Göygöl () is a natural lake in Azerbaijan. It is situated at the footsteps of
Murovdag, not far from
Ganja
''Ganja'' (, ; ) is one of the oldest and most commonly used synonyms for cannabis flower, specifically marijuana or hashish. Its usage in English dates to before 1689.
Etymology
''Ganja'' is borrowed from Hindi (, IPA: aːɲd͡ʒa ...
in the
Goygol District
Goygol District () is one of the 66 districts of Azerbaijan, situated in the western part of the country within the Ganja-Dashkasan Economic Region. The district is bordered by districts of Goranboy, Kalbajar, Dashkasan, Shamkir, Samukh, and ...
. The lake is 0.78 km² and is 1553.3 metres above sea level. Its length from south to north is 2800 metres, and its maximum width is 800 metres.
History
Due to an earthquake which
hit the area on 25 September 1139, parts of the
Kapaz Mount collapsed and blocked the path of the
Kürəkçay River. As a result of diversion of water flow, a lake with pure mountain water was created. Hence, the name given, signifying the pureness of the water. The nearby city of
Khanlar was renamed after the Göygöl Lake on 25 April 2008. The city was founded as Helenendorf by the first German settlers in Azerbaijan in 1819 and with a considerable German minority until 1941 had been renamed to Khanlar in 1938. In 1941, German settlers were relocated by Soviet authorities to Kazakhstan and Central Asia and Siberia on
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Dzhugashvili; 5 March 1953) was a Soviet politician and revolutionary who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin, his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...
's orders.
In 1925, the lake was incorporated into the newly founded "Goy Gol State Reserve" which was superseded as
Göygöl National Park
Göygöl National Park () — is a National Parks of Azerbaijan, national park of Azerbaijan. It was established in an area in Goygol Rayon administrative district on April 1, 2008, on the basis of the former "Goy Gol State Reserve" that was estab ...
in 2008.
General information
Greater Göygöl area is often split into 19 lakes, 8 of which fall into the large lake category,
Maralgol,
Zelilgöl,
Qaragöl among them. It is situated at 1,556 meters above the sea level. The complete length reaches 6,460 meters. The depth of the lake is 93 meters. Due to the pureness of the water, one can see underwater life clearly 8–10 meters below the surface. The lake is very rich in fauna. The Göygöl
Trout
Trout (: trout) is a generic common name for numerous species of carnivorous freshwater ray-finned fishes belonging to the genera '' Oncorhynchus'', ''Salmo'' and ''Salvelinus'', all of which are members of the subfamily Salmoninae in the ...
has evolved from the river trout since the natural creation of the lake.
The Göygöl area is known for dry winters and mild to warm summers. Rainfalls range from 600 to 900 mm. There is an
Azerbaijani Army
The Azerbaijani Armed Forces () is the military of the Republic of Azerbaijan. It was re-established according to the country's Law of the Armed Forces on 9 October 1991. The original Azerbaijan Democratic Republic's armed forces were dissolved a ...
corps close to Göygöl. The lake is a major tourist attraction during the spring and summer seasons. In 2009, more than 4500 tourists visited Goygol. Among the tourists, many are German nationals. In the vicinity of Göygöl, there are settlements once populated by ethnic Germans, many monuments of German culture and an old German
Lutheran
Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...
church built in 1854.
In popular culture
Due to its beauty, the lake has been an inspiration for many novels, poems and music bands.
"Göygöl"ün 40 yaşı qeyd edilib. 30.01.2010 Ayna newspaper. Xatun
Retrieved on 30 September 2010
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Goygol, Lake
Lakes of Azerbaijan
Landslide-dammed lakes