Zangilan (, ; ) is a city in

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 ...

and the administrative centre of the

Zangilan District Zangilan District () is one of the 66 districts of Azerbaijan. It is located in the south-west of the country and belongs to the East Zangezur Economic Region. The district borders the districts of Qubadli, Jabrayil, the Syunik Province of Arme ...

. It is situated along the Voghji (Okhchuchay) river.

Etymology

According to the

Armenia Armenia, officially the Republic of Armenia, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of West Asia. It is a part of the Caucasus region and is bordered by Turkey to the west, Georgia (country), Georgia to the north and Azerbaijan to ...

n historian Hovhannes Gharagyozian, the town's historical name of ''Pirchivan'', which it held until 1957 when it was renamed to Zangilan, originates from the settlement of Ashtarak mentioned by

Stepanos Orbelian Stepanos Orbelian (, originally spelled ; – 1303) was a thirteenth-century Armenian historian and the metropolitan bishop of the province of Syunik. He is known for writing his well-researched ''History of the Province of Syunik''. Biogr ...

in his list of villages in the Kovsakan county of Syunik. The word ‘Ashtarak’ is seen as a synonym for ‘burj’ (tower/fortress) in the

Armenian language Armenian (endonym: , , ) is an Indo-European languages, Indo-European language and the sole member of the independent branch of the Armenian language family. It is the native language of the Armenians, Armenian people and the official language of ...

. The name of the settlement next to the fortress comes from the joining of the words “Burj” + the Armenian suffix “-avan” (settlement). Thus creating “Burgi avan>Burjevan>Brjevan,” which was transformed into Pirchivan under Turkic phonetic influence.

History

Soviet-Armenian historian

Suren Yeremian Suren Tigrani Yeremian (; ; – 17 December 1992) was a Soviet historian and cartographer who specialized in the study of the early history and geography of Armenia and the Caucasus. He devoted nearly thirty years of his scholarly efforts in ...

states that the area of present-day Zangilan was part of the Kovsakan gavar (county) of the Syunik province within the Kingdom of Armenia. According to Armenian historian Konstantin Khudaverdyan, the area that would become Pirchivan was originally an Armenian settlement named ''Verjnavan'' (). In the 14th century, Verjnavan was mentioned as being a part of the Kovsakan gavar of the province of Syunik, during the period of

Mongol Armenia Mongol Armenia or Ilkhanid Armenia refers to the period beginning in the early-to-mid 13th century during which both Zakarid Armenia and the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia became tributary and vassal to the Mongol Empire and the successor Ilkhan ...

. After the

Russian conquest of the Caucasus The Russian conquest of the Caucasus mainly occurred between 1800 and 1864. The Russian Empire sought to control the region between the Black Sea and Caspian Sea. South of the mountains was the territory that is modern Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georg ...

in the nineteenth century, Zangilan (then called ''Pirchivan'') became part of the

Zangezur Uyezd The Zangezur ''uezd'' was a county (''uezd'') of the Elizavetpol Governorate of the Russian Empire with its administrative center in Gerusy (present-day Goris) from 1868 until its formal abolition and partition between the Soviet republics of Ar ...

of the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

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 ...

. According to 1886 census data, there were 50 homes and 211

Azerbaijanis Azerbaijanis (; , ), Azeris (, ), or Azerbaijani Turks (, ) are a Turkic peoples, Turkic ethnic group living mainly in the Azerbaijan (Iran), Azerbaijan region of northwestern Iran and the Azerbaijan, Republic of Azerbaijan. They are predomin ...

