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HOW TO CREATE A NATION: A TASK OF FORMATION OF THE AZERBAIJANI IDENTITY IN THE 20TH CENTURY
http://www.noravank.am/eng/articles/detail.php?ELEMENT_ID=7014
10.04.2013
Haykaram Nahapetyan
Correspondent of the Public TV Company of Armenia in the US A
well-known in the Soviet period definition of Azerbaijan's capital Baku
as an "international city" is still fresh in the memory of people from
the post-Soviet territory. In Soviet Baku different big national and
religious communities lived which was characteristic for pre-Soviet,
tsarist period as well. In 1913 in his article "Marxism and National
Issue" Stalin called Baku "a mosaic of nations".
But the formulation "international" may also have concealed subtext;
in fact international also means "non-Azerbaijani". International
image of Baku begins from a historic evolution through which the
Apsheron region had passed. The point is that the process of the
formation of the Azerbaijani nation which began in the 20th century
and lasted up to the end of the century, according to some criteria,
has not been finished yet. Correspondingly, Soviet Baku could not be
Azerbaijani city due the simple reason that the notion "Azerbaijani"
had been in an unaccomplished state of "fermenting".
The first capital of the declared in 1918 Musavatist Azerbaijan was
Gyanja which became a capital after the declaration of independence on
May 28, 1918, and not Baku. And Musavatist rule was spread over the
regions adjoining Gyanja taking into consideration the fact that in
the South and West Armenia and Artsakh were situated, in the East (at
the distance of 150km from Gechi to Baku) were the regions controlled
by revolutionary Stepan Shahumyan. Baku where Armenian and Christian
population much prevailed over the Muslim one could never be a capital
of Musavatist Azerbaijan. It is hard to say what would have been the
status of Baku in the Soviet Union if in November 1917-September
1918 leader of Baku Commune Stepan Shahumyan had managed to repel
the attacks of the Muslim army under the command of Young Turk Nuri
Pasha for just one more month. Nuri captured Baku on September 15
and according to the point 11 of the Mudros Armistice signed on
October 30 the Ottoman army began its retreat from the Caucasus,
Kars and Ardahan. Moreover, it had been known about the retreat of
the Ottomans back in September; the assistant of Aram Manukyan and
governor of Yerevan Arsho Shahatuni wrote that after visiting Yerevan
in September the commander of the Turkish garrison of Kars Halil Pasha
told about it in a secret conversation to Aram1. Thus, the Turkish
army captured Baku in the last period of its stay in the Caucasus.
Ð~XÑ~AÑ~BоÑ~@иÑ~O не пÑ~@изнаеÑ~B
Ñ~AоÑ~AÐ"агаÑ~BеÐ"Ñ~Lного накÐ"онениÑ~O,
однако Ñ~C нее еÑ~AÑ~BÑ~L опÑ~@едеÐ"еннаÑ~O
Ð"огика. Ð~ZажеÑ~BÑ~AÑ~O впоÐ"не веÑ~@оÑ~OÑ~BнÑ~Kм,
Ñ~GÑ~Bо еÑ~AÐ"и бÑ~K Ð~]Ñ~CÑ~@и паÑ~Hа не доÑ~HеÐ"
до Ð~PпÑ~HеÑ~@она, поÐ"Ñ~CоÑ~AÑ~BÑ~@ов позднее
Ñ~AÑ~BаÐ" бÑ~K Ñ~GаÑ~AÑ~BÑ~LÑ~N не Ð~PзеÑ~@байджана,
а СовеÑ~BÑ~Aкой РоÑ~AÑ~Aии как Ñ~DизиÑ~GеÑ~Aкое
пÑ~@одоÐ"жение Ð"агеÑ~AÑ~BанÑ~Aкого кÑ~@аÑ~O,
Ñ~A Ñ~CÑ~GеÑ~Bом Ñ~Bого, Ñ~GÑ~Bо на меÑ~AÑ~Bе Ñ~Cже
дейÑ~AÑ~BвоваÐ"а Ñ~AоÑ~@иенÑ~BиÑ~@овавÑ~HаÑ~OÑ~AÑ~O
в Ñ~AÑ~BоÑ~@онÑ~C РоÑ~AÑ~Aии Ð'акинÑ~AкаÑ~O
коммÑ~Cна, Ñ~BоÐ"Ñ~Lко один за 26
комиÑ~AÑ~AаÑ~@ов коÑ~BоÑ~@ой, кÑ~AÑ~BаÑ~Bи,
бÑ~KÐ" мÑ~CÑ~AÑ~CÐ"Ñ~Lманином. Ð~_ожаÐ"Ñ~Cй, не
менее важнÑ~Kм бÑ~KÐ"о Ñ~Bакже Ñ~Bо, Ñ~GÑ~Bо
РоÑ~AÑ~AиÑ~O Ñ~Aама нÑ~CждаÐ"аÑ~AÑ~L в неÑ~DÑ~Bи и
Ñ~Cже боÐ"ее Ñ~AÑ~BоÐ"еÑ~BиÑ~O доминиÑ~@оваÐ"а
на Ð~PпÑ~HеÑ~@оне.
