Nardaran

40°33′22″N 50°00′20″E / 40.55611°N 50.00556°E / 40.55611; 50.00556

Nardaran
Municipality
Nardaran
Coordinates: 40°33′22″N 50°00′20″E / 40.55611°N 50.00556°E / 40.55611; 50.00556
Country	Azerbaijan
City	Baku
Raion	Sabunchu
Population  (2008)[1]
• Total	8,300
Time zone	UTC+4 (AZT)
• Summer (DST)	AZT
Amburan Lighthouse Amburan mayakı
Constructed	1882
Construction	masonry (foundation), masonry (tower)
Height	12 m (39 ft)
Shape	cylindrical tower with balcony and light atop the lantern attached to a 2-storey keeper's house[2]
Markings	white (tower), red (roof)
Power source	mains electricity
First lit	1884
Focal height	72 m (236 ft)
Characteristic	Oc(2) W 15s

Nardaran is a settlement and municipality on the Abşeron Peninsula in Baku, Azerbaijan. It has a population of 8,300. Located 25 kilometers northeast of central Baku, it is politically part of the Baku city-subdivision and treated as a suburb. Unlike most of the rest of the country, which is religiously liberal, Nardaran is a center of conservative Shi'a Islam and pro-Iranian sentiment in Azerbaijan.^[3]

Nardaran's name comes from Persian: nar (pomegranate)نار + daran (trees) داران, i.e. "place with pomegranate trees".

The town is the site of a 14th-century castle, featuring a round tower approximately 12.5 meters high. During Soviet rule, the town was known as a center for growing flowers. Since Azerbaijan's independence, the economy has dwindled and the town is reputed for its caviar poachers.^[4]