today, national traditions are well preserved in the country despite Western influences, including globalized consumer culture. Some of the main elements of the Azerbaijani culture are: The latter is derived from the traditional celebration of the New Year in the ancient Iranian religion of Zoroastrianism.
Novruz is a family holiday. The profile of Azerbaijan's population consists, as stated above, of Azerbaijanis, as well as other nationalities or ethnic groups, compactly living in various areas of the country. Azerbaijani national and traditional dresses are the Chokha and Papakhi. There are radio broadcasts in Russian, Georgian , Kurdish , Lezgian and Talysh languages, which are financed from the state budget.
Music of Azerbaijan builds on folk traditions that reach back nearly a thousand years. Mugham , meykhana and ashiq art are among the many musical traditions of Azerbaijan. Mugham is usually a suite with poetry and instrumental interludes. When performing mugham, the singers have to transform their emotions into singing and music. In contrast to the mugham traditions of Central Asian countries, Azerbaijani mugham is more free-form and less rigid; it is often compared to the improvised field of jazz.
Meykhana is a kind of traditional Azerbaijani distinctive folk unaccompanied song, usually performed by several people improvising on a particular subject. Ashiq combines poetry, storytelling, dance and vocal and instrumental music into a traditional performance art that stands as a symbol of Azerbaijani culture. It is a mystic troubadour or traveling bard who sings and plays the saz. This tradition has its origin in the Shamanistic beliefs of ancient Turkic peoples. Since the mids, Western-influenced Azerbaijani pop music , in its various forms, that has been growing in popularity in Azerbaijan, while genres such as rock and hip hop are widely produced and enjoyed.
Azerbaijan made its debut appearance at the Eurovision Song Contest. The country's entry gained third place in and fifth the following year. There are dozens of Azerbaijani folk dances. They are performed at formal celebrations and the dancers wear national clothes like the Chokha , which is well-preserved within the national dances.
Most dances have a very fast rhythm. The national dance shows the characteristics of the Azerbaijani nation. The earliest known figure in Azerbaijani literature was Izzeddin Hasanoglu , who composed a divan consisting of Persian and Turkic ghazals. Classical literature in Azerbaijani was formed in the 14th century based on the various Early Middle Ages dialects of Tabriz and Shirvan. The Book of Dede Korkut consists of two manuscripts copied in the 16th century, [] was not written earlier than the 15th century. Benefiting immensely from the fine literary traditions of his environment, and building upon the legacy of his predecessors, Fizuli was destined to become the leading literary figure of his society.
In the same century, Azerbaijani literature further flourished with the development of Ashik Azerbaijani: A unique literary style known as qoshma Azerbaijani: Modern literature in Azerbaijan is based on the Shirvani dialect mainly, while in Iran it is based on the Tabrizi one. The first newspaper in Azerbaijani, Akinchi was published in In the midth century, it was taught in the schools of Baku , Ganja , Shaki , Tbilisi , and Yerevan.
Since , it has also been taught in the University of Saint Petersburg in Russia. Azerbaijanis have a rich and distinctive culture, a major part of which is decorative and applied art.
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This form of art is represented by a wide range of handicrafts, such as chasing, jeweler, engraving in metal, carving in wood, stone and bone, carpet-making, lasing, pattern weaving and printing, knitting and embroidery. Each of these types of decorative art, evidence of the endowments of the Azerbaijan nation, is very much in favor here. Many interesting facts pertaining to the development of arts and crafts in Azerbaijan were reported by numerous merchants, travelers and diplomats who had visited these places at different times. The Azerbaijani carpet is a traditional handmade textile of various sizes, with dense texture and a pile or pile-less surface, whose patterns are characteristic of Azerbaijan's many carpet-making regions.
Azerbaijan has been since the ancient times known as a center of a large variety of crafts. The archeological dig on the territory of Azerbaijan testifies to the well developed agriculture, stock raising, metal working, pottery, ceramics, and carpet-weaving that date as far back as to the 2nd millennium BC. Azerbaijani carpets can be categorized under several large groups and a multitude of subgroups.
Scientific research of the Azerbaijani carpet is connected with the name of Latif Kerimov , a prominent scientist and artist. It was his classification that related the four large groups of carpets with the four geographical zones of Azerbaijan, Guba-Shirvan, Ganja-Kazakh, Karabakh and Tabriz. The traditional cuisine is famous for an abundance of vegetables and greens used seasonally in the dishes. Fresh herbs, including mint, cilantro coriander , dill, basil, parsley, tarragon, leeks, chives, thyme, marjoram, green onion, and watercress, are very popular and often accompany main dishes on the table.