History does not have a conjunctive mood but it complies with a
definite logic. It seems quite natural that if Nuri Pasha had not
reached the Apsheron, later the peninsula would have become not
Azerbaijan but a part of a Soviet Russia as a physical continuation
of Dagestan, taking into consideration the fact that at the spot the
Baku Commune which was of pro-Russian orientation acted; by the way
only one of 26 commissars was a Muslim. No less important would have
been the fact that Russia also needed the oil and had dominated at
Apsheron for more than a century.
Thus, in May-September 1918 the Young Turk leaders outlined the borders
of a "melting pot"-laboratory where in the next 100 years the nation
called "Azerbaijanis" had to be cast.
Let us go to 1939. In ethnic aspect Stalin's GULAG was just as
variegated as the Soviet Union, and since 1934 People's Commissariat
of Internal Affairs (known as NKVD) had prepared for the authorities
the annual reports on the ethnic picture of the inmates. Till 1939
(!) no ethnonym "Azerbaijani" could be found in the reports. There
were even Japanese and Koreans but no Azerbaijanis2.
Russian historian Victor Zemskov in his series of articles on "GULAG:
Historical and Sociological Aspect" published in 1991 presented the
ethnic composition of the citizens living in GULAG and other detention
facilities. The attached table, taken from the researcher's articles,
clearly shows that for the first time the term "Azerbaijani" appeared
in these lists in 1940 and while speaking about previous years Zemskov
mentioned - "no information about Azerbaijanis", and added that before
1939 Azerbaijanis were registered under the column "other nations".
There is no ethnonym Azerbaijani in a well-known Brockhaus
and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary in the Russian Empire (late
19th-early 20th century). In his article "Marxism and National
Issue" Koba-Jugashvili-Stalin had mentioned Caucasian Tatars for
11 times but he had never written "Azerbaijani"3. In his appeal to
the Muslims of the East on November 22, 1917 Lenin did not mentioned
Azerbaijanis either; he wrote about the "Turcoman and Tatars of the
Caucasus"4. In the same period in the American press Azerbaijan
was called Tartars: The New York Times in its article "Says Baku
Armenians face extermination" used "arar"5 variant. The White guard
General Anton Denikin in his memories called Musavatist Azerbaijan
an artificial country starting from its name6.
In 1926 the first population census was held in the Soviet Union.
Among the registered nationalities there were no "Azerbaijanis"
either. According to the population census there were such
nationalities as the Yakut, Mordvinians, Buryat, Vainakhs, Permyaks but
no "Azerbaijanis". In the official census data book "The Transcaucasia
in Figures" no Azerbaijani ethnonym can be found. On January 21, 1936
while receiving the delegation of the Soviet Azerbaijan in Kremlin
Vyacheslav Molotov enumerated the ethnicities living in Azerbaijan
"Russians, Armenian and Turcoman". The Head of the Soviet Government
did not know the word "Azerbaijanis" at that time. "Not only Russian,
Armenian and Turcoman capitalists but also foreigners profited from
the well-known Baku oil. Under the tsar rule Azerbaijan and its Turkic
population lived depressed", - said the Chairman of the Sovnarkom
(prime-minister) of the USSR7. The words of the Minister of Heavy
Industry of the USSR Sergo Ordjonikidze at the meeting with the
party leaders Midjafar Badirov and Hussein Rakhmanov are remarkable:
"Today I recollect with horror the episode when in May 1920 we entered
Shushi. This wonderful Armenian city was thoroughly demolished. We
saw the bodies of women and children in the wells".
