Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic Naxçıvan Muxtar Respublikası

Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic
Naxçıvan Muxtar Respublikası
Detailed map of Nakhchivan
Capital
(and largest city) Nakhchivan City
Official languages Azerbaijani
Government
- Parliamentary Chairman Vasif Talibov
Autonomous republic
- Establishment of the Nakhchivan ASSR
February 9, 1924
- Nakhchivan
Autonomous Republic
November 17, 1990
Area
- Total 5,363 km2
2,071 sq mi
- Water (%) negligible
Population
- 2007 estimate 398,000
- Density 70.76/km2
183.3/sq mi
Currency Azerbaijani manat (AZN)
Time zone EET (UTC+4)
- Summer (DST) EEST (UTC+5)
1 GeoHive: Country Data: Azerbaijan
2 The State Statistical Committee of the Republic of Azerbaijan


The Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic (Azerbaijani: Naxçıvan Muxtar Respublikası) is a landlocked exclave of Azerbaijan. The region covers 5,363 km² and borders Armenia (221 km) to the east and north, Iran (179 km) to the south and west, and Turkey (15 km) to the northwest. The capital is Nakhchivan City.
Etymology

Variations of the name Nakhchivan include Nakhichevan[1], Naxcivan[2], Naxçivan[3], Nachidsheuan[4], Nakhijevan[5], Nakhchawan[6], Nakhitchevan[7], Nakhjavan[8] and Nakhdjevan[9]. According to the nineteenth-century language scholar, Johann Heinrich Hübschmann, the name "Nakhichavan" in Armenian literally means "the place of descent", a Biblical reference to the descent of Noah's Ark on the adjacent Mount Ararat. Hübschmann notes, however, that it was not known by that name in antiquity. Instead, he states the present-day name evolved to "Nakhchivan" from "Naxcavan". The prefix "Naxc" was a name and "avan" is Armenian for "town".[10] Nakhchivan was also mentioned in Ptolemy's Geography and by other classical writers as Naxuana.[11][12] Modern historian Suren Yeremyan disputes this assertion, arguing that ancient Armenian tradition placed Nakhichevan's founding to the year 3669 B.C. and, in ascribing its establishment to Noah, that it took its present name after the Armenian phrase "Nakhnakan Ichevan" (Նախնական Իջևան), or "first landing."[13] Josephus stated that the name of the first city built by Noah after the Great Flood was Themanin, and this city has been identified as an alternate name for Nakhchivan.[14] The name "Themanin" means either "eight" or "eighty," referring to either the eight people who survived the flood on the ark in Jewish tradition[15] or the eighty who survived in Islamic tradition.[16]

According to other versions, the name Nakhchivan derived from the Persian Naqsh-e-Jahān ("Image of the World"), a reference to the beauty of the area.[17][dubious – discuss][18] The medieval Arab chronicles referred to the area as Nashava.[19]
According to Sumerian, Jewish, and Islamic tradition, Nakhchivan and Seron were the only two cities built after the Great Flood and before the subsequent dispersion of peoples.[20] The oldest material culture artifacts found in the region date back to the Neolithic Age. The region was part of the states of Mannae, Urartu and Media.[21] It became part of the Satrapy of Armenia under Achaemenid Persia circa 521 BC. After Alexander the Great's death in 323 BC, various Macedonian generals such as Neoptolemus tried to take control of the region, but ultimately failed and a native dynasty of Orontids flourished until Armenia was conquered by Antiochus III the Great.[22]
The Nakhchivan region (highlighted in light purple) at the time of the Kingdom of Vaspurakan (908-1021).

