Capital of the Na-hi-che-van Av-to-nom-noy Res-pub-li-ki.

Population: about 86 thousand people (2012). Ras-po-lo-zhen on the right bank of the Na-hi-che-van-chai river (a tributary of the Araks river). Railroad station. Auto-road knot. International Airport.

Nakhichevan is one of the oldest cities on the territory of Azerbaijan (an ancient and medieval city located in the northern part of the modern city; according to According to J. Ha-li-lo-va and V. G. Aliyeva, medieval Nakhichevan was located 12 km from the modern city). The earliest references to the city are contained in the works of ancient scientists Josephus Flavius ​​(1st century AD .; the name pe-re-da-but in the form “Apo-ba-te-ri-on”) and Claudius Pto-le-mea (2nd century AD; the name per-re-da- but in the form “Na-ksua-na”); some medieval is-ki-da-ti-ru-yut os-no-va-nie city of 1539 BC. e. Nakhichevan became part of the Man-ney kingdom (IX-VII centuries), then Midia. In the 6th-4th centuries in the 14th sat-ra-pii Akh-me-ni-dov of the state-sudar-st-va, then in the company of Atro-pa-te-na and others. From V -VI century AD e. Nakhichevan is an important trade and administrative and political center. In the 7th-9th centuries, under the control of Ha-li-fa-ta. At the end of the 10th - mid-11th centuries, the capital of the not-large-sho-sto-stable Na-hi-che-van-sk-go shah-st-va (Turkic “Na-khchy-van shah-lyg"), os-no-van-no-go Abu Du-la-fa-mi. In 1064, he was captured by the Sel-Juk sul-ta-n Alp-Ars-lan, who created his residence there. In the 12th century, the capital of the state of Il-de-gi-zi-dov, the significance of the city increased, about 150-200 thousand lived in it. people Nakhichevan was divided into sheh-ri-stan (inside the fortress walls) and ra-bat (ba-za-ry and kar-ra-van-sa-rai). You have developed a local school of architecture.

In 1221, Nakhichevan for-khva-che-na and raz-ru-she-na mon-go-la-mi. The city began to rise in the state of Khu-la-gui-dov during the reign of Ga-zan-khan (1295-1304). In 1386, for-nya-ta and raz-ru-she-na ha-nom Zo-lo-toy Or-dy Tokh-ta-my-sh, and in 1387 - Ti-mu-rum. In the 15th century, di-la became part of the states of Ak-Ko-yun-lu and Ka-ra-Ko-yun-lu. During the Turkish-Persian wars of the 16th-17th centuries, Nachevan was repeatedly transferred from hand to hand and destroyed; The pra-vi-te-lei of Nakhichevan at this time on-know-cha-li, as the pra-vi-lo, from among the ple-me-ni kyan-ger-li. In 1588-1603 (it was the center of Sand-ja-ka) and 1724-1735 it was under the rule of the Ottoman Empire. From the 2nd half of the 17th century it became part of the Chu-khur-sa-ad-sko-go bey-ler-bey-st-va state of the Se-fe-vids.

In 1735, Nakhichevan was occupied by Na-dir-Ku-li-khan Af-shar (from 1736 Na-dir-Shah). After his death, Nakhichevan became the hundred-face of Na-hi-che-van-skogo khan-st-va (1747-1828). In 1808, they were followed by Russian troops during the Russian-Persian War of 1804-1813, and secondarily by them in June 1827 during Russian-Persian war of 1826-1828. According to the Turk-man-chay-world of 1828, Nakhichevan, together with the Na-khi-che-van-khan-st, became part of the Russian Empire. rii. Center of the Na-khi-che-van province of the Armenian las-ti region (until 1840), district town of the Gruz-i-no-Ime-re-tinskaya (1840-1846 years), Tiflis (1846-1849), Eri-van (1849-1920) provinces. In the 2nd third of the 19th century, there was a mass transfer of Armenian families from Persia and the Ottoman Empire to Nakhichevan. peri. According to the city government in 1870, city government was introduced in the city. In 1908, the Ulu-khan-lu (now Ma-sis, Ar-meniya) - Jul-fa railway line opened traffic along the route through Nakhichevan. .