Ordjonikidze's words were cited by "Edibiyat Gazeti" newspaper
published in February of the same year in Baku8,
It should be mentioned that at the meeting with the Muslim delegation
Ordjonikidze clearly called Shushi Armenian town-fortress. Hence, in
speech Ordjonikidze used word "Azerbaijani" and in the same sentence
he spoke about the "Turcoman of Azerbaijan". In fact "Azerbaijani"
at this stage meant the "inhabitant of Azerbaijan", but it did not
show an ethnicity, just like words "Caucasian" and "Asian" had no
ethnic meaning.
Since 1939 the transitional period when at different state levels in
the USSR the Azerbaijanis had been referred as ethnos, meanwhile in
some institutions the notion "Azerbaijani" had not even been used
yet, had been initiated. As it was mentioned there was no ethnonym
"Azerbaijani" in NKVD reports in 1939, but at the same time in the
population census for the same year, unlike the one of 1926, there were
Azerbaijanis. Such a colliding situation had lasted for about 10 years.
Ð' Ñ~GаÑ~AÑ~BноÑ~AÑ~Bи, оÑ~BмеÑ~GаÑ~O
о Ñ~AÑ~BаÑ~BиÑ~AÑ~Bике 1944 и 1947гг.,
Ð-емÑ~Aков замеÑ~GаеÑ~B, Ñ~GÑ~Bо Ñ~GиÑ~AÐ"о
азеÑ~@байджанÑ~Fев в Ð"агеÑ~@Ñ~OÑ... Ð"УÐ~[Ð~PÐ"а
в неÑ~AкоÐ"Ñ~Lко Ñ~@аз Ñ~CÑ~AÑ~BÑ~CпаеÑ~B
аÑ~@мÑ~Oнам и гÑ~@Ñ~Cзинам. Â"Ð~_о наÑ~HемÑ~C
мнениÑ~N, пÑ~@иÑ~Gина в Ñ~Bом, Ñ~GÑ~Bо в
Ñ~AпиÑ~Aке наÑ~@одов бÑ~KÐ"и оÑ~BмеÑ~GенÑ~K
Ñ~Bакже Ñ~BÑ~NÑ~@ки. Ð~PзеÑ~@байджанÑ~FÑ~K
и Ñ~BÑ~NÑ~@ки бÑ~KÐ"и Ñ~BÑ~NÑ~@коÑ~OзÑ~KÑ~GнÑ~Kми
наÑ~@одами, и Ñ~AÑ~BаÑ~BиÑ~AÑ~Bики Ð"УÐ~[Ð~PÐ"а,
по вÑ~Aей веÑ~@оÑ~OÑ~BноÑ~AÑ~Bи, взÑ~OÐ"и
на Ñ~CÑ~GеÑ~B знаÑ~GиÑ~BеÐ"Ñ~LнÑ~CÑ~N Ñ~GаÑ~AÑ~BÑ~L
закÐ"Ñ~NÑ~GеннÑ~KÑ..., как Ñ~BÑ~NÑ~@окÂ", - пиÑ~HеÑ~B
он.
In particular, while speaking about the 1944 and 1947 statistics
Zemskov mentioned that the number of Azerbaijanis in GULAG is several
times lower than the number of the Armenians and Georgians.
Azerbaijanis and Turcomen were Turkic speaking peoples and the
statisticians of GULAG registered most of the inmates as the
Turcomen"9.
The process of formation of a new ethnos was triggered by the collapse
of the Transcaucasia Socialist Republic in 1937. Thus, Azerbaijan
became a Union republic which, unlike Georgia and Armenia had nod had
a history and for which a separate history had to be composed. For
example in the same period (1938-1941) it suddenly turned out that
medieval poet Nizami is an Azerbaijani. During his life and over the
following 800 years no sources had managed to set his nationality.