In 189 BC, Nakhchivan was part of the new Kingdom of Armenia established by Artaxias I.[23] Within the kingdom, the region of present-day Nakhchivan was part of the Ayrarat, Vaspurakan and Syunik provinces.[24] According to the historian Movses Khorenatsi, from the third to second centuries, the region belonged to the Muratsyan nakharar family but after disputes with central power, King Artavazd I massacred the family and seized the lands and formally attached it to the kingdom.[25] The area's status as a major trade center allowed it to prosper; as a result, it was coveted by many foreign powers.[6]

According to historian Faustus of Byzantium (4th century), when the Sassanid Persians invaded Armenia, Sassanid King Shapur II (310-380) removed 2,000 Armenian and 16,000 Jewish families in 360-370.[26] In 428, the Armenian Arshakuni monarchy was abolished and Nakhchivan was annexed by Sassanid Persia. In 623, possession of the region passed to the Byzantine Empire.[21]

From 640 on, the Arabs invaded Nakhchivan and undertook many campaigns in the area crushing all resistance and attacking Armenian nobles who remained in contact with the Byzantines or who refused to pay tribute. In 705, Arab viceroy Muhammad ibn-Marwan decided to eliminate the Armenian nobility.[27] In Nakhchivan, several hundred Armenian nobles and their families were locked up in churches and burnt, while others were crucified.[7][27]

The violence caused many Armenian princes to flee to the neighboring Kingdom of Georgia or the Byzantine Empire.[27] Meanwhile, Nakhchivan itself became part of the autonomous Principality of Armenia under Arab control.[28] In the 8th century, Nakhchivan was one of the scenes[21] of an uprising against the Arabs led by Persian[29][30][31] revolutionary Babak Khorramdin of the Iranian Khorram-Dinān ("those of the joyous religion" in Persian).[32] Nakhchivan was finally released from Arab rule in the 10th century by Bagratuni King Smbat I and handed over to the princes of Syunik.[23] This region also was taken by Sajids in 895 and between 909-929, Sallarid between 942-971 and Shaddadid between 971-1045.

In the 11th century the region was taken over by the Seljuk Turks approximately in 1055.[21] In 12th century, the city of Nakhchivan became the capital of the state of Atabegs of Azerbaijan, also known as Ildegizid state, which included most of Iranian Azerbaijan and significant part of South Caucasus.[33] The magnificent 12th century mausoleum of Momine Khatun, the wife of Ildegizid ruler, Great Atabeg Jahan Pehlevan, is the main attraction of modern Nakhchivan.[34] At its heyday, the Ildegizid authority in Nakhchivan and some other areas of South Caucasus was contested by Georgia. The Armeno-Georgian princely house of Zacharids frequently raided the region when the Atabeg state was in decline in the early years of the 13th century. It was then plundered by invading Mongols in 1220 and Khwarezmians in 1225 and became part of Mongol Empire in 1236 when the Caucasus was invaded by Chormaqan.[21] In the 13th century during the reign of the Mongol horde ruler Güyük Khan Christians were allowed to build churches in the strongly Muslim town of Nakhchivan, however the conversion to Islam of Gazan khan brought about a reversal of this favor.[35] The 14th century saw the rise of Armenian Catholicism in Nakhchivan,[6] though by the 15th century the territory became part of the states of Kara Koyunlu and Ak Koyunlu.[21]War and revolution

In the final year of World War I, Nakhchivan was the scene of more bloodshed between Armenians and Azerbaijanis, who both laid claim to the area. By 1914, the Armenian population had decreased slightly to 40% while the Azeri population increased to roughly 60%.[44] After the February Revolution, the region was under the authority of the Special Transcaucasian Committee of the Russian Provisional Government and subsequently of the short-lived Transcaucasian Democratic Federative Republic. When the TDFR was dissolved in May 1918, Nakhchivan, Nagorno-Karabakh, Zangezur (today the Armenian province of Syunik), and Qazakh were heavily contested between the newly formed and short-lived states of the Democratic Republic of Armenia (DRA) and the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic (ADR). In June 1918, the region came under Ottoman occupation.[21] The Ottomans proceeded to massacre 10,000 Armenians and razed 45 of their villages to the ground.[6] Under the terms of the Armistice of Mudros, the Ottomans agreed to pull their troops out of the Transcaucasus to make way for the forthcoming British military presence.[45]