Nakhichevan was first mentioned in Ptolemy's Geography as "Naxuana". According to this source, the city was founded in 4400 BC. uh..

According to M. Vasmer and G. Hübschmann, the toponym “Nakhichevan” comes from Armenian. → “Nah” - primary, “idjevan” - landing. However, as Hubschmann notes, "Nakhchivan" was not known by this name in ancient times. Instead, he states that the modern name evolved into "Nakhchivan" from "Nakhchavan"- where the prefix “Nakhch” was a name, and “avan” from Armenian. «» → “terrain”.

The most ancient monuments of the material culture of the tribes that inhabited the territory of modern Nakhichevan in ancient times date back to the Neolithic era. In the 2nd millennium BC. e. On the territory of the Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic, the Nakhichevan archaeological culture was developed. At the beginning of the 1st millennium BC. e. this territory was part of the state of Urartu. In the VIII-VII centuries. BC e. The territory of the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic was part of the states of Manna and Media from the 6th century BC. e. - part of the Achaemenid state, within the borders of the satrapy of Armenia, bordered by the Arax River with Media. Later it became part of the kingdom of Atropatena.

As part of Great Armenia

From the beginning of the 2nd century. BC e. to 428 AD e. part of Greater Armenia. Nakhichevan was in the center of the Armenian state, which stretched, as the Iranika encyclopedia notes, from the Kura to the upper reaches of the Euphrates and Tigris. According to the 7th century Armenian geographer Anania Shirakatsi, within Armenia the region belonged to the nahangs (provinces) of Vaspurakan and Syunik, and the lands along the Araks, that is, the gavars (districts) of Nakhchavan (later Nakhijevan) and the “abundant wine” Gokhtn (Ordubad region) were part of Vaspurakan, while the more northern lands belonged to the gavars of Chakhuk (now Shahbuz district) and Yernjak (Julfa district) of the nahanga of Syunik (province map, author Robert Husen). This region was ruled by hereditary chamberlains of the Armenian kings, who bore the title of Mardpets, and their clan was called Mardpetakan. According to Favst Buzand, in Nakhchavan itself, Tigran the Great settled the Jews brought out of Palestine. When, during the Persian invasion of Armenia in 369, the city was taken by the Persians, they brought out “two thousand families of Armenians and sixteen thousand families of Jews”. At the end of the 4th century. In Goghtna, the scientist and monk Mesrop Mashtots preached, and it was there that he came to the idea of ​​​​the need to translate the Bible into Armenian for understanding by the local population. The monastery on the site where Mashtots preached (built in 456) remained until recently in the village, which was named Mesropavan in honor of Mashtots.

As part of Persia and the Arab Caliphate

By the beginning of the century e. Nakhichevan was an important point of trade between the West and the East. The territory of Nakhichevan was conquered by Iran in the 3rd century, by Byzantium in 623, and by the Arabs in the mid-7th century.

When they reached the Armenian borders, they scattered to attack. They divided into three detachments, of which one set out for the Vaspurakan region and took possession of villages and castles, as far as the city of Nakhichevan; another to the country of Taron, the third, reaching Kogoyovit, besieged the fortification of Artsap...

As the Encyclopedia of Islam notes, in the era of the Arabs, Nakhichevan itself, along with Dvin, was one of the most important cities in Armenia.

In 705, the Arabs burned alive in the churches of Nakhichevan and the neighboring village of the Temple representatives of the Armenian nobility, whom they allegedly invited to conclude a treaty (800 people).

In the 9th century, the population of this area was associated with the Babek movement, although big role didn't play in it.

Armenian cities located along the Araks River, including Nakhichevan, repeatedly became the scene of struggle during the Middle Ages. For example, in the middle of the 10th century, Emir Daisam ibn Ibrahim, at the head of Kurdish troops, invaded Armenia and captured Nakhichevan. Control of this territory was further contested by the Kurdish Sheddadid dynasty, the Iranian Salarid dynasty and the Ravvadidads - apparently Kurdishized Arabs.