Nizami in his poetry never wrote about Azerbaijan and Azerbaijanis,
though, as the researcher and journalist Aris Kazinayn noticed,
at least in one of his quatrains he mentioned Armenia:
Passed the desert, rode towards the other desert,
Hurried to Armenia - a mounted valley10
The Soviet historiography stated that the Persians bereaved the
Azerbaijanis of the poet and the Baku branch of the Academy of Science
of the USSR re-developed the medieval history approximately in the
same way as they did it with the history of Artsakh and Armenia. In the
late 1930s when the relation between the USSR and Turkey deteriorated
it became undesirable to call Azerbaijanis "Turcoman" and Stalin
decided to invent new and different name for the Turcoman-Tatars of
the Caucasus. Thus, in the late 30s the youngest nation on the planet -
Azerbaijanis, was born.
Another remarkable fact of accelerated and artificial evolution
of the Azerbaijani ethnos in the 20th century is the Azerbaijani
alphabet. At the end of the 19th century and at the beginning of
the 20th century the Caucasian Tatars used Arabic alphabet which was
also used in the Musavatist and Soviet Azerbaijan till 1929. That is
why there were Arabic letters on the national emblem of the USSR -
Azerbaijani variant of "Workers of the World, Unite!" slogan. Today's
state flag of the Azerbaijan where eight point star is pictured against
the background of a red stripe, was taken from the Musavatists. The
symbol of eight points star in reality meant the eight Arabic letters
of a word "Azerbaijan" (أذربÙ~JجاÙ~F). The president's web
site (president.az) reveals the meaning of the three colors on
the flag but there are no explanations concerning the eight point
star11. There is nothing about the eight point star in the Azerbaijani
Law on Flag. While mounting one of the highest flags in the world,
Azerbaijan, most probably, did not want to remember about its not so
distant Arabic-language past.
Processing of the Azerbaijani language in Latin letters was initiated
under Musavat rule and it was partially put forth in late 20th (1929).
In 1933 and 1938 the Latin alphabet underwent changes and since 1939
the Cyrillic alphabet (which was changed twice in 1946 and 1958)
had been used. In 1991 Azerbaijan passed to the Latin alphabet again
and in 1992 it was changed once more, in particular, letter Æ~O was
added - it is the first letter in the word "Æ~Oliyev" (the surname
of the founder of the Apsheron dynasty of rulers).
Thus, the Azerbaijani alphabet had been changed 8 times in 65 years,
on average once in eight years. This is really worthy achievement
for the Guinness Book of World Records.
It is remarkable that the Azerbaijanis from Russia still use Cyrillic
alphabet; they publish newspapers, particularly in Dagestan.
The expression of Svante E. Cornell, the author of "Azerbaijan
since Independence" book, made on December 13, 2011 at John Hopkins
University is remarkable. While turning to the ambassador Yashar
Aliyev he asked" "Who are you - Azerbaijanis, Azeris or Turks?"
Embarrassed ambassador answered after a short pause: "Azerbaijanis".
The fact that the author of a book about Azerbaijan and Azerbaijanis
could not understand whom is he dealing with is more than eloquent.
1 Meetings of Halil Pasha with Aram, Yerevan, 1991, p. 504 (in
Armenian)
2 Zemskov V.N. "GULAG: Historical and Sociological Aspect", 1991,
N6, p. 17, Table 5 (in Russian)
3 Stalin I.V. Marxism and National Issue, Prosveshenie, 1913, NN 3,
4, 5 (in Russian)
4 Lenin and Tatar Issue (in Russian)
http://www.islamrf.ru/news/culture/legacy/12382/
5 "Says Baku Armenians face extermination", The New York Times,
03.05.1920.
6 Anton Denikin, Sketch Book of the Russian Revolt. Head 18, p. 234
(in Russian)
7 Molotov joldasÑ~Ln nitqi, ÐдÑ~MбиjjaÑ~B гÑ~MзÑ~MÑ~BÑ~Bи,
08.02.1936, N2, (52).
8 Orconikidze joldasÑ~Ln nitqi, Ibid.
9 Zemskov V.N. "GULAG: Historical and Sociological Aspect", 1991,
N7, p. 4 (in Russian)
10 Aris Kazinyan, Poligon "Azerbaijan" p. 160. Yerevan, 2011 (in
Russian)
11 http://archive.president.az/browse.php?sec_id=53&lang=ru.