(classified as "Tatars" in the census) of the

Shiite Shia Islam is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that Muhammad designated Ali ibn Abi Talib () as both his political successor (caliph) and as the spiritual leader of the Muslim community (imam). However, his right is understood ...

branch of

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

in Pirchivan. According to the 1912 ''Caucasian Calendar'', the village of Zangilan was home to 762 people, the majority of whom were Azerbaijanis (classified as "Tatars" in the census). Pirchivan I and Pirchivan II were part of the village council of the same name in the Zangilan District of the

Azerbaijan SSR The Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic, also referred to as the Azerbaijani Soviet Socialist Republic, Azerbaijan SSR, Azerbaijani SSR, AzSSR, Soviet Azerbaijan or simply Azerbaijan, was one of the constituent republics of the Soviet Union be ...

during the early Soviet period in 1933. Pirchivan I was the administrative centre of the district, with 574 residents and 95 farms, while Pirchivan II had 148 residents and 35 farms. The village council's population, which also included the villages of

Genlik Genlik ()is a village located in the administrative-territorial district of the city of Zangilan in the Zangilan district of Azerbaijan Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontin ...

, Malatkeşin, and

Tağlı Tağlı is a village in Zangilan District of 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 ...

, was 98.7 percent Azerbaijani. Pirchivan was classified as an

urban-type settlement Urban-type settlement, abbreviated: ; , abbreviated: ; ; ; ; . is an official designation for lesser urbanized settlements, used in several Central and Eastern Europe, Central and Eastern European countries. The term was primarily used in the So ...

and renamed ''Zangilan'' by the Presidium of the

Supreme Soviet of the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic The Supreme Soviet of the Azerbaijan SSR, later renamed as the Supreme Soviet of the Azerbaijan Republic from 1991 until its abolition in 1995, was the supreme soviet (main legislative institution) of the Azerbaijan SSR, and later the Republic ...

on 31 August 1957. It was given

city status City status is a symbolic and legal designation given by a monarch, national or subnational government. A municipality may receive city status because it already has the qualities of a city, or because it has some special purpose. Historically, ci ...

in 1967. The city had a railway station on the Baku-Nakhchivan branch line, three schools, a

music school A music school is an educational institution specialized in the study, training, and research of music. Such an institution can also be known as a school of music, music academy, music faculty, college of music, music department (of a larger in ...

, two public libraries, a

cultural centre A cultural center or cultural centre is an organization, building or complex that promotes culture and arts. Cultural centers can be neighborhood community arts organizations, private facilities, government-sponsored, or activist-run. Africa * ...

, a movie theatre, and a hospital. The population was 6,968 people, according to the Soviet Census of 1989. During 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 ...

n forces occupied the city on 29 October 1993, forcing the Azerbaijani population to flee. It was later incorporated into 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 ...

as part of its

Kashatagh Province Kashatagh Province () was a Administrative divisions of the Republic of Artsakh, province of the Republic of Artsakh. It was the largest province by area (3,376.60 km2). The population as of 2013 was 9,656. Its capital was Lachin, Berdzor. ...

, where it was known as ''Kovsakan'' (). Following the outbreak of the Syrian Civil War, Armenian refugees from

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

, mostly farmers, settled in the city. Azerbaijan protested and described the settlement of Syrian Armenians on its internationally recognised territory as a violation of international law that impeded the peace process. Azerbaijan recaptured the city on 20 October 2020, 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 ...

. On 23 December 2020, President

Ilham Aliyev Ilham Heydar Oghlu Aliyev (born 24 December 1961) is an Azerbaijani politician who has been the fourth president of Azerbaijan since 2003. He is also the leader of the New Azerbaijan Party since 2005. The son and second child of former Aze ...

raised the Azerbaijani flag in the city.

Historical heritage sites

Among the historical heritage sites in and around the city is the " Imam Huseyn" mosque, built between the 17th and 18th centuries.

Demographics

Gallery

Ковсакан - panoramio.jpg Kovsakan125.jpg, Okhchu River İlham Əliyev Qubadlı və Zəngilan rayonlarında olub 48.jpg, Ruins of the "Imam Huseyn" mosque Kovsakan126.jpg, Okhchu River Дорога в Ковсакан - panoramio.jpg, Zangilan's nature Kovsakan132.jpg, Roundabout in central Zangilan Kovsakan129.jpg, Old

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 ...

Kovsakan112.jpg, New khachkar

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Zangilan Populated places in Zangilan District