Bagratid Armenia

At the end of the 9th century, Nakhichevan was conquered from the Arabs by the second king of the Ani kingdom - Smbat I Bagratuni, who in 891/92 gave it as conditional ownership to the prince of Syunik. In 902, Smbat handed it over to the ruler of Vaspurakan, Ashot Artsruni, and after the latter’s death in 904, again to the ruler of Syunik, Smbat. After this, Nakhichevan remained part of Syunik, which over time acquired virtual independence from Ani. In Arabic sources Nakhichevan is referred to as Nashava. According to Ibn-Haukal (10th century), the inhabitants of the Nakhichevan region spoke Armenian:

Residents of Dabil and Nashawa, as well as surrounding provinces, speak Armenian

Seljuks, Mongols, Timur

In 1064 Nakhichevan was conquered by the Seljuk Sultan Alp Arslan, when the full-scale conquest of Armenia began. During the reign of the Atabeks of Azerbaijan from the Ildegizid dynasty, Nakhichevan became the capital of the state.

From the beginning of the 13th century, the Orbelyan and Proshyan families ruled in the Nakhichevan region, which, as can be seen from the chronicle of Stepanos Orbelyan (13th century), retained their importance even after the Turkic conquest.

In the XIII-XIV centuries. Nakhichevan was subject to invasions by the Mongol conquerors and Timur. Rubruk, who visited Nakhchivan after Mongol invasion, writes that the city “was formerly the capital of a certain great kingdom and the greatest and most beautiful city; but the Tatars turned it almost into a desert. Previously there were eight hundred Armenian churches, and now only two small ones, and the rest were destroyed by the Saracens.”

Repression of the Armenian population by the Turks

Already in the Seljuk era, a centuries-long process of pushing aside the Armenian population by the newcomer Turkic began in the region, especially intensifying after the invasions of Timur. During the period of Mongol rule, Northern Armenia was subjected to destruction and plunder, and from the end of the 13th century, Ghazan Khan subjected the Armenian population to severe persecution, especially from Nakhichevan and nearby regions. The process of expulsion of the Armenians of Nakhichevan intensified from the 16th-17th centuries, during the Ottoman-Persian wars, when a significant majority of the Armenian population of the Nakhichevan region either died or was driven away to Persia. A contemporary of the “Great Surgun” (at that time Muslims and Jews were also evicted) organized by the Persian Shah Abbas I in 1604, Arakel Davrizhetsi, writes: “...he turned prosperous and fertile Armenia into an uninhabited [desert]. For during the resettlement, he expelled not one or two, but many Gavars [inhabitants] to Persia, starting from the borders of Nakhichevan through Yeghegadzor, right up to the shores of Geghama ... ". At the same time, in the 16th-17th centuries, Transcaucasia was not only spontaneously, but also purposefully settled by Kurds and Turkmen nomadic tribes, whom local rulers considered as their support. A 17th-century historian reports:

The great king of the Persians, Shah Abbas, was the first to evict the Armenian people from native Armenia and drive them to Persia with the goal of devastating the country of the Armenians and building up the country of the Persians, reducing [the number of] the Armenian people and increasing the Persian people. And since Shah Abbas himself was a cautious and prudent man, he always and constantly thought and reflected on how to prevent the return of the Armenian population to their homeland...

Then, from Julfa alone, the number of Armenians deported, according to various sources, ranges from 12 thousand families to 20 thousand people.

In 1746, Nadir Shah ordered the resettlement of 1000 Armenian families from Nakhchevan to Khorasan.

The era of the Ottoman-Safavid wars

In the 15th century Nakhichevan was part of the states of Kara-Koyunlu and Ak-Koyunlu, in the 16th century. disputed by Turkey and the Safavid Power. Around 1500, the Turkic nomadic Kangarlu tribe settled north of the Araks River in Persian Armenia.

