Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic

Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic
Naxçıvan Muxtar Respublikası (Azerbaijani)
Autonomous republic of Azerbaijan
Official seal of Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic
National emblem
Anthem:
  Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic within Azerbaijan
Establishment of the Nakhchivan ASSRFebruary 9, 1924
Nakhchivan
Autonomous Republic
November 17, 1990
Capital
and largest city
Nakhchivan
Official languagesAzerbaijani
Demonym(s)Nakhchivani
GovernmentAutonomous parliamentary republic
• President's plenipotentiary representative
Fuad Najafli
• Acting chairman of the Supreme Assembly
Anar Ibrahimov
Jeyhun Jalilov
LegislatureSupreme Assembly
Area
• Total
5,502 km2 (2,124 sq mi)
• Water (%)
negligible
Population
• 2020 census
461,500
• Density
84/km2 (217.6/sq mi)
HDI (2014)Steady 0.772[1]
high
CurrencyAzerbaijan manat (AZN)
Time zoneUTC+4 (AZT)
Calling code+994 36
ISO 3166 codeAZ

The Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic (Azerbaijani: Naxçıvan Muxtar Respublikası, pronounced [nɑxtʃɯˈvɑn muxˈtɑɾ ɾesˈpublikɑsɯ])[2] is a landlocked exclave of the Republic of Azerbaijan. The region covers 5,502.75 km2 (2,124.62 sq mi)[3] with a population of 459,600.[4] It is bordered by Armenia[a] to the east and north, Iran[b] to the southwest, and Turkey[c] to the west. It is the sole autonomous republic of Azerbaijan, governed by its own elected legislature.

The republic, especially the capital city of Nakhchivan, has a long history dating back to about 1500 BC. Nakhijevan was one the cantons of the historical Armenian province of Vaspurakan in the Kingdom of Armenia. Historically, the Persians, Armenians, Mongols, and Turks all competed for the region.[2] The area that is now Nakhchivan became part of Safavid Iran in the 16th century. The semi-autonomous Nakhchivan Khanate was established there in the mid-18th century. In 1828, after the last Russo-Persian War and the Treaty of Turkmenchay, the Nakhchivan Khanate passed from Iranian into Imperial Russian possession.

After the 1917 February Revolution, Nakhchivan and its surrounding region were under the authority of the Special Transcaucasian Committee of the Russian Provisional Government and subsequently of the short-lived Transcaucasian Democratic Federative Republic. When the TDFR was dissolved in May 1918, Nakhchivan, Nagorno-Karabakh, Syunik, and Qazakh were heavily contested between the newly formed and short-lived states of the First Republic of Armenia and the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic (ADR). In June 1918, the region came under Ottoman occupation. Under the terms of the Armistice of Mudros, the Ottomans agreed to pull their troops out of the Transcaucasus to make way for British occupation at the close of the First World War. The British placed Nakhchivan under Armenian administration in April 1919, although an Azerbaijani revolt prevented Armenia from establishing full control over the territory.

In July 1920, the Bolsheviks occupied the region. In November of that year, Bolshevik Russia and Azerbaijan both promised that Nakhchivan, alongside neighboring Nagorno-Karabakh and Zangezur, was an "integral part" of Armenia.[5][d] However, on March 16, 1921, in accordance with the results of a referendum, the Bolshevik government declared the Nakhchivan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, which went on to become an autonomous republic within the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic in 1924. In January 1990, Nakhchivan declared independence from the USSR to protest against the suppression of the national movement in Azerbaijan and became the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic within the newly independent Republic of Azerbaijan a year later.

Though a mixed ArmenianAzerbaijani region as late as a century ago,[8][9][10][11] Nakhchivan is homogeneously Azerbaijani today besides a small population of Russians.[2]

  1. ^ Xəlilzadə, elgunkh, Elgun Xelilzade, Elgun Khalilzadeh, Elgün. "Naxçıvan Muxtar Respublikası Dövlət Statistika Komitəsi". Archived from the original on May 31, 2013. Retrieved June 12, 2016.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  2. ^ a b c "Naxcivan, | History & Geography | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved December 22, 2021.
  3. ^ Official portal of Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic :Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic Archived December 9, 2012, at archive.today
  4. ^ "Population of Azerbaijan". stat.gov.az. State Statistics Committee. Retrieved February 22, 2021.
  5. ^ De Waal. Black Garden, p. 129.
  6. ^ Tim Potier, "Conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh, Abkhazia, and South Ossetia: A Legal Appraisal" (2001), p. 4.
  7. ^ Michael P. Croissant, "The Armenia–Azerbaijan Conflict: Causes and Implications" (1998), p. 18.
  8. ^ Ian Bremmer and Ray Taras. New States, New Politics: Building Post-Soviet Nations, p. 484. ISBN 0-521-57799-3
  9. ^ Armenia: A Country Study: The New Nationalism, The Library of Congress
  10. ^ Andrew Andersen, PhD Atlas of Conflicts: Armenia: Nation Building and Territorial Disputes: 1918–1920
  11. ^ Croissant. Armenia–Azerbaijan Conflict, p. 16.


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