Climatic diversity and fertility of the land are reflected in the national dishes, which are based on fish from the Caspian Sea , local meat mainly mutton and beef , and an abundance of seasonal vegetables and greens. Saffron-rice plov is the flagship food in Azerbaijan and black tea is the national beverage.
Azerbaijani architecture typically combines elements of East and West. Among other architectural treasures are Quadrangular Castle in Mardakan , Parigala in Yukhary Chardaglar , a number of bridges spanning the Aras River, and several mausoleums. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, little monumental architecture was created, but distinctive residences were built in Baku and elsewhere. Among the most recent architectural monuments, the Baku subways are noted for their lavish decor. The task for modern Azerbaijani architecture is diverse application of modern aesthetics, the search for an architect's own artistic style and inclusion of the existing historico-cultural environment.
Azerbaijani art includes one of the oldest art objects in the world, which were discovered as Gamigaya Petroglyphs in the territory of Ordubad Rayon are dated back to the 1st to 4th centuries BC. About dislodged and carved rock paintings with images of deer, goats, bulls, dogs, snakes, birds, fantastic beings and also people, carriages and various symbols had been found out on basalt rocks.
Over the centuries, Azerbaijani art has gone through many stylistic changes. Azerbaijani painting is traditionally characterized by a warmth of colour and light, as exemplified in the works of Azim Azimzade and Bahruz Kangarli , and a preoccupation with religious figures and cultural motifs. The film industry in Azerbaijan dates back to In fact, Azerbaijan was among the first countries involved in cinematography.
Just like today, the oil industry attracted foreigners eager to invest and to work. This also influenced the creation of Azerbaijani animation. In December , the former President of Azerbaijan, Heydar Aliyev, signed a decree proclaiming 2 August to be the professional holiday of filmmakers of Azerbaijan. Today Azerbaijani filmmakers are again dealing with issues similar to those faced by cinematographers prior to the establishment of the Soviet Union in Once again, both choice of content and sponsorship of films are largely left up to the initiative of the filmmaker.
There are three state-owned television channels: One public channel and 6 private channels: The Constitution of Azerbaijan claims to guarantee freedom of speech, but this is denied in practice. After several years of decline in press and media freedom, in , the media environment in Azerbaijan deteriorated rapidly under a governmental campaign to silence any opposition and criticism, even while the country led the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe May—November Spurious legal charges and impunity in violence against journalists have remained the norm.
According to the Freedom House Freedom of the Press report , Azerbaijan's press freedom status is "not free," and Azerbaijan ranks th out of countries. During the last few years, [ when?
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Azerbaijan had the biggest number of journalists imprisoned in Europe and Central Asia in , according to the Committee to Protect Journalists , and is the 5th most censored country in the world, ahead of Iran and China. A report by an Amnesty International researcher in October points to ' Sadly Azerbaijan has been allowed to get away with unprecedented levels of repression and in the process almost wipe out its civil society'. Human rights organizations remained unable to resume their work. At least 18 prisoners of conscience remained in detention at the end of the year. Reprisals against independent journalists and activists persisted both in the country and abroad, while their family members also faced harassment and arrests.
International human rights monitors were barred and expelled from the country. Reports of torture and other ill-treatment persisted. Leaked data shows that the Azerbaijani leadership, accused of serial human rights abuses, systemic corruption and rigging elections, made more than 16, covert payments from to Freestyle wrestling has been traditionally regarded as Azerbaijan's national sport , in which Azerbaijan won up to fourteen medals , including four golds since joining the National Olympic Committee.
Currently, the most popular sports include football and wrestling. Football is the most popular sport in Azerbaijan, and the Association of Football Federations of Azerbaijan with 9, registered players, is the largest sporting association in the country. Backgammon also plays a major role in Azerbaijani culture. Azerbaijan Women's Volleyball Super League is one of strongest women leagues in world.
Its women's national team came fourth at the European Championship. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. This article is about the independent country in the Caucasus. For other uses, see Azerbaijan disambiguation. Republic in Western Asia and Eastern Europe. Location of Azerbaijan green and Artsakh [a] light green. Atropatene and Caucasian Albania. Extreme points of Azerbaijan. Fauna of Azerbaijan and Flora of Azerbaijan. Elections in Azerbaijan and Human rights in Azerbaijan. Foreign relations of Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan and the European Union.
