Nakhchivan

Azerbaijani city declared Capital of Islamic Culture for 2018

Dr. Nargiz Gurbanova was appointed as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Azerbaijan to the Republic of Bulgaria on January 12, 2016. Prior to her appointment, Ambassador N.Gurbanova served as Director of the Department for Economic Cooperation and Development at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan and was responsible for promoting Azerbaijan’s economic agenda abroad, partnership with global and regional economic organizations, cooperation with the European Union, as well as strengthening bilateral economic relations and regional economic cooperation.

Dr. N. Gurbanova joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 2001. During 2004 – 2007 she was working in the Embassy of the Republic of Azerbaijan in the Republic of Austria, and during 2010 – 2013 – in the Embassy of the Republic of Azerbaijan in the United States of America.

Ambassador N.Gurbanova was awarded with the jubilee medal of "The 90^th anniversary of the diplomatic service of the Republic of Azerbaijan". She holds a Ph.D degree in Political Science from the University of Vienna, Austria. 

Interview with the Ambassador of the Republic of Azarbaijan to the Republic of Bulgaria H.E. Nargiz Gurbanova

Your Excellency, it is known that the last year in Azerbaijan was marked the Year of Islamic Solidarity. In connection with this there were held a number of events and different activities were organized. What is the result of the efforts which the Azerbaijani state made in terms of this?

You know that the majority of the population in Azerbaijan are Muslims and this religious model passed with dignity through the time check. The reason for this is that the Azerbaijani people have always managed to keep and preserve the beauty and the purity of Islam. In Azerbaijan exists the best model of preservation of the adherence to the Islamic values, to the purity of religion.

Although in one state of the rule of law and secularism, as Azerbaijan is, the state-religion relations are strongly connected and serve to strengthening our statehood. Being distinguished by the majority of Muslim countries, in Azerbaijan our religion unites our people, makes it solidary, serves to strengthen and improve the country. And the Azerbaijani people with its national and moral values, formed based on the Islamic values, consider itself as an integral part of the Islamic world. Azerbaijan attaches a special importance to strengthening the solidarity and cooperation between the Muslim countries as one of the priorities of its state policy. By declaring year 2017 as Year of Islamic Solidarity, it became a host of the 4^th Islamic Solidarity Games and held an international conference on “2017 – The Year of Islamic Solidarity: Interfaith and Intercultural Dialogue”, Azerbaijan demonstrated to the entire world that Islam is a religion of peace and culture in the spirit of the unity.

With the declaring the Year of Islamic Solidarity your country showed what a great importance it attaches to the cooperation with the Islamic world. We would like to know if the meetings which Azerbaijan hosted, were attended by the Bulgarian Muslims as well?

Of course, our Muslim brothers from Bulgaria have always come to our attention and we are pleased with the fact that they represent your country at a high level at the meetings which we have hosted. The international conference, which we mentioned earlier, was held in Baku on December 21, the previous year, with the participation of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Mr. Ilham Aliyev. Your country was represented at this conference by Mustafa Hadzhi, Grand Mufti of the Republic of Bulgaria, and Dzhelal Faik, Secretary General of Grand Mufti’s Office. We are pleased with the fact that the Grand Mufti expressed his high appreciation for the Islamic and multicultural values, for the co-existence of the religious communities in our country, as well as for the adherence of the Azerbaijani people to Islam and its tolerance to the other religions.

President Ilham Aliyev visiting Kaaba

After Baku was a capital of the Islamic culture in 2009, now one more Azerbaijani city has this honor. With which of its specifics Nakhchivan won the opportunity to be elected as a capital of the Islamic culture?

It is well known that in order to receive a status of a capital of the Islamic culture, you have to meet certain requirements. The city claiming this status should has a rich history; it should has a special contribution to the development of science, art and literature at regional and national level, to has its place both in the Islamic and in the entire world culture.