Under British occupation, Sir Oliver Wardrop, British Chief Commissioner in the South Caucasus, made a border proposal to solve the conflict. According to Wardrop, Armenian claims against Azerbaijan should not go beyond the administrative borders of the former Erivan Governorate (which under prior Imperial Russian rule encompassed Nakhchivan), while Azerbaijan was to be limited to the governorates of Baku and Elisabethpol. This proposal was rejected by both Armenians (who did not wish to give up their claims to Qazakh, Zangezur and Karabakh) and Azeris (who found it unacceptable to give up their claims to Nakhchivan). As disputes between both countries continued, it soon became apparent that the fragile peace under British occupation would not last.[46]

In December 1918, with the support of Azerbaijan's Musavat Party, Jafar Kuli Khan Nakhchivanski declared the Republic of Aras in the Nakhchivan uyezd of the former Erivan Governorate assigned to Armenia by Wardrop.[21] The Armenian government did not recognize the new state and sent its troops into the region to take control of it. The conflict soon erupted into the violent Aras War.[46] British journalist C.E. Bechhofer described the situation in April 1920:
“ You cannot persuade a party of frenzied nationalists that two blacks do not make a white; consequently, no day went by without a catalogue of complaints from both sides, Armenians and Tartars [Azeris], of unprovoked attacks, murders, village burnings and the like. Specifically, the situation was a series of vicious cycles.[47] ”

By mid-June 1919, however, Armenia succeeded in establishing control over Nakhchivan and the whole territory of the self-proclaimed republic. The fall of the Aras republic triggered an invasion by the regular Azerbaijani army and by the end of July, Armenian troops were forced to leave Nakhchivan City to the Azeris.[46] Again, more violence erupted leaving some ten thousand Armenians dead and forty-five Armenian villages destroyed.[6] Meanwhile, feeling the situation to be hopeless and unable to maintain any control over the area, the British decided to withdraw from the region in mid-1919.[48] Still, fighting between Armenians and Azeris continued and after a series of skirmishes that took place throughout the Nakhchivan district, a cease-fire agreement was concluded. However, the cease-fire lasted only briefly, and by early March 1920, more fighting broke out, primarily in Karabakh between Karabakh Armenians and Azerbaijan's regular army. This triggered conflicts in other areas with mixed populations, including Nakhchivan.
Nakhchivan in the Soviet Union

As a constituent part of the Soviet Union, tensions lessened over the ethnic composition of Nakhchivan or any territorial claims regarding it. Instead, it became an important point of industrial production with particular emphasis on the mining of minerals such as salt. Under Soviet rule, it was once a major junction on the Moscow-Tehran railway line[54] as well as the Baku-Yerevan railway.[21] It also served as an important strategic area during the Cold War, sharing borders with both Turkey (a NATO member) and Iran (a close ally of the West until the Iranian Revolution of 1979).
Map of the Nakhchivan ASSR within the Soviet Union.

Facilities improved during Soviet times. Education and public health especially began to see some major changes. In 1913, Nakhchivan only had two hospitals with a total of 20 beds. The region was plagued by widespread diseases including trachoma and typhus. Malaria, which mostly came from the adjoining Aras River, brought serious harm to the region. At any one time, between 70% and 85% of Nakhchivan's population was infected with malaria, and in the region of Norashen (present-day Sharur) almost 100% were struck with the disease. This situation improved dramatically under Soviet rule. Malaria was sharply reduced and trachoma, typhus, and relapsing fever were completely eliminated.[21]

During the Soviet era, Nakhchivan saw a significant demographic shift. Its Armenian population gradually decreased as many emigrated to the Armenian SSR. In 1926, 15% of region's population was Armenian, but by 1979 this number had shrunk to 1.4%.[55] The Azeri population, meanwhile increased substantially with both a higher birth rate and immigration (going from 85% in 1926 to 96% by 1979[55]).

Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh noted similar though slower demographic trends and feared an eventual "de-Armenianization" of the area.[52] When tensions between Armenians and Azeris were reignited in the late-1980s by the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Azerbaijan's Popular Front managed to pressure the Azerbaijan SSR to instigate a partial railway and air blockade against Armenia, while another reason for disruption of rail service to Armenia were attacks of Armenian forces on the trains entering the Armenian territory from Azerbaijan, which resulted in railroad personnel refusing to enter Armenia.[56][57] This effectively crippled Armenia's economy, as 85% of the cargo and goods arrived through rail traffic. In response, Armenia closed the railway to Nakhchivan, thereby strangling the exclave's only link to the rest of the Soviet Union.

December 1989 saw unrest in Nakhchivan as its Azeri inhabitants moved to physically dismantle the Soviet border with Iran to flee the area and meet their ethnic Azeri cousins in northern Iran. This action was angrily denounced by the Soviet leadership and the Soviet media accused the Azeris of "embracing Islamic fundamentalism".[58] In January 1990, the Supreme Soviet of the Nakhchivan ASSR issued a declaration stating the intention for Nakhchivan to secede from the USSR to protest the Soviet Union's actions during Black January. It was the first part of the Soviet Union to declare independence, preceding Lithuania's declaration by only a few weeks.Nakhchivan in the post-Soviet era

Heydar Aliyev, the future president of Azerbaijan, returned to his birthplace of Nakhchivan in 1990, after being ousted from his position in the Politburo by Mikhail Gorbachev in 1987. Soon after returning to Nakhchivan, Aliyev was elected to the Supreme Soviet by an overwhelming majority. Aliyev subsequently resigned from the CPSU and after the failed August 1991 coup against Gorbachev, he called for complete independence for Azerbaijan and denounced Ayaz Mütallibov for supporting the coup. In late 1991, Aliyev consolidated his power base as chairman of the Nakhchivan Supreme Soviet and asserted Nachichevan's near-total independence from Baku.[59]

Nakhchivan became a scene of conflict during the Nagorno-Karabakh War. On May 4, 1992, Armenian forces shelled the raion of Sadarak.[60][61][62] The Armenians claimed that the attack was in response to cross-border shelling of Armenian villages by Azeri forces from Nakhchivan.[63][64] David Zadoyan, a 42-year-old Armenian physicist and mayor of the region said that the Armenians lost patience after months of firing by the Azeris. "If they were sitting on our hilltops and harassing us with gunfire, what do you think our response should be?" he asked.[65] The government of Nakhchivan denied these charges and instead asserted that the Armenian assault was unprovoked and specifically targeted the site of a bridge between Turkey and Nakhchivan.[64] "The Armenians do not react to diplomatic pressure," Nakhchivan foreign minister Rza Ibadov told the ITAR-Tass news agency, "It's vital to speak to them in a language they understand." Speaking to the agency from the Turkish capital Ankara, Ibadov said that Armenia's aim in the region was to seize control of Nakhchivan.[66] According to Human Rights Watch, hostilities broke out after three people were killed when Armenian forces began shelling the region.[67]

The heaviest fighting took place on May 18, when the Armenians captured Nakhchivan's exclave of Karki, a tiny territory through which Armenia's main North-South highway passes. The exclave presently remains under Armenian control.[68] After the fall of Shusha, the Mütallibov government of Azerbaijan accused Armenia of moving to take the whole of Nakhchivan (a claim that was denied by Armenian government officials). However, Heydar Aliyev declared a unilateral ceasefire on May 23 and sought to conclude a separate peace with Armenia. Armenian President Levon Ter-Petrossian expressed his willingness to sign a cooperation treaty with Nakhchivan to end the fighting and subsequently a cease-fire was agreed upon.[67]

The conflict in the area caused a harsh reaction from Turkey, which together with Russia is a guarantor of Nakhchivan's status in accordance with the Treaty of Kars. Turkish Prime Minister Tansu Çiller announced that any Armenian advance on the main territory of Nakhchivan would result in a declaration of war against Armenia. Russian military leaders declared that "third party intervention into the dispute could trigger a Third World War." Thousands of Turkish troops were sent to the border between Turkey and Armenia in early September. Russian military forces in Armenia countered their movements by increasing troop levels along the Armenian-Turkish frontier and bolstering defenses in a tense period where war between the two seemed inevitable.[69] Iran also reacted to Armenia's attacks by conducting military manueuvers along its border with Nakhchivan in a move widely interpreted as a warning to Armenia.[70] However, Armenia did not launch any further attacks on Nakhchivan and the presence of Russia's military warded off any possibility that Turkey might play a military role in the conflict.[69] After a period of political instability, the parliament of Azerbaijan turned to Heydar Aliyev and invited him to return from exile in Nakhchivan to lead the country in 1993.