Administrative divisions of Azerbaijan. Largest cities or towns in Azerbaijan Demographic statistics according to the administrative divisions , Azerbaijan State Statistics Committee. Petroleum industry in Azerbaijan. Transportation in Azerbaijan and Rail transport in Azerbaijan. Ethnic minorities in Azerbaijan.
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List of cities in Azerbaijan. Religions in Azerbaijan [] Islam. Religion in Azerbaijan and Freedom of religion in Azerbaijan. Culture of Azerbaijan and Literature of Azerbaijan. Music of Azerbaijan and Azerbaijani dances. Visual arts of Azerbaijan. Cinema of Azerbaijan , Azerbaijani animation , and Television in Azerbaijan. Media of Azerbaijan and Media freedom in Azerbaijan.
Human rights in Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan portal Europe portal Asia portal. In Elgie, Robert ; Moestrup, Sophia. Semi-Presidentialism in the Caucasus and Central Asia. Palgrave Macmillan published 15 May LaPorte examines the dynamics of semi-presidentialism in Azerbaijan. The author compares formal Constitutional provisions with the practice of politics in the country, suggesting that formal and informal sources of authority come together to enhance the effective powers of the presidency.
Retrieved 13 December United Nations Development Programme. Retrieved 21 March Conversely, some sources place Azerbaijan in Europe such as Worldatlas. A Borderland in Transition. The Formation of the Soviet Union: Communism and Nationalism — 2nd ed. New York University Press.
Archived from the original on 3 May Retrieved 4 January Archived from the original on 9 June Retrieved 26 May Eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States.
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Archived from the original on 20 December Retrieved 3 January Indicative of general regional trends and a natural reemergence of previously oppressed religious identity, an increasingly popular ideological basis for the pursuit of political objectives has been Islam The government, for its part, has shown an official commitment to Islam by building mosques and respecting Islamic values Unofficial Islamic groups sought to use aspects of Islam to mobilize the population and establish the foundations for a future political struggle Unlike Turkey, Azerbaijan does not have the powerful ideological legacy of secularism All major political forces are committed to secularism and are based, if anything, on a nationalist agenda.
Archived from the original on 22 July Retrieved 24 July Retrieved 6 March First Encyclopaedia of Islam — reprint ed. John Wiley and Sons. Alexander the Great in Fact and fiction. Historical Dictionary of Azerbaijan. Book Of Common Prayer reprint ed. Iranian and Greek Influences". Retrieved 7 June Iran and the First World War: Battleground of the Great Powers. Ethnicity and the Struggle for Power in Iran.
Hrair; Simonian, Hovann H. The Geopolitics of the Caspian Region. Until , when the Musavat regime decided to name the newly independent state Azerbaijan, this designation had been used exclusively to identify the Iranian province of Azerbaijan. Ethno-territorial conflict and coexistence in the caucasus, Central Asia and Fereydan: The region to the north of the river Araxes was not called Azerbaijan prior to , unlike the region in northwestern Iran that has been called since so long ago.
In the post Islamic sense, Arran and Shirvan are often distinguished, while in the pre-Islamic era, Arran or the western Caucasian Albania roughly corresponds to the modern territory of the Republic of Azerbaijan. In the Soviet era, in a breathtaking manipulation, historical Azerbaijan northwestern Iran was reinterpreted as "South Azerbaijan" in order for the Soviets to lay territorial claim on historical Azerbaijan proper which is located in modern-day northwestern Iran.
The Russian Survey of the Khanate of Shirvan: The languages of the Soviet Union. Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences. Archived from the original PDF on 16 November Retrieved 27 May University of Chicago Press. The new Central Asia: The evolution of middle eastern landscapes: Politics, Energy and Security. Armenia, the survival of a nation. Tsitsianov next moved against the semi-independent Iranian khanates.
On the thinnest of pretexts he captured the Muslim town of Gandja, the seat of Islamic learning in the Caucasus From Conflict to Autonomy in the Caucasus: Even though these principalities [the khanates] had not been under Iranian suzerainty since the assassination of Nadir Shah in , they were traditionally considered an inalienable part of Iranian domains. To the semi-independent Caucasian principalities the appearance of the new Great Power The Diminishing Domains of Qajar Iran".
