Tugh () or Togh () is a village in the

Khojavend District Khojavend District () is one of the 66 Administrative divisions of Azerbaijan, districts of Azerbaijan. It is located in the west of the country in the Karabakh Economic Region. The district borders the districts of Lachin District, Lachin, Shush ...

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...

, in the region of

Nagorno-Karabakh Nagorno-Karabakh (, ; ) is a region in Azerbaijan, covering the southeastern stretch of the Lesser Caucasus mountain range. Part of the greater region of Karabakh, it spans the area between Lower Karabakh and Syunik Province, Syunik. Its ter ...

. The village had a mixed Armenian-Azerbaijani population before the

First Nagorno-Karabakh War The First Nagorno-Karabakh War was an ethnic conflict, ethnic and territorial conflict that took place from February 1988 to May 1994, in the enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh in southwestern Azerbaijan, between the majority ethnic Armenians of Nag ...

, the Azerbaijani inhabitants fled the fighting in 1991, and the

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 around the ...

population fled the village during the

2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war The Second Nagorno-Karabakh War was an armed conflict in 2020 that took place in the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding occupied territories. It was a major escalation of an unresolved conflict over the region, involvi ...

History

The village and the neighboring fortress of () are first mentioned in the 9th century, as the capital of the Principality of Dizak. In 854,

Esayi Abu-Muse Esayi Abu-Musa ( or ; in Arabic sources: ''Isa ibn-Istifanus'') was an Armenians, Armenian prince of southern Artsakh (historic province), Artsakh who ruled over a significant part of Arran (Caucasus), Arran (called Ałuankʻ in Armenian sources) in ...

, the Prince of Dizak, resisted an

Abbasid army The Abbasid Caliphate or Abbasid Empire (; ) was the third caliphate to succeed the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was founded by a dynasty descended from Muhammad's uncle, Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib (566–653 CE), from whom the dynasty takes i ...

under the command of

Bugha al-Kabir Bugha al-Kabir (), also known as Bugha al-Turki (), was a 9th-century Khazar general who served the Abbasid Caliphate. Biography He was of Khazar origin, and was acquired along with his sons as a military slave ('' ghulam'') by al-Mu'tasim i ...

at Ktish for more than a year.

Tovma Artsruni Tovma Artsruni (; also known in English-language historiography as Thomas Artsruni) was a ninth- to tenth-century Armenian historian who authored the ''History of the House of Artsrunik'' (). Despite its title, the four-volume work not only relat ...

and Anon, ''History of the House of Artruni'', Yerevan 1985, pp. 297–98, 522. Ktish began to be called Togh starting in the 15th century. The 13th-century monastery of Gtichavank, and ruins of some churches including the 13th-century St. Stepan Church are located near the village. The village church is named St. Hovhannes (John's) and was built in 1736. A few of the Yeganyan meliks are buried in the yard of St. Hovhannes Church. In 1737, Armenian prince (''

melik Мelik (, from ) was a hereditary Armenian noble title used in Eastern Armenia from the Late Middle Ages until the nineteenth century. The meliks represented some of the last remnants of the old Armenian nobility, as well as Persian nobility ...

'') Yegan built Togh's Melikian Palace here. The principality survived until the last prince, Yesayi Melik-Avanian, was killed by

Ibrahim Khalil Khan Ibrahim Khalil Khan Javanshir (, 1732–1806) was the second khan of the Karabakh Khanate from the Javanshir family. He was the son and successor of Panah-Ali khan Javanshir. Early life He was born in c. 1732 in Karabakh. He was among depo ...

in 1781, after a long-lasting resistance in the fortress of Ktish. The village was a part of the

Karabakh Khanate The Karabakh Khanate (also spelled Qarabagh; ; ) was a Khanates of the Caucasus, khanate under History of Iran, Iranian and later Russian Empire, Russian suzerainty, which controlled the historical region of Karabakh, now divided between modern ...

until 1822, when it was annexed by

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

and became part of the

Elisabethpol Governorate The Elizavetpol Governorate, also known after 1918 as the Ganja Governorate, was a province ('' guberniya'') of the Caucasus Viceroyalty of the Russian Empire, with its capital in Yelisavetpol (present-day Ganja). The area of the governorate s ...

. In 1903, a hospital was built and three years later a village school was opened which has functioned as a middle school in the present-day. A new school was built in 1978, which was renovated for the first time in 2008 by the

Armenia Fund Armenia Fund (full name Hayastan All Armenian Fund, ) was established in 1994 in Los Angeles, California. Armenia Fund, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt, non-governmental, non-political corporation, headquartered in Yerevan. Serving as the United S ...

. The village also has a house of culture, a movie theater and a library. During the

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

period, the village was part of the Hadrut District of the

Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast The Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast (NKAO) was an Autonomous oblasts of the Soviet Union, autonomous oblast within the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic that was created on July 7, 1923. Its capital was the city of Stepanakert. The majori ...