Today, Nakhchivan retains its autonomy as the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic and is internationally recognized as a constituent part of Azerbaijan governed by its own elected parliament.[71] A new constitution for Nakhchivan was approved in a referendum on November 12, 1995. The constitution was adopted by the republic's assembly on April 28, 1998 and has been in force since January 8, 1999.[72] However, the republic remains isolated, not only from the rest of Azerbaijan, but practically from the entire South Caucasus region. Vasif Talibov, who is related by marriage to Azerbaijan's ruling family, the Aliyevs, serves as the current parliamentary chairman of the republic.[73] He is known for his authoritarian[73] and largely corrupt rule of the region.[74] Most residents prefer to watch Turkish television as opposed to Nakhchivan television, which one Azerbaijani journalist criticised as "a propaganda vehicle for Talibov and the Aliyevs."[73]

Economic hardships and energy shortages (due to Armenia's continued blockade of the region in response to the Azeri and Turkish blockade of Armenia[citation needed]) plague the area. There have been many cases of migrant workers seeking jobs in neighboring Turkey. "Emigration rates to Turkey," one analyst said, "are so high that most of the residents of the Besler district in Istanbul are Nakhchivanis."[73] When speaking to British writer Thomas de Waal, the mayor of Nakhchivan City, Veli Shakhverdiev, spoke warmly of a peaceful solution to the Karabakh conflict and of Armenian-Azeri relations during Soviet times. "I can tell you that our relations with the Armenians were very close, they were excellent," he said. "I went to university in Moscow and I didn't travel to Moscow once via Baku. I took a bus, it was one hour to Yerevan, then went by plane to Moscow and the same thing on the way back."[54] Recently Nakhchivan made deals to obtain more gas exports from Iran,[75] and a new bridge on the Aras River between the two countries was inaugurated in October 2007; the Azerbaijani President, Ilham Aliyev and the First Vice-President of Iran, Parviz Davoodi also attended the opening ceremony.[76][77]
Administrative subdivisions
Subdivisions of Nakhchivan.
Main article: Administrative divisions of Azerbaijan

Nakhchivan is subdivided into eight administrative divisions. Seven of these are raions. The capital city (şəhər) of Nakhchivan City is treated separately.
Map ref. Administrative division Capital Type Area (km²) Population (1 Jan. 2008 estimate) Notes
1 Babek (Babək) Babek Rayon 1,170 68,800 Formerly known as Nakhchivan; renamed after Babak Khorramdin in 1991
2 Julfa (Culfa) Julfa Rayon 1,000 39,600 Also spelled Jugha or Dzhulfa.
3 Kangarli (Kəngərli) Givraq Rayon 682 26,600 Split from Babek in March 2004
4 Nakhchivan City (Naxçıvan Şəhər) Municipality 130 71,200 Split from Nakhchivan (Babek) in 1991
5 Ordubad Ordubad Rayon 970 43,600 Split from Julfa during Sovietization[6]
6 Sadarak (Sədərək) Heydarabad Rayon 150 13,600 Split from Sharur in 1990; includes the Karki exclave in Armenia
7 Shakhbuz (Şahbuz) Shahbuz Rayon 920 22,000 Split from Nakhchivan (Babek) during Sovietization[6] Territory roughly corresponds to the Čahuk (Չահւք) district of the historic Syunik region within the Kingdom of Armenia[78]
8 Sharur (Şərur) Sharur Rayon 478 99,000 Formerly known as Bash-Norashen during its incorporation into the Soviet Union and Ilyich (after Vladimir Ilyich Lenin) from the post-Sovietization period to 1990[6]
Total 5,500 384,400
[edit] Demographics
See also: Armenians in Nakhchivan