With regard to keeping and preservation of the national values Nakhchivan in parallel with the Islamic culture has experienced a period of revival. With small territory but great spiritual importance Nakhchivan is historically one of the oldest cultural centers in the Middle East. People have lived here since ancient times. The formation of the urban culture of Nakhchivan five thousand years ago is considered as the most important indicator for the development of the civilization of this ancient Azerbaijani land. Nakhchivan made an important contribution also to the history of our national statehood. For thousands of years the Azerbaijani Turks have lived here and laid the foundations of the traditions of great statehood.

After embracing the Islamic religion the intellectuals from Nakhchivan enriched our history and culture with the traditions of the Islamic architecture, with precious examples of the Turk-Islamic culture. The work of architect Ajami Nakhchivani, who lived and worked in 12^th century, laid the foundations of a new school of the architecture not only in Azerbaijan, but also in the entire Middle East, and in the Islamic architecture.

But the integral of all periods of the history ancient part of Azerbaijan Nakhchivan is separated from the other lands of Azerbaijan when the region of Zangezur was submitted to Armenia at the end of 1920, and in this way it was under blockade. Despite the prohibitions during the Soviet period, in Nakhchivan being with a rich cultural heritage preserved the traditions of the Islamic culture for many years and these values are passed on to the young generations today.

Among the historical monuments in Nakhchivan are the tomb of the Prophet Noah, representing the history of the revival of the human society, the cave Ashab-ul-Kahf, for which is mentioned in the Holy Qur’an, the mysterious cave Duzdag, the essential memories from the Medieval Azerbaijani history – the tomb of Yusif Kuseyir Oglu, the home of the Nakhchivani khans – Khan Palace, city’s mosque “Jame” in Nakhchivan and many other magnificent monuments. Due to its beauty and splendor the medieval authors call Nakhchivan “Naqsh-i jahan” (The adornment of the world).

After 2005 in the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic of Azerbaijan are registered more than 1200 historical monuments of global, national and local importance. About 70 of them were restored with preservation of their historical value.

The tombs of Mu’mine Khatun and Gulustan, the architectural complex in the village of Khanagah, the monument “Geysariyye” in Ordubad, the “Jame” mosque, the Eastern Bath, the Zaviya madrasah building, the Khan Palace, the Garabaghlar Tomb Complex, the Alindja fortress, Yengija bath-house, the Imamzadeh complexes and the ice-houses (buzhane) again restored their historical look.

In this regard I would like to draw attention to two places – the architectural complex in the village of Khanagah and “Ashab-ul-Kahf”. One of the largest and most influential sites, operating on the territory of Nakhchivan the architectural complex in the village of Khanagah, was completely restored and open to visitors. In the tomb of this complex was buried Fazlullah Naimi, the founder of the widely spread in Azerbaijan since 14^th century religious thought of Hurufism, and also a teacher of Imadaddin Nasimi. Nowadays visitors from many countries visit this monument as a sacred place and believe that this gives them spiritual purity and tranquility.

The religious and cultural complex “Ashab-ul-Kahf”, about which is mentioned in the Holy Qur’an, and which is closely located to the city of Nakhchivan, for hundreds of years brings the people spiritual support and become their refuge.

Today there are 209 mosques operating in Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic. 72 of them are newly built, 95 mosques and 23 sanctuaries are reconstructed and restored. Currently in the southern part of the city of Nakhchivan, near the historical and architectural museum complex “Nakhchivankale” and the tomb of the Prophet Noah, is being constructed a big mosque. It consists of a prayer hall, two minarets with a height of 40 meters, two madrasah (schools) – female and male, and a library in the mosque with 15 domes. The capacity of the temple is for 2000 worshippers.

Zaviya madrasa in Nakhchivan 

 In Bulgaria Azerbaijan is also famous for its tolerant attitude and charitable mission. A bright example of this is the restoration of the architectural museum reserve “Trapezitsa” in Veliko Tarnovo, done with the support of “Heydar Aliyev” Foundation. Furthermore we also know from the international resolutions that the Azerbaijani lands have been subjected to occupation.  How does this fact affect the existence of these territories of historical and religious monuments, related to Islam?

