Askeran Province ( hy, Ասկերան) is a

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions out ...

of the breakaway

Republic of Artsakh Artsakh, officially the Republic of Artsakh () or the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (),, is a breakaway state in the South Caucasus whose territory is internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan. Artsakh controls a part of the former ...

, ''de jure'' part of 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 Kh ...

of the

Republic of Azerbaijan A republic () is a "state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th ...

. It is in the center of Artsakh, surrounding the capital, Stepanakert. It is notable for containing the

Tigranakert of Artsakh Tigranakert ( hy, Արցախի Տիգրանակերտ, ''Arts'akhi Tigranakert''), also known as Tigranakert-Artsakh, is a ruined Armenian city dating back to the Hellenistic period, located in the Aghdam District of what is today Azerbaijan. I ...

Settlements

There are 42 communities in the province of which 1 is considered urban and 41 are considered rural.

Geography

Askeran adjoins

Martakert Province Martakert Province ( hy, Մարտակերտ) is a province of the Republic of Artsakh, ''de jure'' part of the Republic of Azerbaijan. The population is mainly Armenian. The province has 43 communities of which one is considered urban and 42 a ...

on the north,

Aghdam District Aghdam District ( az, Ağdam rayonu) is one of the 66 administrative divisions of Azerbaijan. It is located in the west of the country and belongs to the Karabakh Economic Region. The district borders the districts of Khojaly, Kalbajar, Tartar, ...

of Azerbaijan on the east. Hadrut Province and

Shushi Province Shushi Province ( hy, Շուշիի շրջան) is a province of the breakaway Republic of Artsakh, ''de jure'' part of the Republic of Azerbaijan. The province has 7 communities of which 1 is considered urban and 6 are rural. The town of Shushi ...

in the south, Martuni Province in the south east and Kashatagh Province on the west. Stepanakert, the capital of the Republic of Artsakh, is located south-west of the province.

History

During the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

the western part of the Askeran Province was part of

Principality of Khachen The Principality of Khachen ( hy, Խաչենի իշխանություն, Khacheni ishkhanutyun) was a medieval Armenian principality on the territory of historical Artsakh (present-day Nagorno-Karabakh). The provinces of Artsakh and Utik wer ...

and the eastern part was part of the Principality of Varanda, the center of which was

Avetaranots Chanakhchi ( hy, Չանախչի; az, Çanaqçı) or Avetaranots ( hy, Ավետարանոց) is a village in the Khojaly District of Azerbaijan, in the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh. The village had an ethnic Armenian-majority population p ...

, located in the south of the region. Following the formation 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 ...

raion A raion (also spelt rayon) is a type of administrative unit of several post-Soviet states. The term is used for both a type of subnational entity and a division of a city. The word is from the French (meaning 'honeycomb, department'), and is c ...

was formed which was centered on Stepanakert. In 1978, Askeran became its center, and the raion was renamed to Askeran. A total of 52 settlements were registered in 1979. As the Karabakh conflict started, the Azerbaijani government began to implement a plan to create a new district center. From 1988 to 1990 the population of Khojaly village was increased from 2135 to 6000 residents. These mainly consisted of immigrants from Central Asia (more than 2000 Meskhetian Turks) and Armenia (about 2000). In April 1990, Khojaly received city status, becoming a regional center.

References

Regions of the Republic of Artsakh Askeran (province) {{azerbaijan-geo-stub