As of 2009, Nakhchivan's population was estimated to be 398,000.[79] Most of the population are Azerbaijanis, who constituted 99% of the population in 1999, while ethnic Russians (0.15%) and a minority of Kurds (0.6%) constituted the remainder of the population.[80]

The 1990s and 2000s saw a large outflow of the Azerbaijani population into Turkey and Azerbaijan proper, due to the economical hardship of the post-Soviet era as well as Nakhichevan's geographical separation from the rest of Azerbaijan.

The Kurds of Nakhchivan are mainly found in the districts of Sadarak and Teyvaz[81]. The remaining Armenians were expelled by Azerbaijani forces during the conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh as part of the forceful exchange of population between Armenia and Azerbaijan. According to a 1932 Soviet estimate, 85% of the area's was rural while only 15% was urban. This percentage increased to 18% by 1939 and 27% by 1959.[6].
Economy
[edit] Industry

Nakhchivan's major industries include the mining of minerals such as salt, molybdenum, and lead. Although dry irrigation, developed during the Soviet years, has allowed the region to expand into the growing of wheat (mostly grown on the plains of the Aras River), barley, cotton, tobacco, orchard fruits, mulberries, and grapes for producing wine. Other industries include cotton ginning/cleaning, silk spinning, fruit canning, meat packing, and, in the dryer regions, sheep farming. In terms of services, Nakhchivan offers very basic facilities and lacks heating fuel during the winter.[21]

The economy suffered a severe blow in 1988 with the loss of access to both raw materials and markets, due to the Nagorno Karabakh conflict. Although new markets are emerging in Iran and Turkey this isolation still persists to this day, impairing development. The economy of Nakhchivan is based on agriculture, mining and food processing, however 75% of the republic's budget is supplied by the central government in Baku. Aid is also provided by Turkey and several NGOs.

The Republic is rich in minerals . Nakhchivan possesses deposits of marble, lime and gypsum. The deposits of the rock salt are exhausted in Nehram, Nakhchivan and Sustin. The important Molybdenite mines are currently closed as a consequence of the exclave's isolation. There are a lot of mineral springs there such as Badamli, Sirab, Nagajir, Kiziljir where water contains arsenic.

About 90% of the agricultural land is now in private hands. However agriculture has become a poorly capitalized, backyard activity. Production has dropped sharply and large-scale commercial agriculture has declined.

Over two thirds of the land are rocky slopes and deserts, therefore the area of the arable lands is quite limited. The main crops - cotton and tobacco - are cultivated in the PriAraz plain, near of Sharur and Nakhchivan city. Three quarters of the grain production, especially winter wheat is concentrated on the irrigated lands of the Sharur plain and in the basin of the Nakhchivan river.

Vine growing in Nakhchivan is an ancient tradition, in the Araz valley and foothills. Very hot summers and long warm autumn make it possible to grow such highly saccharine grapes as bayan-shiraz, tebrizi, shirazi. Wines such as "Nakhchivan" "Shahbuz", "Abrakunis", "Aznaburk" are of reasonable quality and very popular. Fruit production is quite important, mainly of quince, pear, peach, apricot, fig, almonds and pomegranate.

Cattle is another traditional branch of Nakhchivan farming. Due to the dry climate, pastures in Nakhchivan are unproductive, therefore sheep breeding prevails over other stockbroking. Winter pastures stretch on the PriAraz plain, on the foothills and mountain sides to the altitude of 1200 m. But the summer pastures stretch on the high-mountain area (2300–3200 m). The most widespread sheep variety is 'balbas'. These sheep are distinguished by their productivity and snow-white silky wool which is widely used in carpet manufacture. Horned and small cattle are bred everywhere, especially in environs of Sharur and Nakhchivan. Buffaloes are also bred here.