. During the

, in March 1988, Armenian armed militia detachments were formed to defend the village from Soviet and Azerbaijani attacks. The village came under Armenian control on 30 October 1991. As a result of the war, local Azerbaijani villagers were forced to flee and many settled in the

Beylagan District Beylagan District () is one of the 67 districts of Azerbaijan. It is located in the centre of the country and belongs to the Mil-Mughan Economic Region. It borders the districts of Fuzuli, Aghjabadi, Zardab, Imishli, and the Ardabil Provinc ...

of Azerbaijan. After the

, the village was administrated as part of the

Hadrut Province Hadrut Province () 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 Azerbaijan during the 2020 Nagorno-Ka ...

of the breakaway

Republic of Artsakh Artsakh ( ), officially the Republic of Artsakh or the Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh ( ), was a breakaway state in the South Caucasus whose territory was internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan. Between 1991 and 2023, Artsakh cont ...

. The village's Armenian population was displaced due to its capture by Azerbaijan on 9 October 2020, during the

. The Artsakh Human Rights Ombudsman stated that there were reports of two civilians that had been killed, with one of them having been beheaded.

Historical heritage sites

Historical heritage sites in and around the village include the fortress of '' Ktish'' (, also ''Ktishberd'', ) from between the 9th and 13th centuries, a 12th/13th-century

khachkar A ''khachkar'' (also spelled as ''khatchkar'') or Armenian cross-stone (, , խաչ ''xačʿ'' "cross" + քար ''kʿar'' "stone") is a carved, memorial stele bearing a cross, and often with additional motifs such as rosette (design), rosettes ...

, the monastery of '' Gtichavank'' () built between 1241 and 1246, a cemetery from between the 17th and 19th centuries, St. John's Church () built in 1736, Togh's Melikian Palace () built in 1737, and St. Stephen's Church () built in 1747.

Economy and culture

In 2015, the population was mainly engaged in

agriculture Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created ...

and

animal husbandry Animal husbandry is the branch of agriculture concerned with animals that are raised for meat, animal fiber, fibre, milk, or other products. It includes day-to-day care, management, production, nutrition, selective breeding, and the raising ...

, and the village had a municipal building, a house of culture, a secondary school, a kindergarten, an art school, and a medical centre. The Kataro winery was opened by the Avetisyan family in 2010 in the village.

Demographics

According to the Russian Empire census in 1897, where the village was mentioned as ''Tug'' (), it had a population of 1,728 consisting of 1,482 Armenian Apostolics and 246

Muslims Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

. The village had 857 men and 871 women. In 1921, the village had 1,589

inhabitants. In 1974, there were 1,228 inhabitants, and in 1987 there were 1,421 inhabitants. The Azerbaijani inhabitants of the village, as well as the inhabitants of the village of Salaketin in the Hadrut District, were forced to flee their homes as a result of Armenian armed formations' hostilities during the

. In 2005, the village had an Armenian-majority population of 679 inhabitants,Results of 2005 census of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic
and in 2015 there were 756 inhabitants.

Gallery

Եկեղեցի «Սբ. Հովհաննես».jpg, 18th-century St. John's Church Տողի մելիքական ապարանք Palace of Melik Egan 2019.jpg, Buildings of Togh's Melikian Palace Եկեղեցի «Սբ. Ստեփանոս».jpg, 18th-century St. Stephen's Church Երկրորդ աշխարհամարտում զոհվածների հուշարձան Տող գյուղում.jpg, WWII monument Third Annual Artsakh wine festival (17092016).jpg, Third Annual Artsakh wine festival in the village Artcraft.jpg, Exhibition of artworks at the Artsakh wine festival in the village

Notable people

* Javad Malik-Yeganov - Azerbaijani

Governor-General Governor-general (plural governors-general), or governor general (plural governors general), is the title of an official, most prominently associated with the British Empire. In the context of the governors-general and former British colonies, ...

Lankaran Lankaran (, ) or Lánkon () is a city in Azerbaijan, on the coast of the Caspian Sea, near the southern border with Iran. As of 2021, the city had a population of 89,300. It is next to, but independent of, Lankaran District. The city forms a disti ...

* Aslan Mukhtarov - Azerbaijani scientist, recipient of the USSR State Prize.

Azerbaijani Soviet Encyclopedia The ''Azerbaijani Soviet Encyclopedia'' (in Azerbaijani: Azərbaycan Sovet Ensiklopediyası, Cyrillic: Азәрбајҹан Совет Енсиклопедијасы, ) is a ten volume universal encyclopedia published in Baku, Azerbaijan from 197 ...

. V. I. * Ayriev Armen Tevanovich - Armenian

Hero of the Soviet Union The title Hero of the Soviet Union () was the highest distinction in the Soviet Union, awarded together with the Order of Lenin personally or collectively for heroic feats in service to the Soviet state and society. The title was awarded both ...

* Vigen S. Grigoryan - Armenian battalion commander during the First Nagorno-Karabakh War

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Tugh Populated places in Khojavend District Former Armenian inhabited settlements