Khojaly ( az, Xocalı, ; hy, Խոջալու, translit=Khojalu) or Ivanyan ( hy, Իվանյան) is a town ''
de facto
''De facto'' ( ; , "in fact") describes practices that exist in reality, whether or not they are officially recognized by laws or other formal norms. It is commonly used to refer to what happens in practice, in contrast with ''de jure'' ("by la ...
'' in the
Askeran Province
Askeran Province ( hy, Ասկերան) is a province of the breakaway Republic of Artsakh, ''de jure'' part of the Khojaly District of the Republic of Azerbaijan. It is in the center of Artsakh, surrounding the capital, Stepanakert. It is not ...
of the
breakaway Republic of Artsakh
Artsakh, officially the Republic of Artsakh () or the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (),, is a list of states with limited recognition, breakaway state in the South Caucasus whose territory is internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan ...
, ''
de jure
In law and government, ''de jure'' ( ; , "by law") describes practices that are legally recognized, regardless of whether the practice exists in reality. In contrast, ("in fact") describes situations that exist in reality, even if not legally ...
'' in the
Khojaly District
Khojaly District ( az, Xocalı rayonu) is one of the 66 districts of Azerbaijan. It is located in the west of the country and belongs to the Karabakh Economic Region. The district borders the districts of Kalbajar, Lachin, Shusha, Agdam and Khoj ...
of
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of th ...
, in the disputed region of
Nagorno-Karabakh
Nagorno-Karabakh ( ) is a landlocked region in the South Caucasus, within the mountainous range of Karabakh, lying between Lower Karabakh and Syunik, and covering the southeastern range of the Lesser Caucasus mountains. The region is m ...
.
Stepanakert Airport is located to the immediate south of the town.
The town was the second largest Azerbaijani town in the former
Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast
The Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast (NKAO), DQMV, hy, Լեռնային Ղարաբաղի Ինքնավար Մարզ, ԼՂԻՄ was an autonomous oblast within the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic that was created on July 7, 1923. Its cap ...
until the
mass killing and exodus of its
Azerbaijani population during the
First Nagorno-Karabakh War.
Toponymy
The Azerbaijani name of the town, Khojaly, derives from ''khoja'' (''xoca''), which is the
Azerbaijani spelling of the
Persian
Persian may refer to:
* People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language
** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples
** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...
word ''
khawaja
Khawaja ( Persian: خواجه ''khvâjəh'') is an honorific title used across the Middle East, South Asia, Southeast Asia and Central Asia, particularly towards Sufi teachers.
It is also used by Kashmiri Muslims and the Mizrahi Jews—particul ...
'', meaning master.
In 2001 the settlement was renamed ''Ivanyan'' by Artsakh, after the late general of the
Artsakh Defence Army
The Artsakh Defence Army ( hy, Արցախի Հանրապետության պաշտպանության բանակ, Artsakhi Hanrapetut’yan pashtpanut’yan banak) is the defence force of the breakaway Republic of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh). Es ...
,
Kristapor Ivanyan
Kristapor Ivani Ivanyan ( hy, Քրիստափոր Իվանի Իվանյան; 20 December 1920 – 30 August 1999) was a Soviet and Armenian lieutenant general. He fought in both World War II and the First Nagorno-Karabakh War. He was one of the fo ...
.
History
According to the 1910 publication of the ''Caucasian Calendar'', Khojaly had 184 Tatar (i.e.
Azerbaijani) inhabitants in 1908. In the 1912 publication, Khojaly had 172 Tatar and 52
Russian
Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including:
*Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries
*Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...
inhabitants.
During the
Soviet
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nation ...
period, Khojaly was a village in the
Askeran District of the
Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast
The Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast (NKAO), DQMV, hy, Լեռնային Ղարաբաղի Ինքնավար Մարզ, ԼՂԻՄ was an autonomous oblast within the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic that was created on July 7, 1923. Its cap ...
.
First Nagorno-Karabakh War
As the
First Nagorno-Karabakh War started, the Azerbaijani government began to implement a plan to create a new district center. From 1988 to 1990 the population of Khojaly increased from 2,135 to 6,000 residents, mostly consisting of immigrants from Soviet Central Asia (including more than 2,000
Meskhetian Turks) and immigrants from Armenia (about 2,000). In April 1990 the Azerbaijani government abolished the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast and its internal divisions. Khojaly was given city status and became the regional center for the newly created
Khojaly District
Khojaly District ( az, Xocalı rayonu) is one of the 66 districts of Azerbaijan. It is located in the west of the country and belongs to the Karabakh Economic Region. The district borders the districts of Kalbajar, Lachin, Shusha, Agdam and Khoj ...
composed of the former
Askeran District and part of the
Martuni District
Martuni District ( az, Martuni rayonu; hy, Մարտունու շրջան) was an administrative unit within the former Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast (NKAO) of the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic.
History
The administrative centre o ...
. The town had 6,300 Azerbaijani inhabitants in 1991.