"Globus" analytical journal, #3, 2013
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From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
http://www.noravank.am/eng/articles/detail.php?ELEMENT_ID=7014
10.04.2013
Haykaram Nahapetyan
Correspondent of the Public TV Company of Armenia in the US A
well-known in the Soviet period definition of Azerbaijan's capital Baku
as an "international city" is still fresh in the memory of people from
the post-Soviet territory. In Soviet Baku different big national and
religious communities lived which was characteristic for pre-Soviet,
tsarist period as well. In 1913 in his article "Marxism and National
Issue" Stalin called Baku "a mosaic of nations".
But the formulation "international" may also have concealed subtext;
in fact international also means "non-Azerbaijani". International
image of Baku begins from a historic evolution through which the
Apsheron region had passed. The point is that the process of the
formation of the Azerbaijani nation which began in the 20th century
and lasted up to the end of the century, according to some criteria,
has not been finished yet. Correspondingly, Soviet Baku could not be
Azerbaijani city due the simple reason that the notion "Azerbaijani"
had been in an unaccomplished state of "fermenting".
The first capital of the declared in 1918 Musavatist Azerbaijan was
Gyanja which became a capital after the declaration of independence on
May 28, 1918, and not Baku. And Musavatist rule was spread over the
regions adjoining Gyanja taking into consideration the fact that in
the South and West Armenia and Artsakh were situated, in the East (at
the distance of 150km from Gechi to Baku) were the regions controlled
by revolutionary Stepan Shahumyan. Baku where Armenian and Christian
population much prevailed over the Muslim one could never be a capital
of Musavatist Azerbaijan. It is hard to say what would have been the
status of Baku in the Soviet Union if in November 1917-September
1918 leader of Baku Commune Stepan Shahumyan had managed to repel
the attacks of the Muslim army under the command of Young Turk Nuri
Pasha for just one more month. Nuri captured Baku on September 15
and according to the point 11 of the Mudros Armistice signed on
October 30 the Ottoman army began its retreat from the Caucasus,
Kars and Ardahan. Moreover, it had been known about the retreat of
the Ottomans back in September; the assistant of Aram Manukyan and
governor of Yerevan Arsho Shahatuni wrote that after visiting Yerevan
in September the commander of the Turkish garrison of Kars Halil Pasha
told about it in a secret conversation to Aram1. Thus, the Turkish
army captured Baku in the last period of its stay in the Caucasus.
Ð~XÑ~AÑ~BоÑ~@иÑ~O не пÑ~@изнаеÑ~B
Ñ~AоÑ~AÐ"агаÑ~BеÐ"Ñ~Lного накÐ"онениÑ~O,
однако Ñ~C нее еÑ~AÑ~BÑ~L опÑ~@едеÐ"еннаÑ~O
Ð"огика. Ð~ZажеÑ~BÑ~AÑ~O впоÐ"не веÑ~@оÑ~OÑ~BнÑ~Kм,
Ñ~GÑ~Bо еÑ~AÐ"и бÑ~K Ð~]Ñ~CÑ~@и паÑ~Hа не доÑ~HеÐ"
до Ð~PпÑ~HеÑ~@она, поÐ"Ñ~CоÑ~AÑ~BÑ~@ов позднее
Ñ~AÑ~BаÐ" бÑ~K Ñ~GаÑ~AÑ~BÑ~LÑ~N не Ð~PзеÑ~@байджана,
а СовеÑ~BÑ~Aкой РоÑ~AÑ~Aии как Ñ~DизиÑ~GеÑ~Aкое
пÑ~@одоÐ"жение Ð"агеÑ~AÑ~BанÑ~Aкого кÑ~@аÑ~O,
Ñ~A Ñ~CÑ~GеÑ~Bом Ñ~Bого, Ñ~GÑ~Bо на меÑ~AÑ~Bе Ñ~Cже
дейÑ~AÑ~BвоваÐ"а Ñ~AоÑ~@иенÑ~BиÑ~@овавÑ~HаÑ~OÑ~AÑ~O
в Ñ~AÑ~BоÑ~@онÑ~C РоÑ~AÑ~Aии Ð'акинÑ~AкаÑ~O
коммÑ~Cна, Ñ~BоÐ"Ñ~Lко один за 26
комиÑ~AÑ~AаÑ~@ов коÑ~BоÑ~@ой, кÑ~AÑ~BаÑ~Bи,
бÑ~KÐ" мÑ~CÑ~AÑ~CÐ"Ñ~Lманином. Ð~_ожаÐ"Ñ~Cй, не
менее важнÑ~Kм бÑ~KÐ"о Ñ~Bакже Ñ~Bо, Ñ~GÑ~Bо
РоÑ~AÑ~AиÑ~O Ñ~Aама нÑ~CждаÐ"аÑ~AÑ~L в неÑ~DÑ~Bи и
Ñ~Cже боÐ"ее Ñ~AÑ~BоÐ"еÑ~BиÑ~O доминиÑ~@оваÐ"а
на Ð~PпÑ~HеÑ~@оне.