In the fall of 1603, Shah Abbas I occupied the Nakhichevan region during the war with the Ottoman Empire. The Turkish garrison of the city of Nakhichevan capitulated to the Safavid troops and left Nakhichevan along with the Sunni residents, while the “warriors of the city” (local Muslims), according to Arakel Davrizhetsi, hastened to declare their adherence to Shiism: they “quickly took off their Ottoman clothes, they cut their long beards, put on Qizilbash clothes and began to look like the Qizilbash of old.” However, in the summer of 1604, Ottoman troops launched a counter-offensive that caught Shah Abbas by surprise. Unable to hope to hold on to the region, Shah Abbas decided to implement a “scorched earth” tactic and withdrew the entire population of Nakhichevan and Erivan (both Armenian and Muslim) deep into Persia, according to Arakel, “turning prosperous and fertile Armenia into an uninhabited [desert]. In total, 250-300 thousand Armenians were driven from Nakhichevan and Yerevan to Persia. In particular, it lost its population Big City, populated predominantly by Armenians and former center Armenian trade (primarily silk) in the region - Jugha (Julfa), the inhabitants of which, when occupied by the Persians, solemnly came out to meet Shah Abbas, led by priests. Its population of about 20,000 people was resettled to Isfahan, where it formed an Armenian suburb that still exists today - New Julfa. At the same time, many Armenian artisans and the poor died during the resettlement, and rich merchants turned into clerks of the Shah.

Modern researcher E. Rodionova identifies several reasons for the eviction of Armenians to Persia (referred to as the “Great Surgun”): a) military-strategic: to weaken the enemy, to leave “scorched earth”; b) political: strengthening the central government, weakening the separatist regions); b) economic (the intention to establish an Armenian colony in the center of their power and move the center of the caravan routes from Julfa to Iran) and the desire to use the labor of skilled Armenian artisans in construction work in Isfahan. Among those resettled was the Turkic tribe Kengerli, which was allowed to return to Nakhichevan under the descendant of Shah Abbas I, Shah Abbas II. During the conquest of the Nakhichevan region, Shah Abbas I massacred the Sunni population. According to Iranian history specialist Aptin Khanbagi, during the Turkish-Persian wars, Armenians were luckier than Muslims, since the Turks killed Shiites and the Persians killed Sunnis.

Nakhchivan Khanate

The Turkish traveler Evliya Celebi, who visited the Nakhichevan region in 1648, described it as a flourishing region and called Nakhichevan “the pride among the cities of the Iranian land.” According to him, in the comfortable city of Karabaglar, which formed a separate sultanate in the Nakhichevan land, he was treated to 26 varieties of pears. Describing the city of Nakhichevan, Celebi noted that “the city is decorated with 10,000 large houses covered with clay; there are 70 cathedral mosques and places of worship, 40 neighborhood mosques, 20 houses for visitors, 7 beautiful baths, about 1000 shops.”

In the 1720s. some territories (Ordubad-Agulis region) of the Nakhichevan region were occupied by Avid Bek and Mkhitar Sparapet, the leaders of the Armenian national liberation movement in Syunik (Zangezur).

In the middle of the 18th century. After the death of Nadir Shah, Heydar Quli Khan from the Kengerli clan created the Nakhichevan Khanate.

As part of Russia

IN early XIX century, the region became the scene of Russian-Persian wars. According to the Treaty of Gulistan, Russia abandoned attempts to capture Nakhichevan, recognizing the Khanate “in complete power” of Persia, however, during the new Russian-Persian war, Nakhichevan was occupied by the troops of General Paskevich, who were met by the population with complete submission, and in accordance with Article III of the Turkmanchay Treaty signed in 1828 , The Nakhichevan and Erivan khanates were transferred by the Shah “to the absolute ownership” of Russia. Kelbali Khan of Nakhichevan was blinded at one time by Agha-Mohammed Khan Qajar, which caused natural hatred towards the Qajar dynasty in the family, as a result of which his son, the ruler of the Khanate Ehsan Khan Kengerli, together with his brother Shikh-Ali bek, voluntarily went over to the side of Russia, rendering important assistance in the war with Persia, for which he was awarded the rank of colonel in the Russian service and he was appointed naib of the Nakhichevan Khanate, and Shikh-Ali bek naib of the Ordubad district. In October 1837, Ehsan Khan was promoted to major general. In 1839, under pressure from the chief administrator in the Caucasus, General E. A. Golovin, Ehsan Khan was forced to resign from the position of naib. As compensation, he was appointed marching chieftain of the Kengerli army, and later military marching chieftain of the Transcaucasian Muslim troops.

