Ahmad Huseinzadeh ( az, Əhməd Hüseynzadə) also known as Sheikh Ahmad Salyani — third

Sheikh ul-Islam Sheikh (pronounced or ; ar, شيخ ' , mostly pronounced , plural ' )—also transliterated sheekh, sheyikh, shaykh, shayk, shekh, shaik and Shaikh, shak—is an honorific title in the Arabic language. It commonly designates a chief of a ...

of the

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, mainly comprising Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and parts of Southern Russia. The Caucasus Mountains, including the Greater Caucasus range, have historically ...

, maternal grandfather of

Ali bey Huseynzade Ali bey Huseyn oğlu Huseynzade ( az, Əli bəy Hüseyn oğlu Hüseynzadə; tr, Hüseyinzade Ali Turan; Salyan, February 24, 1864 – Istanbul, March 17, 1940) was an Azerbaijani writer, thinker, philosopher, artist, doctor, and the creator of ...

Early life

He was born in Salyan in 1812 to Ali Huseynzadeh. He was brought up initially from 1822 to 1832 in his hometown by his uncle Akhund Molla Muhammad Hussein. Then he became a student of the Baku ''

mujtahid ''Ijtihad'' ( ; ar, اجتهاد ', ; lit. physical or mental ''effort'') is an Islamic legal term referring to independent reasoning by an expert in Islamic law, or the thorough exertion of a jurist's mental faculty in finding a solution to a le ...

'' Akhund Molla Ramazan, and studied with him for another six years, until 1838 when he completed the full course of Arabic sciences.

Career

After graduation he returned to Salyan in 1839 and started teaching various subjects to local children for 6 years. He was later gained higher religious education in

Najaf Najaf ( ar, ٱلنَّجَف) or An-Najaf al-Ashraf ( ar, ٱلنَّجَف ٱلْأَشْرَف), also known as Baniqia ( ar, بَانِيقِيَا), is a city in central Iraq about 160 km (100 mi) south of Baghdad. Its estimated popula ...

and

Tbilisi Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the Capital city, capital and the List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), largest city of Georgia (country), Georgia, lying on the ...

. He was appointed as

Alexander II of Russia Alexander II ( rus, Алекса́ндр II Никола́евич, Aleksándr II Nikoláyevich, p=ɐlʲɪˈksandr ftɐˈroj nʲɪkɐˈlajɪvʲɪtɕ; 29 April 181813 March 1881) was Emperor of Russia, Congress Poland, King of Poland and Gra ...

after

Fazil Iravani Muhammad ibn Muhammad Bagher Iravani () or Fazil Iravani ( az, Fazil İrəvani) was an ethnic Azerbaijani Islamic jurist, the second Sheikh ul-Islam of the Caucasus and an Ayatollah al-Uzma. Early life and education Fazil Iravani was born in Ye ...

's resignation with a monthly pension of 1600

rubles The ruble (American English) or rouble (Commonwealth English) (; rus, рубль, p=rublʲ) is the currency unit of Belarus and Russia. Historically, it was the currency of the Russian Empire and of the Soviet Union. , currencies named ''rub ...

on 15 October 1852. He was appointed as head of Spiritual Council of Transcaucasian Shia Muslims, 5 April 1875. His deputy was Akhund Mustafa Talibzadeh, father of

Abdulla Shaig Abdulla Shaig ( az, Abdulla Şaiq) (25 February 1881, Tbilisi – 24 July 1959, Baku), born Abdulla Mustafa oglu Talibzadeh, was an Azerbaijani writer. Early life and education Shaig was born to Marneuli-native Azerbaijani parents, Mustaf ...

. He was described as a rather liberal thinking cleric by Fatali Akhundzadeh and contributed to

Akinchi ''Akinchi'' ( az, Əkinçi, ), also transliterated as ''Ekinchi'' ("The Cultivator"), was the first Azerbaijani-language newspaper, published in Baku (then part of the Russian Empire, now the capital of the Republic of Azerbaijan) between 1875 an ...

, first Azerbaijani language newspaper. In his letter to Akhundzadeh in 1862, Yousuf Khan Mostashar al-Dowleh said of Huseinzadeh "''I don't even consider him a

mullah Mullah (; ) is an honorific title for Shia and Sunni Muslim clergy or a Muslim mosque leader. The term is also sometimes used for a person who has higher education in Islamic theology and sharia law. The title has also been used in some Miz ...

, but rather a spiritual cleric.''" Like Akhundzadeh, he was a promoter of Latin alphabet for Azerbaijani, defended the idea that it is not incompatible with

Sharia Sharia (; ar, شريعة, sharīʿa ) is a body of religious law that forms a part of the Islamic tradition. It is derived from the religious precepts of Islam and is based on the sacred scriptures of Islam, particularly the Quran and the H ...

and Islam. He resigned in 1884 and lived in

where he died 3 years later.

Family

He was married to the daughter of his uncle Mahammad Ali Huseynzadeh, Husniyya Khanum and had two daughters with her: # Fatima Huseinzadeh (b. April 1, 1844, d. 1890) — married to Hajji Muhammad agha, son of Hajji Mirza Hasan in

Shamakhi Shamakhi ( az, Şamaxı, ) is a city in Azerbaijan and the administrative centre of the Shamakhi District. The city's estimated population was 31,704. It is famous for its traditional dancers, the Shamakhi Dancers, and also for perhaps giving it ...

# Khadija Huseinzadeh — married to Molla Hussein Huseinzadeh, son of Kazim bey Huseinzadeh of Quruzma ##

## Ismail Huseynzade (1868-1941) — married to his cousin Mina (b. 1878), daughter of Fatima Huseinzadeh, had issues

Works

* ''Muallim-ul atghal fi tarighe-talimi atfal (1875, Tbilisi)'' * ''Basaul nas-fi-mamlakatul Kafkas (Nations of the country of Caucasus, uncompleted work)'' * ''Tarikhi-adabiyyati-Turk (History of Turkic literature)'' * ''Tarbiat-ul-atfal'' * ''Dilgushah''

Awards

Order of St. Anna The Imperial Order of Saint Anna (russian: Орден Святой Анны; also "Order of Saint Anne" or "Order of Saint Ann") was a Holstein ducal and then Russian imperial order of chivalry. It was established by Karl Friedrich, Duke of Holst ...

, 2nd class with Imperial crown (22 September 1871) *

Order of St. Vladimir The Imperial Order of Saint Prince Vladimir (russian: орден Святого Владимира) was an Imperial Russian order established on by Empress Catherine II in memory of the deeds of Saint Vladimir, the Grand Prince and the Baptize ...

, 3rd class (30 August 1881)

References

{{Religious Council of the Caucasus Azerbaijani Shia clerics 1812 births 1887 deaths Recipients of the Order of St. Anna, 2nd class Recipients of the Order of St. Vladimir, 3rd class