Zakatal okrug
Zakatal Okrug
Закатальскій округъ | |
|---|---|
.gif) Coat of arms | |
 Location in the Caucasus Viceroyalty | |
| Country | Russian Empire |
| Viceroyalty | Caucasus |
| Established | 1859 |
| Abolished | 1918 |
| Capital | Zakataly (present-day Zaqatala) |
| Area | |
• Total | 3,985.77 km2 (1,538.91 sq mi) |
| Population (1916) | |
• Total | 92,608 |
| • Density | 23/km2 (60/sq mi) |
| • Urban | 4.86% |
| • Rural | 95.14% |
| History of Azerbaijan |
|---|
 |
 Azerbaijan portal |
The Zakatal or Zakatali Okrug[a] was a special administrative district (okrug) of the Caucasus Viceroyalty of the Russian Empire, part of the Tiflis Governorate from 1893 to 1905. The administrative centre of the district was the city Zakataly (present-day Zaqatala), and it corresponded to most of the contemporary districts of Balakan, Zaqatala and Qax of Azerbaijan. The Zakatal Okrug was established from the territories of the erstwhile Free Jamaats of Jar-Balakan, bordering the Tiflis Governorate to the west, the Elizavetpol Governorate to the south and the Dagestan Oblast to the north. The district was unique in that it was the smallest independent (not part of any province or region) administrative unit of the Russian Empire, similarly to the Sukhumi Okrug.[1]
History
The district was originally established under the name Belokan in 1842, within the Georgia-Imeretia Governorate, two years after it was renamed to Jaro-Belokan. The autonomous status of the district was confirmed in 1846, leading to its renaming to Zakataly in 1860 and its placement into the temporary administration of Dagestan during which its administration was organised into a military council, of which the chief was the head of the district, concurrently with Dagestan.[2] In 1881, an independent administration was introduced. The Zakatal Okrug was incorporated into the 'civilian' administration of the Tiflis Governorate from 1893 until 1905 when was removed and placed directly under the Viceroy of the Caucasus.[3]
The social structure of the Zakatal Okrug was multi-layered in its patriarchal-clans which were involved in "mountain feudalism", which became muddled by growing ethno-nationalism and the social differences they bore. The Free Jamaats (Society) peoples were the collective owners of the lands in which the Georgians and Tatars (later Azerbaijanis) lived, for which the latter paid tax to them. In 1863, a rumor circulated that the administration of Zakataly was planning to emancipate the Georgians and Tatars from their financial obligations to the Free Jamaats peoples, leading to an anti-Russian uprising of its Dagestani inhabitants. The uprising became elevated by the declaration of jihad (holy war) until its suppression by local troops assisted by Tatar volunteers.[1]
Following the Russian Revolution, most of the district was incorporated into the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic and transformed into the Zaqatala Governorate, despite also being claimed by neighboring Georgia.[2][4][5][6] On account of the dispute, the authorities of both nations agreed to resolve the territorial dispute over Zakatal strictly by peaceful means.[5] According to historian Richard G. Hovannisian, of the more than 2 thousand Armenians that lived in the Zakatal Okrug, only a few hundred remained by 1919, the remainder of whom were being harassed by outlaws.[7]
As the Russian SFSR recognised the Zakatal Okrug as Georgian territory in the Treaty of Moscow (1920),[8][9] a mixed commission of Georgians and Azerbaijanis with a Russian chairman was formed to arbitrate the dispute following the region's Sovietization.[10] During the administrative-territorial reforms of the 1920s, the Zakataly district was separated into the raions of Balakan, Zagatala and Gakh.