Most of the inhabitants fled during the town's capture by Armenian forces on 26 February 1992 during the
First Nagorno-Karabakh War and hundreds were killed in the
Khojaly massacre. The Khojaly massacre was the mass killing of
Azerbaijanis — mostly civilians, but also armed troops — by local
irregular Armenian forces and the
366th Commonwealth of Independent States
The Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) is a regional intergovernmental organization in Eurasia. It was formed following the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. It covers an area of and has an estimated population of 239,796,010. ...
Guards Motor Rifle Regiment.
[''Bloodshed in the Caucasus: escalation of the armed conflict in Nagorno Karabakh'', vol. 1245 of Human rights documents, Human Rights Watch, 1992, p. 24] It was one of the four events that defined the war, along with the Karabakh Armenian
seizure of Shusha and the
capture of Lachin and the Lachin corridor between Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia as well as the June 1992 Azerbaijani
offensive against the Mardakert Province in
Nagorno-Karabakh
Nagorno-Karabakh ( ) is a landlocked region in the South Caucasus, within the mountainous range of Karabakh, lying between Lower Karabakh and Syunik, and covering the southeastern range of the Lesser Caucasus mountains. The region is m ...
. The death toll claimed by the Azerbaijani authorities is 613 civilians, including 106 women and 63 children.
According to
Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an international non-governmental organization, headquartered in New York City, that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. The group pressures governments, policy makers, companies, and individual human r ...
, it resulted in death of at least 200 Azerbaijanis, though it is possible that as many as 500–1,000 may have died.
Republic of Artsakh
After the First Nagorno-Karabakh War, the town became part of the
Askeran Province
Askeran Province ( hy, Ասկերան) is a province of the breakaway Republic of Artsakh, ''de jure'' part of the Khojaly District of the Republic of Azerbaijan. It is in the center of Artsakh, surrounding the capital, Stepanakert. It is not ...
of the
Republic of Artsakh
Artsakh, officially the Republic of Artsakh () or the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (),, is a list of states with limited recognition, breakaway state in the South Caucasus whose territory is internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan ...
and the town was settled by Armenians.
The town had an
Armenian
Armenian may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent
** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...
-majority population of 908 inhabitants in 2005,
and 1,397 inhabitants in 2015.
After the
2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war, five Armenian families displaced from
Vazgenashen (Gulably) settled in the town, as well as in
Shosh (Shushikend). Artsakh launched the construction of two new residential districts in the town in 2021, consisting of more than 400 apartments for displaced people from the village of
Mets Tagher (Boyuk Taghlar) in the
Hadrut Province
Hadrut Province ( hy, Հադրութի շրջան) was a province of the Republic of Artsakh. The provincial capital was Hadrut city. The last governor was Valery Gevorkian. The province was captured by the armed forces of the Republic of Azerbai ...
.
Historical heritage sites
Historical heritage sites in and around the town include burial mounds and fields from the 2nd–1st millennia BCE and a 14th-century tomb. Tombstones from the
Late Middle Ages
The Late Middle Ages or Late Medieval Period was the period of European history lasting from AD 1300 to 1500. The Late Middle Ages followed the High Middle Ages and preceded the onset of the early modern period (and in much of Europe, the Renai ...
and the 18th century, and a 19th-century Turkic mausoleum are located a few hundred meters to the west of the town.
Economy and culture
The population is mainly engaged in
agriculture
Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...
and
animal husbandry. As of 2015, the town has a municipal building, a house of culture, a secondary school, eleven shops, and a medical centre.
International relations
In February 2010, the Azeri-Czech Society reported that representatives of the Azeri administration of Khojaly in exile and the
Czech
Czech may refer to:
* Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe
** Czech language
** Czechs, the people of the area
** Czech culture
** Czech cuisine
* One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus'
Places
* Czech, ...
town of
Lidice
Lidice (, german: Liditz) is a municipality and village in Kladno District in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 600 inhabitants.
Lidice is built near the site of the previous village of the same name, which was co ...
were to sign an agreement making Khojaly and Lidice
sister cities
A sister city or a twin town relationship is a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties.
While there are early examples of inter ...
and that a street in Lidice was to be named "Khojaly". In March 2012, reports quoted the mayor of Lidice, Veronika Kellerova, as officially stating that Lidice and Khojaly had never been sister cities. She further repudiated reports that there exists a street named Khojaly in Lidice.
Gallery
Համայնապատկեր,_Իվանյան.jpg, Panorama
Խաղահրապարակ,_Իվանյանում.jpg, Playground
Իվանյանի_մանկապարտեզ.jpg, Kindergarten
Իվանյանի դպրոցը.jpg, School in the town
Մզկիթ,_Իվանյան.jpg, Mausoleum
Իվանյանի_համայնապատկեր.jpg, Panorama
Հուշարձան,_Իվանյան.jpg, Monument
Տեսարան,_Իվանյան.jpg, Scenery
Գինու_գործարան,_Իվանյան.jpg, Wine factory
Իվանյան գյուղի մուտքը.jpg, Sign in Armenian at the entrance of the town
References
External links
*
Population statistics (2005)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Khojaly
Populated places in Askeran Province
Populated places in Khojaly District