By decree of Nicholas I of March 21, 1828, immediately after the conclusion of the Turkmanchay Treaty, the Armenian region was formed from the Nakhichevan and Erivan khanates annexed to Russia, from which in 1849, with the annexation of the Alexandropol district, the Erivan province was formed.

According to the terms of the Turkmanchay Peace, the Russian government organized a mass resettlement of Armenians from Persia to the Armenian region. This caused discontent among the Muslim population, who were deprived of their lands, which were given to settlers. To reduce tension in the region, the Russian Ambassador to Persia A. S. Griboedov recommended that the commander-in-chief Russian army in the Caucasus, give Count Paskevich the order to move part of the Armenians who moved from Persia to Nakhichevan to Daralagez.

According to data from 1831, 37 thousand Armenians lived in the Nakhichevan region (of which 2.7 thousand were old-timers, 10 thousand were immigrants from different regions) and 17.1 thousand Azerbaijanis (Caucasian Tatars). According to data for 1886, in the territories that made up the modern Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic, ethnic composition was as follows: in part of the Davalinsky section of the Erivan district: Tatars (Azerbaijanis) - 4,215 (100%); in part of the Nakhichevan district: Tatars (Azerbaijanis) - 47,117 (59.1%), Armenians - 31,968 (40.1%), Kurds - 473 (0.6%); in the Sharur section of the Sharur-Daralagoz district: Tatars (Azerbaijanis) - 27,453 (86.4%), Armenians - 4,075 (12.8%).

According to data for 1896, in the Nakhichevan district of the Erivan province lived “Aderbeijan Tatars” (that is, Azerbaijanis) - 56.95%, Armenians - 42.21%, Kurds - 0.56%, Russians - 0.22%, Georgians and Gypsies 0.06%. There was 1 in the county Orthodox Church, 58 Armenian-Gregorian churches, 66 mosques. The 1897 census recorded 100,771 people in the Nakhichevan district, of which Tatars (Azerbaijanis) - 63.7%, Armenians - 34.4%, Russians - 0.9%, Kurds - 0.6%.

Nakhichevan region in 1918-1920.

More details: Araks Republic, Republic of Armenia, Azerbaijan Democratic Republic

Read more: Armenian-Azerbaijani War (1918-1920)

Nakhichevan SSR

On July 28, 1920, the 1st Caucasian Regiment of the 11th Red Army entered Nakhichevan. The commander of this regiment telegraphed S. M. Kirov: “The population of Nakhichevan warmly welcomes the Red Army and Soviet power”. The Nakhichevan Revolutionary Committee was formed (chairman M. Baktashev, members: G. Babaev, A. Kadymov, F. Makhmudbekov, etc.), which proclaimed Nakhichevan a Soviet Socialist Republic. The next day, the Revolutionary Committee invited the government of the Republic of Armenia to begin peace negotiations, but on July 30, the Minister of War of Armenia demanded “to ensure the unconditional submission of Nakhichevan to the Armenian government...”. The ultimatum was rejected. At the beginning of August, Armenian units launched an attack on Nakhichevan from the area of ​​​​the city of Ordubad, but were driven back by Soviet units of the 28th Infantry Division. On August 10, the chairman of the Nakhichevan Revolutionary Committee, Baktashev, wrote to the chairman of the Council of People's Commissars of the Azerbaijan SSR, Nariman Narimanov, that the population recognizes Nakhichevan as an integral part of the Azerbaijan SSR. On the same day, the RSFSR and the Republic of Armenia signed a peace agreement, according to which the troops of the RSFSR occupy the disputed areas: Karabakh, Zangezur and Nakhichevan. According to the agreement "class Soviet troops disputed territories does not prejudge the issue of rights to these territories of the Republic of Armenia or the Azerbaijan Socialist Soviet Republic. With this temporary occupation, the RSFSR intends to create favorable conditions for the peaceful resolution of territorial disputes between Armenia and Azerbaijan on the basis that will be established by the peace treaty to be concluded between the RSFSR and the Republic of Armenia in the near future.”.