Economy
The main occupations of the predominantly Sunni population included cattle breeding, agriculture, viticulture, picking fruits (mainly walnuts), handicrafts and silkworm breeding.[1]
Administrative divisions
The subcounties (uchastoks) of the Zakatal Okrug in 1912 were as follows:[11]
| Uchastok | Russian name | 1912 population | Area |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aliabad | Аліабадскій участокъ | 14,254 | 430.45 square versts (489.88 km2; 189.14 sq mi) |
| Jaro-Mukhakh | Джаро-Мухахскій участокъ | 38,879 | 1,737.01 square versts (1,976.83 km2; 763.26 sq mi) |
| Kakh (Qax) | Кахскій участокъ | 17,595 | 1,334.78 square versts (1,519.06 km2; 586.51 sq mi) |
The so-called Gornye magaly (Mountain Quarters) along the headwaters of the Samur (Tsakhur villages) were removed from the district in 1860.[12] According to the 1910 publication of the Caucasian Calendar, there was also a Balakan Uchastok (Белоканскій участокъ) that was dissolved sometime before 1912.[13]
Demographics
Russian Empire census (1897)
According to the Russian Empire census of 1897, the Zakatal Okrug—then part of the Tiflis Governorate—had a population of 84,224, including 45,418 men and 38,806 women. The plurality of the population indicated Avar-Andean to be their mother tongue, with significant Tatar (later known as Azerbaijani), Georgian, and Dargin speaking minorities.[14]
| Language | Native speakers | % |
|---|---|---|
| Avar-Andean | 31,670 | 37.60 |
| Tatar[b] | 28,950 | 34.37 |
| Georgian | 12,389 | 14.71 |
| Dargin | 7,441 | 8.83 |
| Armenian | 2,100 | 2.49 |
| Kyurin | 975 | 1.16 |
| Russian | 315 | 0.37 |
| Ukrainian | 118 | 0.14 |
| Polish | 115 | 0.14 |
| Kazi-Kumukh | 61 | 0.07 |
| German | 11 | 0.01 |
| Jewish | 11 | 0.01 |
| Persian | 7 | 0.01 |
| Ossetian | 6 | 0.01 |
| Mingrelian | 3 | 0.00 |
| Turkish | 3 | 0.00 |
| Greek | 2 | 0.00 |
| Imeretian | 2 | 0.00 |
| Belarusian | 1 | 0.00 |
| Kist | 1 | 0.00 |
| Other | 43 | 0.05 |
| TOTAL | 84,224 | 100.00 |
Caucasian Calendar (1917)
According to the 1917 publication of the Caucasian Calendar, the Zakatal Okrug had 92,608 residents in 1916, including 48,323 men and 44,285 women, 86,128 of whom were the permanent population, and 6,480 were temporary residents:[15]
| Nationality | Urban | Rural | TOTAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number | % | Number | % | Number | % | |
| Sunni Muslims[c] | 288 | 6.39 | 42,491 | 48.23 | 42,779 | 46.19 |
| North Caucasians | 1,068 | 23.71 | 40,712 | 46.21 | 41,780 | 45.11 |
| Georgians | 204 | 4.53 | 4,370 | 4.96 | 4,574 | 4.94 |
| Armenians | 2,165 | 48.06 | 365 | 0.41 | 2,530 | 2.73 |
| Shia Muslims[d] | 486 | 10.79 | 91 | 0.10 | 577 | 0.62 |
| Russians[e] | 270 | 5.99 | 56 | 0.06 | 326 | 0.35 |
| Other Europeans | 21 | 0.47 | 2 | 0.00 | 23 | 0.02 |
| Asiatic Christians | 0 | 0.00 | 16 | 0.02 | 16 | 0.02 |
| Jews | 3 | 0.07 | 0 | 0.00 | 3 | 0.00 |
| TOTAL | 4,505 | 100.00 | 88,103 | 100.00 | 92,608 | 100.00 |
Notes
- ^
- ^ Later known as Azerbaijani.
- ^ Primarily Turco-Tatars.[16]
- ^ Primarily Tatars,[16] later known as Azerbaijanis.[17]
- ^ The Caucasian Calendar did not distinguish between Russians, Ukrainians, and Belarusians.
Bibliography
- Bournoutian, George (2015). "Demographic Changes in the Southwest Caucasus, 1604–1830: The Case of Historical Eastern Armenia". Forum of EthnoGeoPolitics. 3 (2). Amsterdam.
- Hovannisian, Richard G. (1971). The Republic of Armenia. Vol. 1. Berkeley: University of California Press. ISBN 0-520-01805-2.
References
- ^ a b c "ЗАКАТАЛЬСКИЙ ОКРУГ • Большая российская энциклопедия - электронная версия". bigenc.ru. Retrieved 2021-12-16.
- ^ a b Janeliże, Otʻar (2018). The Democratic Republic of Georgia, 1918-1921. Tbilisi. pp. 52–53. ISBN 978-9941-8-0096-2. OCLC 1110424382.
In the summer of 1918, the Islamic Caucasian army of Ottoman Turkey occupied Zakatala. Military detachments from the Azerbaijanian Republic were part of this army. It is true that the Mudross Treaty rooted out the presence of Ottomans in the Southern Caucasus, but Sainguilo was not given to the Democratic Republic of Georgia. In reality it remained part of Azerbaijan, for after the Turks left the region, the territory was controlled by military detachments from Azerbaijan.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^ Tsutsiev, Arthur (2014), Atlas of the Ethno-Political History of the Caucasus, New Haven and London, pp. 172–174, ISBN 978-0-300-15308-8, OCLC 884858065, retrieved 2021-12-16
{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^ Daushvili, Aleko (2012-01-01). "The Democratic Republic of Georgia: Struggle for Independence 1918-1921": 41.