International Journal of Middle East Studies. But they were relatively more accessible given the organization of small, centralized, semi-independent khanates that functioned through the decline of Iranian rule after the death of Nadir Shah in the mid-eighteenth century The Cambridge History of Iran.
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Agha Muhammad Khan could now turn to the restoration of the outlying provinces of the Safavid kingdom. This region comprised a number of khanates of which the most important was Qarabagh , with its capital at Shusha; Ganja, with its capital of the same name; Shirvan across the Kura, with its capital at Shamakhi; and to the north-west, on both banks of the Kura, Christian Georgia Gurjistan , with its capital at Tiflis. The ghost of freedom: The Heritage of Armenian Literature: From the eighteenth century to modern times.
Wayne State University Press. Retrieved 3 September A Global Chronology of Conflict: Russian invasion of Persia. Dowling Russia at War: The Newly Independent States of Eurasia: Handbook of Former Soviet Republics. Ebel, Robert, Menon, Rajan Energy and conflict in Central Asia and the Caucasus. Russia and Iran in the great game: The Great Ottoman-Turkish Civilisation.
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Empires and Revolutions since Perhaps the most important legacy of Yermolov was his intention from early on to prepare the ground for the conquest of the remaining khanates under Iranian rule and to make the River Aras the new border. Another provocative action by Yermolov was the Russian occupation of the northern shore of Lake Gokcha Sivan in the Khanate of Iravan in A clear violation of Golestan, this action was the most significant provocation by the Russian side.
The Lake Gokcha occupation clearly showed that it was Russia and not Iran which initiated hostilities and breached Golestan, and that Iran was left with no choice but to come up with a proper response. Journal of Contemporary History. The results of the March events were immediate and total for the Musavat. Societies and States in Russian. Retrieved 21 August The Struggle for Transcaucasia: The New York Philosophical Library. A Modern History of the Islamic World. Archived from the original on 6 September Retrieved 28 August Sons of the conquerors: Retrieved 9 May Retrieved 8 May United States of America: Communal Violence and Human Rights " ".
Retrieved 1 December Archived from the original on 10 June Retrieved 4 June New York University Press, p. Retrieved 9 September United Nations General Assembly. Retrieved 14 March The Great Soviet Encyclopedia Encyclopedia of the Nations. Retrieved 22 May Azerbaijan A chronology of key events: Retrieved 15 August Loyal forces storm a building and overcome mutinous police units, president reports".
Retrieved 14 October Archived from the original on 17 December Keesing's Record of World Events. Archived from the original on 25 May Archived from the original on 8 February Retrieved 17 February Archived from the original on 10 February Retrieved 8 February Retrieved 30 June United Nations Environment Programme. Water Resources of the Azerbaijan Republic. Archived from the original on 24 May Central Asia and Caucasus Institute. Archived from the original on 13 October Retrieved 5 March Archived from the original on 11 November Retrieved 8 November Retrieved 4 August Retrieved 10 July Retrieved 26 September Retrieved on 1 July Retrieved 4 July Retrieved 26 April Retrieved 31 May Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Archived from the original on 4 May Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Israel. Eurasia Daily Monitor Volume. Retrieved 23 December Retrieved 23 May Retrieved 24 April Retrieved 14 April Archived from the original on 12 May Advanced Research and Assessment Group. Heydar Aliyev Heritage Research Center.
Archived from the original on 24 July Archived from the original on 6 June Retrieved 3 June Archived from the original on 14 May Retrieved 15 October Azerbaijan warns Armenia with show of military might". Retrieved 26 January Archived from the original on 9 January Retrieved 24 December Retrieved 4 March Archived from the original on 5 May Retrieved 29 May Design and Transition to a New Currency". Retrieved 7 December Archived from the original on 12 September Retrieved 28 September Archived PDF from the original on 6 December Doing Business PDF. Archived from the original on 28 May Archived from the original on 12 October Archived from the original on 3 October Retrieved 6 June Retrieved 21 September Archived from the original on 20 March Retrieved 28 May Archived from the original on 18 April Retrieved 24 May Statistical Yearbook of Azerbaijan Archived from the original PDF on 2 February Archived from the original on 19 August Retrieved 12 August Archived from the original on 28 November This summer's most popular holiday spots" — via www.