In November, Armenian units again launched military operations. On November 29, the Revolutionary Committee of Armenia proclaimed the Socialist Soviet Republic of Armenia. On November 30, a declaration of Azrevkom was drawn up with the following content (based on the text published in the Collection of documents and materials. Yerevan, 1992, p. 601):

Soviet Azerbaijan, moving towards the struggle of the fraternal Armenian working people against the power of the Dashnaks, who have shed and shed the innocent blood of our best communist comrades within Armenia and Zangezur, declares that from now on no territorial issues can become the reason for the mutual bloodletting of two centuries-old neighboring peoples: Armenians and Muslims ; the territories of Zangezur and Nakhichevan districts are an indivisible part of Soviet Armenia, and the working peasantry of Nagorno-Karabakh is given full right of self-determination.

At the same time, on the night of December 2-3, a peace treaty was concluded between Dashnak Armenia and the government of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey in Alexandropol, according to which the areas of Nakhichevan, Sharur and Shakhtakhty were declared temporarily under the protection of Turkey. The government of the RSFSR and the Revolutionary Committee of the Armenian SSR did not recognize the Treaty of Alexandropol, since it was signed after the transfer of power by the government of the Republic of Armenia to the Revolutionary Committee of the Armenian SSR.

However, according to Audrey Alstad, the agreement between the RSFSR and the Democratic Republic of Armenia, concluded in December 1920, recognized the latter’s claims only to Zangezur, but not to Karabakh or Nakhichevan.

At the beginning of 1921, a referendum was held in the cities and villages of the Nakhichevan region through a poll, the results of which over 90% of the population were in favor of Nakhichevan becoming part of the Azerbaijan SSR as an autonomous republic. The data obtained during the referendum are explained by the fact that the number of Armenians in the region has decreased significantly. Thus, as a result of the extermination and flight of Armenians during the First World War, coupled with the inability to return, the share of Armenians decreased from 41.2% in 1832 to less than 11% in 1926. At the same time, at the 1st regional party conference, the Nakhichevan regional committee of the Communist Party of Azerbaijan was elected.

On March 16, the governments of Soviet Russia and the Grand National Assembly of Turkey in Moscow concluded an agreement on friendship and brotherhood, according to which the Nakhchivan region “forms an autonomous territory under the protectorate of Azerbaijan, provided that Azerbaijan does not cede this protectorate to a third state”. According to the Iranika encyclopedia, Nakhichevan was separated from Armenia by the Soviet-Turkish treaty. According to Sergei Vostrikov, Nakhichevan was the core of historical Armenian lands, which served as a bargaining chip in the territorial division and rapprochement between Soviet Russia and Kemalist Turkey. According to him, the formal reason for transferring Nakhichevan to the protectorate of Azerbaijan was the fact that as a result of the Armenian genocide and the massacre of Armenians in Baku, Nakhichevan and Shusha in 1918-1921, the number of the Armenian population here was halved.

In October of the same year, the Kars Treaty was signed between the government of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey, Soviet Russia, Armenia and Azerbaijan. According to Art. 5 of this agreement: “The Government of Turkey and the Government of Soviet Armenia and Azerbaijan agree that the Nakhichevan region, within the boundaries defined in Annex 3 of this treaty, forms an autonomous territory under the auspices of Azerbaijan.”.

In January 1922, the 1st Congress of Soviets of the Nakhichevan SSR took place.

Nakhichevan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic

In February 1923, based on the decision of the 3rd All-Nakhichevan Congress of Soviets, the Nakhichevan Autonomous Region was created as part of the Azerbaijan SSR, transformed on February 9, 1924 into the Nakhichevan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic. The Nakhichevan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic was the only autonomous entity on the territory of the USSR that was not created on an ethno-confessional basis. According to the 1926 census, 104,656 Soviet citizens lived in the Nakhichevan ASSR, of which 88,433 were Azerbaijanis, 11,276 Armenians, 2,649 Kurds, and 1,837 Russians. As a result of the policy of ousting the Armenian population from the region, which was carried out since the Stalin era, by 1988 the entire Armenian population was expelled from the autonomous republic.

