Nazli Najafova ( Azerbaijani: Nazlı Nəcəfova; 1890–1977) was a pioneering female educator in

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 ...

. The founder of several academic programs for girls, including the first women's pedagogical school in her home city of Nakhchivan, and a forceful advocate for women's

literacy Literacy in its broadest sense describes "particular ways of thinking about and doing reading and writing" with the purpose of understanding or expressing thoughts or ideas in written form in some specific context of use. In other words, huma ...

, she was frequently targeted by religious leaders and other authorities for her work. After spending 10 years in exile in

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...

, she returned to Azerbaijan in the late 1940s and continued her educational mission.

Biography

Nazli Najafova was born Nazli Tahirova in Nakhchivan in 1890. She attended the

Empress Alexandra Russian Muslim Boarding School for Girls The Empress Alexandra Russian Muslim School for Girls (russian: Александрийское императорское женское русско-мусульманское училище; Azerbaijani language, Azerbaijani: ''Aleksandra impera ...

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 ...

, becoming one of the first students to graduate in 1908. She was notably influenced by the women's rights activist

Jalil Mammadguluzadeh Jalil Huseyngulu oghlu Mammadguluzadeh ( az, Cəlil Məmmədquluzadə; 22 February 1869 – 4 January 1932), was an Azerbaijani people, Azerbaijani satirist and writer. He was the founder of Molla Nasraddin (magazine), ''Molla Nasraddin'', a ...

, whom she met in Baku. After graduating, she moved to

Yerevan Yerevan ( , , hy, Երևան , sometimes spelled Erevan) is the capital and largest city of Armenia and one of the world's List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest continuously inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Y ...

to be with her family. She taught literacy courses to girls in Yerevan, as a separate class at a boys' school, which earned her death threats. However, she continued teaching the courses in secret. Najafova then returned to Nakhchivan, where she worked as a teacher at a girls' school. She eventually became the school's principal. Once again, she faced violent pushback to her efforts to educate girls. She was forced to spend more than half her salary on security guards. She persisted, however, and with the help of

Ayna Sultanova Ayna Mahmud gizi Sultanova (1895 – 1938) was an Azerbaijani Communist party activist and statesperson. She was one of the first Azerbaijanis, Azerbaijani female revolutionaries and in 1938, became the first Azerbaijani female cabinet minister. ...

founded a

pedagogical Pedagogy (), most commonly understood as the approach to teaching, is the theory and practice of learning, and how this process influences, and is influenced by, the social, political and Developmental psychology, psychological development of le ...

school in Nakhchivan, as well as another girls' school in Ordubad. In 1921, her home came under attack by a gang that wanted to kill her, but she was away attending the First Congress of Azerbaijani Teachers and the attack was unsuccessful. Her husband, —who had supported her in her educational work—was arrested as an "enemy of the people" in 1937. She was then deported to Kazakhstan, where she continued to teach while working in a labor brigade. She returned to Azerbaijan in 1947. Najafov continued to teach after her return from exile, first in Goychay and then back in Nakhchivan. She died in 1977.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Najafova, Nazli 1890 births 1977 deaths People from Nakhchivan Azerbaijani educators 20th-century women educators 20th-century educators