Processing of minerals, salt, radio-engineering, farm ginning, preserving, silk products, meat and dairy, bottling of mineral waters, clothing, furniture are the principal branches of Nakhchivan's industry.

Although good intentions have been declared by the government, tourism is still at best incipient. Until 1997 Tourists needed special permission to visit, which has now been suppressed, making travel easier. Facilities are very basic and heating fuel is hard to find in the winter, but the arid mountains bordering Armenia and Iran are magnificent.Political leaders

* Heydar Aliyev, former President of Azerbaijan (1993–2003)
* Abülfaz Elçibay, former President of Azerbaijan (1992–1993)
* Rasul Guliyev, former speaker of the National Assembly of Azerbaijan (1993–1996) and opposition leader
* Christapor Mikaelian, founding member of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation
* Stepan Sapah-Gulian, leader of Social Democrat Hunchakian Party
* Jafar Kuli Khan Nakhchivanski, the founder of the short-lived Republic of Aras
* Ibrahim Abilov, first and only ambassador of Azerbaijan SSR to Turkey
* Garegin Njdeh, Armenian revolutionary

[edit] Religious leaders

* Alexander Jughaetsi (Alexander I of Jugha), Catholicos of All Armenians (1706–1714)
* Hakob Jughaetsi (Jacob IV of Jugha), Armenian Catholicos (1655–1680)
* Azaria I Jughaetsi, Armenian Catholicos of the Holy See of Cilicia (1584–1601)

[edit] Military leaders

* Abdurahman Fatalibeyli, Soviet army major who defected to the German forces during World War II
* Ehsan Khan Nakhchivanski, Russian military general
* Huseyn Khan Nakhchivanski, Russian cavalry general and the only Muslim to serve as General-Adjutant of the Russian Tsar
* Ismail Khan Nakhchivanski, Russian military general
* Kelbali Khan Nakhchivanski, Russian military general
* Jamshid Khan Nakhchivanski, Soviet military general
* Garegin Njdeh, Armenian statesman, fedayee, political thinker, and as a member of the A.R.F. Dashnaktsutyun party

[edit] Writers and poets

* M.S. Gulubekov, writer
* Huseyn Javid, poet
* Jalil Mammadguluzadeh, writer and satirist
* Ekmouladdin Nakhchivani, medieval literary figure
* Hindushah Nakhchivani, medieval literary figure
* Abdurrakhman en-Neshevi, medieval literary figure
* Mammed Said Ordubadi, writer
* Heyran Khanum, late medieval poet
* Elşen Hudiyev, contemporary poet and writer
* Mammad Araz, poet

[edit] Others

* Hasmik Agopyan, Soviet Armenian actress
* Simeon Jughaetsi, philosopher
* Vladimir Makogonov, chess International Master and Grandmaster
* Aram Merangulyan, director and composer
* Ajami Nakhchivani, architect and founder of the Nakhchivan school of architecture
* Gaik Ovakimian, Soviet Armenian spy
* Ibrahim Safi, Turkish artist
* Rza Tahmasib, Azerbaijani film director

[edit] Photographs of Nakhchivan

The Momine Khatun Mausoleum in Nakhchivan City


Brickwork and faience pattern on the Momine Khatun mausoleum


Another view of the mausoleum


Medieval-period ram-shaped grave monuments collected near the Momine Khatun mausoleum

A ram-shaped grave monument embedded in concrete


Statue of Dede Gorgud in Nakhchivan City


The Batabat region of Shakhbuz


General view of Ordubad with a range of high mountains in neighboring Iran in the distance

Houses of Ordubad photographed near the east bank of Ordubad-chay (also known as the Dubendi stream)


The famous narrow streets of Ordubad


A mosque in a quarter of Ordubad


The Aras River on the Iranian border near Julfa

The mountainous terrain of Nakhchivan


The landscape of Nakhchivan


The Yusuf ibn Kuseir Mausoleum in Nakhchivan City


The Armenian khachkar cemetery at Julfa, before its destruction