The republic created mining, food, light and other industries, a diversified collective farm Agriculture. Higher ones were created educational establishments, scientific and research institutions, libraries, clubs, etc. Literature and art have achieved significant development in the republic.

During the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945, residents of the republic took part in it. Three people were awarded the title of Hero Soviet Union, thousands were awarded orders and medals for military and labor exploits.

In 1967 for achievements in development National economy and in cultural construction, the Nakhichevan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic was awarded the Order of Lenin, and on December 29, 1972, in commemoration of the 50th anniversary USSR- Order of Friendship of Peoples. By 1974, there were 21 Heroes of Socialist Labor in the republic.

Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic

On January 19, 1990, an emergency session of the Supreme Council of the Nakhichevan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic adopted a resolution on the withdrawal of the Nakhichevan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic from the USSR and the declaration of independence. On November 17 of the same year, the Supreme Council of the Nakhichevan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic changed the name “Nakhichevan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic” to “Nakhichevan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic” Autonomous Republic».

The Constitution of the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic states in Article 1:

I. Nakhchivan Autonomous State is a democratic, legal, world autonomous republic within the Republic of Azerbaijan.
II. The status of the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic is determined by the Constitution of the Azerbaijan Republic, the Moscow International Treaty of March 16, 1921 and the Kars Treaty of October 13, 1921.

According to the 1999 Azerbaijan census, 354,072 people lived in the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic, and according to the 2009 census, the population was 398,323 people.

Nakhchivan(Also Nakhchivan, Nakhchivan) - small town in Azerbaijan, located in the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic, cut off from the main territory of the country by the territory of Armenia. Population – about 75 thousand people (2013).

The city is located approximately 400 kilometers southwest of Baku, 150 kilometers southeast of Yerevan, near the Iranian border.

German linguist Max Vasmer claims that the name of the city comes from the merger of the Armenian words: “nakhich” - a proper name - and “avan”, which means “town”. According to legend, the city was founded by Noah, and its name is associated with the “landing place” of the ark.

You are unlikely to find any particularly unique attractions for which it is worth flying a couple of thousand kilometers to find yourself in Nakhichevan. Rare foreign tourists usually visit the Khan's Palace, several ancient mausoleums and tombs. The city itself is nothing interesting in architectural terms - ordinary impersonal box houses, lined with tiles and glass or covered with siding. In the center everything is “polished” and ennobled, on the outskirts it is simpler.

History of Nakhchivan

Persian and Armenian sources claim that the city of Nakhichevan was founded back in the 16th century BC. The first mention of Nakhichevan dates back to the 2nd century AD. For several centuries the city was subject to raids and conquests. In the 11th century, Nakhichevan became the residence of the Seljuk Sultan, and a century later - the capital of the Great Azerbaijani Atabeks from the Ildegizid dynasty.

In the 13th and 14th centuries, respectively, the city was ravaged by the Mongols and Tamerlane. Then Nakhichevan was restored, and its heyday began. In the 18th-19th centuries, the city became the capital of the Nakhichevan Khanate, and in 1827 it was occupied by Russian troops, and a year later Nakhichevan became part of the Armenian region.

In a referendum in 1921, 90% of the population supported joining Azerbaijan as an autonomous republic, and since 1924 the city became the capital of the Nakhichevan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic. During the Soviet era, the city was reconstructed and built up.

Sights of Nakhchivan

Tomb of Yusif ibn Kuseir (Yusif Küseyir oğlu türbəsi)- a 12th century building created by the architect Adjemi ibn Abubekr Nakhchivani. The tomb is composed of eight sides, and is crowned with a pyramidal roof. This is one of the oldest monuments in the city.

Mausoleum of Momine Khatun (Mömünə xatun türbəsi)– this is a wonderful work by the same famous architect Adjemi Nakhchivani. The height of the mausoleum, built in the 12th century, previously reached 34 meters, but now its height is only 25 meters. The mausoleum was built for the wife of ruler Jahan Pahlavan.

, also known as Tomb of the Prophet Nuh (Nuh payğəmbərin türbəsi)— located in the southern part of the city on the territory of the Old Fortress (Kökhnya-galy). It was built in 2006 on the remains of an ancient temple. The crypt of this tomb is believed to contain the relics of Noah.

