Naftalan is a city in Azerbaijan, surrounded by the district of Goranboy. It's located on an agricultural plain near the Lesser Caucasus Mountains. The word ''naftalan'' also means a petroleum product that can be obtained there. It is the centre of a unique petroleum industry, with a grade of oil referred to as "Naftalan".Dr. D. Y. Huseinov and Dr. A. I. Rustamov
Naftalan: The Oil that Heals
''Azerbaijan International'', (3.4) Winter 1995, ''Accessed on December 4, 2006''

Etymology

The word ''Naftalan'', can be traced to the Greek word " naphtha" ("νάφθα"), meaning pertaining to oil, and the

Azerbaijani Azerbaijani may refer to: * Something of, or related to Azerbaijan * Azerbaijanis * Azerbaijani language See also * Azerbaijan (disambiguation) * Azeri (disambiguation) * Azerbaijani cuisine * Culture of Azerbaijan The culture of Azerbaijan ...

suffix "-alan", which is of the verb "to take" (and literally meaning "oil buyer").Eldar Abbasov
Naftalan - The Miracle Oil: Azerbaijan's Therapeutic Oil
''Azerbaijan International'', (10.2) Summer 2002, ''Accessed on December 4, 2006''

History

Archaeological findings in the region date to the 12th century AD. Naftalan city was functioning as a settlement within the Goranboy and Yevlakh districts until 1967. On April 28, 1967, Naftalan was granted the status of the subordinate city. The city of Naftalan consists of a city and two villages. The base of Naftalan city is Sanatorium - Resort infrastructure. Naftalan Resort has been operating since 1933. In 1938, the Naftalan Experimental Laboratory was established in the Azerbaijan Scientific-Research Institute of Medical Rehabilitation. The biological and therapeutic effects of the Naftalan oil began to be studied there. Also, in 1965, Scientific Research Laboratory was established in Naftalan. In the 2010s, the number of hotels increased in the city after the Azerbaijani government's tourism policy.

Geography

Naftalan city is located 330 km west of

Baku Baku (, ; az, Bakı ) is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. Baku is located below sea level, which makes it the lowest lying national capital in the world a ...

, 50 km from Ganja in the foothills of the

Lesser Caucasus Mountains The Lesser Caucasus, also called Caucasus Minor, is the second of the two main mountain ranges of Caucasus mountains, of length about . The western portion of the Lesser Caucasus overlaps and converges with east Turkey and northwest Iran. It runs ...

. It's located at an altitude of 225 m above sea level. The spring is warm, the winter is soft here. The average annual temperature is +14.8 degrees. The wind in Naftalan is mainly monsoon. The city's territory is 35.73 km².

Demographics

According to the 1999 census, the population in Naftalan was 7,551. As of 2017, the population of the city is 8718 persons. ''Ethnic Groups Population (1979 census)'' * Azerbaijanis 3,245 (90,6%) * Tatars 6 (0.2%) * Russians 136 (3.8%) * Armenians 182 (5.1%) * Lezgins 7 (0.2%)

Economy

Petroleum spas

Baths Resort Naphtalan Azerbaijan on the USSR 1969 Mint Stationery Cover

The area is home to petroleum

spa A spa is a location where mineral-rich spring water (and sometimes seawater) is used to give medicinal baths. Spa towns or spa resorts (including hot springs resorts) typically offer various health treatments, which are also known as balneoth ...

s (or "oil spas"), that were popular vacation spots of the Soviet Union.Andrew E. Kramer
Bathing in Black Gold for Health and Profit in Azerbaijan
''The New York Times'', December 4, 2006. At the height of their Soviet-era popularity, the spas in Naftalan had 75,000 visitors a year. The combination of the

First Nagorno-Karabakh War The First Nagorno-Karabakh War, referred to in Armenia as the Artsakh Liberation War ( hy, Արցախյան ազատամարտ, Artsakhyan azatamart) was an ethnic and territorial conflict that took place from February 1988 to May 1994, in th ...

and the end of Soviet-sponsored free trips brought the industry to its knees in the late-1980s. All but one of the older spas were converted into

refugee A refugee, conventionally speaking, is a displaced person who has crossed national borders and who cannot or is unwilling to return home due to well-founded fear of persecution.

housing. The remaining spa, the Naftalan Therapeutic Center, had 1,000-beds. The number of domestic and foreign tourists coming to Naftalan, which has a capacity of about 2200 tourists a day, has increased by 5-6 times in 2016 and counted 30,000.

Culture

There are two Houses of Culture that promote national traditions. Also, there is the Naftalan Museum and Music School. There are four parks in the city of Naftalan.

Education

There are three general education schools and one Children's Creative Center in the city.

Transport

Naftalan resort city can be reached by car or train from Baku and Ganja cities. The closest route for foreign visitors is the flight to

Ganja International Airport Ganja International Airport ( az, Gəncə Beynəlxalq Hava Limanı) is an airport serving Ganja

Twin towns

Naftalan is

twinned Twinning (making a twin of) may refer to: * In biology and agriculture, producing two offspring (i.e., twins) at a time, or having a tendency to do so; * Twin towns and sister cities, towns and cities involved in town twinning * Twinning inst ...

with: * Yessentuki, Russia (since 2014)

References

External links

*
World Gazetteer: Azerbaijan
– World-Gazetteer.com {{Administrative divisions of Azerbaijan Populated places in Goranboy District Nagorno-Karabakh Resorts in Azerbaijan 1967 establishments in Azerbaijan