In its internal policy the Azerbaijani state conducts at a high level events in the field of the preservation and the protection of all monuments and examples of the historical heritage. Unfortunately it is not possible to carry out these events in all territories of our country. As a result of the Armeniaнoccupation of the rich of material and cultural monuments Karabakh region all museums, mosques, monuments, which are located there and are related to the Islamic culture, are destroyed. Оn the list compiled by the State Committee on Religious Associations of the Republic of Azerbaijan, in the occupied by Armenia Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan and other territories are included 403 historical and religious monuments. 67 of them are mosques, 144 are temples, and 192 are places for worshipping. The most destroyed and damaged places by the Armenians were the Islamic religious monuments, the mosques, the tombs and other places of worship. One of the reasons for the destruction with particular cruelty of historical monuments from the Islamic period which remained in the occupied territories was that they had inscriptions with Muslim epigraphy. Exactly this is the reason from the officially operating on the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh and the regions adjacent thereto 67 Muslim mosques (13 in Shusha, 5 in Agdam, 16 in Fuzuli, 12 in Zangilan, 5 in Jabrail, 8 in Kubadli, 8 in Lachim) 63 are completely destroyed, 4 are partly destroyed and are unusable. Just under the pressure of the international organizations it was possible to preserve the walls of Juma mosque in Agdam, the mosques Ashaghi Govhar Agha, Yukhari Govhar Agha and Saatli in the city of Shusha. Once again demonstrating their intolerance and hatred toward the Azerbaijani people they keep in Juma mosque in Agdam domestic animals, including pigs.

In connection with the above-mentioned the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan prepared reports “Destruction of monuments belonging to Islamic history and culture in the occupied from Armenia territories of the Republic of Azerbaijan” and “Destruction and desecration of Azerbaijani historical and cultural heritage resulting from the continuing aggression of the Republic of Armenia against the Republic of Azerbaijan” and submitted them to UNESCO, the UN, the OSCE, the Council of Europe, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, IESCO and other international organizations.

These cultural examples do not belong only to the Azerbaijani people but to the entire humanity. From this point of view the protection of the remained as a memory of the centuries-old history of our nation historical and cultural monuments is a matter of international significance. This is aggression not only to Azerbaijan or to the Islamic culture, but to the entire culture of the mankind.

At the end of our interview which moments you would like to point out as important for declaring the city of Nakhchivan as a capital of the Islamic culture for 2018?

I would like to point out that the region of Nakhchivan, which with its antiquity and modernity is distinguished by its traditions of religious, national and ethnic tolerance and meets rules and principles required for the capitals of the Islamic culture, in Azerbaijan is formed a new perspective – scientific and cultural approach to the Islamic religion.  The main specific of this approach is that the Azerbaijani nation is one of the rare models of secular statehood in the entire Islamic world, as well as one of the holders of the highest tolerant values. There was no period from the history of Azerbaijan with inter-religious confrontation. Nowadays in Azerbaijan the representatives of all other religions freely perform their religious rites going to churches, synagogues. In Baku operate both Orthodox and Catholic Church. The existing national-cultural diversity along with the provision of opportunities for spiritual enrichment represents the country to the world as multinational and multiconfessional. Strengthening the highly-tolerant environment, established in the Azerbaijani society, has a great significance in terms of the development of the independent statehood. Taking into consideration this the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has recently decided to provide a financial aid of the amount of 1 million euro in order to support the existing religious confessions and to improve their material situation, by allocating AZN 1 million to the Caucasus Muslims Office, AZN 250,000 to Baku and Azerbaijan Eparchy of the Russian Orthodox Church, AZN 250,000 to Religious Community of Mountain Jews in Baku, AZN 100,000 to Baku Community of European Jews, AZN 100,000 to Roman Catholic Church's Apostolic Prefecture in Azerbaijan, and AZN 100,000 to Albanian Udi Christian Community in Azerbaijan. During the recent years in the country are successfully held international events related both to our religious affiliation and to inter-civilizational dialogue and tolerance. The example of Nakhchivan where the events dedicated to the Islamic culture take place, gives us the opportunity once again to contribute to the intercultural dialogue, based on the eternal ideals of our tolerant religion in the sake of the good future of the present generation.