History does not have a conjunctive mood but it complies with a
definite logic. It seems quite natural that if Nuri Pasha had not
reached the Apsheron, later the peninsula would have become not
Azerbaijan but a part of a Soviet Russia as a physical continuation
of Dagestan, taking into consideration the fact that at the spot the
Baku Commune which was of pro-Russian orientation acted; by the way
only one of 26 commissars was a Muslim. No less important would have
been the fact that Russia also needed the oil and had dominated at
Apsheron for more than a century.
Thus, in May-September 1918 the Young Turk leaders outlined the borders
of a "melting pot"-laboratory where in the next 100 years the nation
called "Azerbaijanis" had to be cast.
Let us go to 1939. In ethnic aspect Stalin's GULAG was just as
variegated as the Soviet Union, and since 1934 People's Commissariat
of Internal Affairs (known as NKVD) had prepared for the authorities
the annual reports on the ethnic picture of the inmates. Till 1939
(!) no ethnonym "Azerbaijani" could be found in the reports. There
were even Japanese and Koreans but no Azerbaijanis2.
Russian historian Victor Zemskov in his series of articles on "GULAG:
Historical and Sociological Aspect" published in 1991 presented the
ethnic composition of the citizens living in GULAG and other detention
facilities. The attached table, taken from the researcher's articles,
clearly shows that for the first time the term "Azerbaijani" appeared
in these lists in 1940 and while speaking about previous years Zemskov
mentioned - "no information about Azerbaijanis", and added that before
1939 Azerbaijanis were registered under the column "other nations".
There is no ethnonym Azerbaijani in a well-known Brockhaus
and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary in the Russian Empire (late
19th-early 20th century). In his article "Marxism and National
Issue" Koba-Jugashvili-Stalin had mentioned Caucasian Tatars for
11 times but he had never written "Azerbaijani"3. In his appeal to
the Muslims of the East on November 22, 1917 Lenin did not mentioned
Azerbaijanis either; he wrote about the "Turcoman and Tatars of the
Caucasus"4. In the same period in the American press Azerbaijan
was called Tartars: The New York Times in its article "Says Baku
Armenians face extermination" used "arar"5 variant. The White guard
General Anton Denikin in his memories called Musavatist Azerbaijan
an artificial country starting from its name6.
In 1926 the first population census was held in the Soviet Union.
Among the registered nationalities there were no "Azerbaijanis"
either. According to the population census there were such
nationalities as the Yakut, Mordvinians, Buryat, Vainakhs, Permyaks but
no "Azerbaijanis". In the official census data book "The Transcaucasia
in Figures" no Azerbaijani ethnonym can be found. On January 21, 1936
while receiving the delegation of the Soviet Azerbaijan in Kremlin
Vyacheslav Molotov enumerated the ethnicities living in Azerbaijan
"Russians, Armenian and Turcoman". The Head of the Soviet Government
did not know the word "Azerbaijanis" at that time. "Not only Russian,
Armenian and Turcoman capitalists but also foreigners profited from
the well-known Baku oil. Under the tsar rule Azerbaijan and its Turkic
population lived depressed", - said the Chairman of the Sovnarkom
(prime-minister) of the USSR7. The words of the Minister of Heavy
Industry of the USSR Sergo Ordjonikidze at the meeting with the
party leaders Midjafar Badirov and Hussein Rakhmanov are remarkable:
"Today I recollect with horror the episode when in May 1920 we entered
Shushi. This wonderful Armenian city was thoroughly demolished. We
saw the bodies of women and children in the wells".