By autumn of 1918 the Zakatala district was officially a part of the Republic of Azerbaijan. Having the support of Turkey and the convenience of a shared Islamic religion, the Azerbaijani state heavily enforced anti-Georgian propaganda in the region. With the help of local mullahs, the Muslim-Georgian population easily came under Azerbaijani influence, which in turn created the illusion that Zakatala was fully incorporated into Azerbaijan.
{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires|journal=(help) - ^ a b Yilmaz, Harun (2009-06-01). "An Unexpected Peace: Azerbaijani–Georgian Relations, 1918–20". Revolutionary Russia. 22 (1): 37–67. doi:10.1080/09546540902900288. ISSN 0954-6545. S2CID 143471218.
There were sizeable Muslim populations in Kutaisi and Tbilisi provinces, which remained in Georgia, and a minority of Christians in Zakatala okrug, in Azerbaijan.
- ^ Javakhishvili, Ivane (2011). Caucasiologic Papers (PDF). Tbilisi: Tbilisi State University. p. 235. Archived (PDF) from the original on 16 April 2022.
Simultaneously, Georgia and Azerbaijan have tried to include Zakatala District … Georgia's attempts were unsuccessful, because the Georgians were less than 20% of the population of the district, and the stake was only on them. Azerbaijan … [was] more successful in their attempts, because the idea appealed to Islamic unity.
- ^ Hovannisian, Richard G. (1971–1996). The Republic of Armenia. Vol. 2. Berkeley: University of California Press. pp. 186–187. ISBN 0-520-01805-2. OCLC 238471.
According to these descriptions, often verified by American relief personnel, lawless bands were continuing to attack the few hundred Armenians left in Zakatal.
- ^ Transcaucasian boundaries. John F. R. Wright, Suzanne Goldenberg, Richard N. Schofield. London: UCL Press. 1996. p. 136. ISBN 0-203-21447-1. OCLC 252906502.
Articles three and four of the treaty [of Moscow] demarcated Georgia's boundaries and specifically the northern border. These placed Georgia's northern frontier as stretching from the Black Sea in the west along the River Psou to Mt Akhakhcha and then to Mt Agapeta, and then along the frontier of the former Black Sea Region, Kutaisi and Tiflis guberniates to the Zakataly region and along Zakataly's eastern border to the Armenian frontier of the Russian empire.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link) - ^ Hovannisian, Richard G. (1971–1996). The Republic of Armenia. Vol. 3. Berkeley: University of California Press. p. 205. ISBN 0-520-01805-2. OCLC 238471.
Inasmuch as the treaty recognized Zakatal as a part of Georgia even though much of the district was under Azerbaijani control, a brief supplementary treaty on May 12 stipulated that the dispute would be resolved by arbitration and that meanwhile neither Georgia nor Azerbaijan would introduce any additional armed elements.
- ^ Kazemzadeh, Firuz (2008). The struggle for Transcaucasia (1917-1921) ([New ed.] ed.). London: Anglo Caspian Press. p. 299. ISBN 978-0-9560004-0-8. OCLC 303046844.
It was made clear that Russia had abandoned her plans for military action on the frontier of Azerbaijan and Georgia, the first article of the supplement stating that a mixed commission composed of Georgian and Azerbaijani members, with a Russian as Chairman, would investigate the dispute in the Zakataly district and render its binding decision. Prior to the solution of the Zakataly question neither Georgia nor Azerbaijan were allowed to bring reinforcements into that area.
- ^ Кавказский календарь на 1913 год [Caucasian calendar for 1913] (in Russian) (68th ed.). Tiflis: Tipografiya kantselyarii Ye.I.V. na Kavkaze, kazenny dom. 1913. pp. 156–159. Archived from the original on 19 April 2022.
- ^ Tsutsiev, Arthur (2014), Atlas of the Ethno-Political History of the Caucasus, New Haven and London, ISBN 978-0-300-15308-8, OCLC 884858065, retrieved 2021-12-25
{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^ Кавказский календарь на 1910 год [Caucasian calendar for 1910] (in Russian) (65th ed.). Tiflis: Tipografiya kantselyarii Ye.I.V. na Kavkaze, kazenny dom. 1910. p. 202. Archived from the original on 15 March 2022.
- ^ a b "Демоскоп Weekly - Приложение. Справочник статистических показателей". Demoscope.ru. Retrieved 2013-10-05.
- ^ Кавказский календарь на 1917 год [Caucasian calendar for 1917] (in Russian) (72nd ed.). Tiflis: Tipografiya kantselyarii Ye.I.V. na Kavkaze, kazenny dom. 1917. pp. 357–358. Archived from the original on 4 November 2021.
- ^ a b Hovannisian 1971, p. 67.
- ^ Bournoutian 2015, p. 35.