Khan's Palace- a landmark of a later period, it was built in the 18th century. It was created by the father of the last of the Nakhichevan khans. Until the 20th century, khans lived in it, and since 1998 the palace has housed the Carpet Museum.

How to get to Nakhchivan

Nakhichevan has an airport located 4 km from the city, which receives flights from Moscow, Kyiv, Ganja, Baku, and Istanbul. From the Russian capital, only UTair airline flies here non-stop on Mondays; travel time is 3 hours 15 minutes.

The city of Nakhichevan is the capital of the Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic within Azerbaijan. The city arose in the 6th century. BC, and in the 11th century. turned into the capital of the Seljuk state. Today Nakhichevan and its surroundings are rightfully proud not only of their ancient history, but also the richest underground mineral water resources.

Attractions

The main attractions of Nakhichevan are considered monuments of medieval architecture: the mausoleums of Yusuf ibn Kuseyir (XI century) and Momine Khatun (XII century), the Gyaur-Kala fortress (Shakhtakhty, 2nd millennium BC), as well as the unique Khudaferin bridges across the Araks .

Not far from Nakhichevan there is the Alinja-Kala mausoleum (XI-XIII centuries), popularly known as “Atababa”.

The main diamond in the crown of Nakhichevan monuments is the Gulistan Mausoleum. This is a stunningly beautiful building. The mausoleum is made of red sandstone in the form of a dodecahedron, where each face has its own unique oriental pattern. The harmony of architecture is intertwined with the harmony of nature - the mausoleum is located in a picturesque place at the foot of the mountains, in the valley of the Araks River.

In the southeast of Nakhichevan, near the border with Iran, lies the city of Julfa. Not far from it, on the bare peak of a mountain rising in the middle of a wide plain, is the ancient fortress of Alinja-Kala (XI-XIII centuries), located on the right bank of the Alinja River.

West of Julfa, right on the banks of the Araks, a caravanserai was found - one of the largest caravanserais in Azerbaijan. The remains of this caravanserai were discovered in 1974. Subsequently, entire structures were excavated.

Near the Kavaran Sarai, the remains of a bridge built by the Nakhichevan ruler Hakim Zia ad-Din at the beginning of the 14th century were discovered.

Nakhchivan is home to a university, a scientific center of the Azerbaijan Academy of Sciences, theaters, literary and historical museums, and an art gallery.

Healing waters

The resort attractiveness of the city of Nakhichevan is also determined by the presence of several mineral springs, which provide almost all varieties of carbonic-carbonate, carbonic-chloride, and hydrogen sulfate-sulfate waters. In terms of the variety of mineral springs, the Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic is literally a geochemical museum.

Five groups of springs - Darrydag, Sirab, Nagadzhir, Badamli and Gyzylvang are extremely valuable hydromineral resources for balneological drinking resorts.

Darrydag springs are the highest yielding arsenic mineral springs. Valuable medicinal qualities This water is due to the fact that, along with a sufficient amount of arsenic, it contains boric acid, lithium, a large number of carbon dioxide, iodine, bromine, iron and other components.

Sirab springs are an analogue of Borjomi. Sirabian waters have great importance as a hydromineral base.

Nagadzhir springs are of the same type as Essentuki No. 17

Badamly springs belong to the category of Narzan type waters. They have a complex hydrocarbonate composition, contain a large amount of carbon dioxide, have a favorable temperature and high flow rate.

Gyzylvan bitter-salt and mineral water, generally rarely found in nature, is a laxative water (sulfate-chloride-calcium-sodium-magnesium).

Nakhchivan is considered a traditional tourism center. A trip there is included in the programs of most travel agencies in Azerbaijan.

How to get there

Citizens of Russia and some CIS countries do not require a visa to stay in Azerbaijan for up to 90 days. At the border it is enough to present your passport.

You can only get to Nakhichevan from Russia by plane (flights from Moscow three times a week). From the rest of Azerbaijan - by plane or by land transport through the territory of Iran (a visa is required).

The Azerbaijan-Armenia border is closed along its entire length.