Ordjonikidze's words were cited by "Edibiyat Gazeti" newspaper
published in February of the same year in Baku8,
It should be mentioned that at the meeting with the Muslim delegation
Ordjonikidze clearly called Shushi Armenian town-fortress. Hence, in
speech Ordjonikidze used word "Azerbaijani" and in the same sentence
he spoke about the "Turcoman of Azerbaijan". In fact "Azerbaijani"
at this stage meant the "inhabitant of Azerbaijan", but it did not
show an ethnicity, just like words "Caucasian" and "Asian" had no
ethnic meaning.
Since 1939 the transitional period when at different state levels in
the USSR the Azerbaijanis had been referred as ethnos, meanwhile in
some institutions the notion "Azerbaijani" had not even been used
yet, had been initiated. As it was mentioned there was no ethnonym
"Azerbaijani" in NKVD reports in 1939, but at the same time in the
population census for the same year, unlike the one of 1926, there were
Azerbaijanis. Such a colliding situation had lasted for about 10 years.
Ð' Ñ~GаÑ~AÑ~BноÑ~AÑ~Bи, оÑ~BмеÑ~GаÑ~O
о Ñ~AÑ~BаÑ~BиÑ~AÑ~Bике 1944 и 1947гг.,
Ð-емÑ~Aков замеÑ~GаеÑ~B, Ñ~GÑ~Bо Ñ~GиÑ~AÐ"о
азеÑ~@байджанÑ~Fев в Ð"агеÑ~@Ñ~OÑ... Ð"УÐ~[Ð~PÐ"а
в неÑ~AкоÐ"Ñ~Lко Ñ~@аз Ñ~CÑ~AÑ~BÑ~CпаеÑ~B
аÑ~@мÑ~Oнам и гÑ~@Ñ~Cзинам. Â"Ð~_о наÑ~HемÑ~C
мнениÑ~N, пÑ~@иÑ~Gина в Ñ~Bом, Ñ~GÑ~Bо в
Ñ~AпиÑ~Aке наÑ~@одов бÑ~KÐ"и оÑ~BмеÑ~GенÑ~K
Ñ~Bакже Ñ~BÑ~NÑ~@ки. Ð~PзеÑ~@байджанÑ~FÑ~K
и Ñ~BÑ~NÑ~@ки бÑ~KÐ"и Ñ~BÑ~NÑ~@коÑ~OзÑ~KÑ~GнÑ~Kми
наÑ~@одами, и Ñ~AÑ~BаÑ~BиÑ~AÑ~Bики Ð"УÐ~[Ð~PÐ"а,
по вÑ~Aей веÑ~@оÑ~OÑ~BноÑ~AÑ~Bи, взÑ~OÐ"и
на Ñ~CÑ~GеÑ~B знаÑ~GиÑ~BеÐ"Ñ~LнÑ~CÑ~N Ñ~GаÑ~AÑ~BÑ~L
закÐ"Ñ~NÑ~GеннÑ~KÑ..., как Ñ~BÑ~NÑ~@окÂ", - пиÑ~HеÑ~B
он.
In particular, while speaking about the 1944 and 1947 statistics
Zemskov mentioned that the number of Azerbaijanis in GULAG is several
times lower than the number of the Armenians and Georgians.
Azerbaijanis and Turcomen were Turkic speaking peoples and the
statisticians of GULAG registered most of the inmates as the
Turcomen"9.
The process of formation of a new ethnos was triggered by the collapse
of the Transcaucasia Socialist Republic in 1937. Thus, Azerbaijan
became a Union republic which, unlike Georgia and Armenia had nod had
a history and for which a separate history had to be composed. For
example in the same period (1938-1941) it suddenly turned out that
medieval poet Nizami is an Azerbaijani. During his life and over the
following 800 years no sources had managed to set his nationality.
Nizami in his poetry never wrote about Azerbaijan and Azerbaijanis,
though, as the researcher and journalist Aris Kazinayn noticed,
at least in one of his quatrains he mentioned Armenia:
Passed the desert, rode towards the other desert,
Hurried to Armenia - a mounted valley10
The Soviet historiography stated that the Persians bereaved the
Azerbaijanis of the poet and the Baku branch of the Academy of Science
of the USSR re-developed the medieval history approximately in the
same way as they did it with the history of Artsakh and Armenia. In the
late 1930s when the relation between the USSR and Turkey deteriorated
it became undesirable to call Azerbaijanis "Turcoman" and Stalin
decided to invent new and different name for the Turcoman-Tatars of
the Caucasus. Thus, in the late 30s the youngest nation on the planet -
Azerbaijanis, was born.
Another remarkable fact of accelerated and artificial evolution
of the Azerbaijani ethnos in the 20th century is the Azerbaijani
alphabet. At the end of the 19th century and at the beginning of
the 20th century the Caucasian Tatars used Arabic alphabet which was
also used in the Musavatist and Soviet Azerbaijan till 1929. That is
why there were Arabic letters on the national emblem of the USSR -
Azerbaijani variant of "Workers of the World, Unite!" slogan. Today's
state flag of the Azerbaijan where eight point star is pictured against
the background of a red stripe, was taken from the Musavatists. The
symbol of eight points star in reality meant the eight Arabic letters
of a word "Azerbaijan" (أذربÙ~JجاÙ~F). The president's web
site (president.az) reveals the meaning of the three colors on
the flag but there are no explanations concerning the eight point
star11. There is nothing about the eight point star in the Azerbaijani
Law on Flag. While mounting one of the highest flags in the world,
Azerbaijan, most probably, did not want to remember about its not so
distant Arabic-language past.
Processing of the Azerbaijani language in Latin letters was initiated
under Musavat rule and it was partially put forth in late 20th (1929).
In 1933 and 1938 the Latin alphabet underwent changes and since 1939
the Cyrillic alphabet (which was changed twice in 1946 and 1958)
had been used. In 1991 Azerbaijan passed to the Latin alphabet again
and in 1992 it was changed once more, in particular, letter Æ~O was
added - it is the first letter in the word "Æ~Oliyev" (the surname
of the founder of the Apsheron dynasty of rulers).
Thus, the Azerbaijani alphabet had been changed 8 times in 65 years,
on average once in eight years. This is really worthy achievement
for the Guinness Book of World Records.
It is remarkable that the Azerbaijanis from Russia still use Cyrillic
alphabet; they publish newspapers, particularly in Dagestan.
The expression of Svante E. Cornell, the author of "Azerbaijan
since Independence" book, made on December 13, 2011 at John Hopkins
University is remarkable. While turning to the ambassador Yashar
Aliyev he asked" "Who are you - Azerbaijanis, Azeris or Turks?"
Embarrassed ambassador answered after a short pause: "Azerbaijanis".
The fact that the author of a book about Azerbaijan and Azerbaijanis
could not understand whom is he dealing with is more than eloquent.
1 Meetings of Halil Pasha with Aram, Yerevan, 1991, p. 504 (in
Armenian)
2 Zemskov V.N. "GULAG: Historical and Sociological Aspect", 1991,
N6, p. 17, Table 5 (in Russian)
3 Stalin I.V. Marxism and National Issue, Prosveshenie, 1913, NN 3,
4, 5 (in Russian)
4 Lenin and Tatar Issue (in Russian)
http://www.islamrf.ru/news/culture/legacy/12382/
5 "Says Baku Armenians face extermination", The New York Times,
03.05.1920.
6 Anton Denikin, Sketch Book of the Russian Revolt. Head 18, p. 234
(in Russian)
7 Molotov joldasÑ~Ln nitqi, ÐдÑ~MбиjjaÑ~B гÑ~MзÑ~MÑ~BÑ~Bи,
08.02.1936, N2, (52).
8 Orconikidze joldasÑ~Ln nitqi, Ibid.
9 Zemskov V.N. "GULAG: Historical and Sociological Aspect", 1991,
N7, p. 4 (in Russian)
10 Aris Kazinyan, Poligon "Azerbaijan" p. 160. Yerevan, 2011 (in
Russian)
11 http://archive.president.az/browse.php?sec_id=53&lang=ru.
"Globus" analytical journal, #3, 2013
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