Azerbaijanis: Difference between revisions

Azerbaijanis
*Azərbaycanlılar*
آذربایجانلیلار
Total population
	approx. 20.5 to 33 million
Regions with significant populations
Iran	12 to 23.5 million
Azerbaijan	7,205,500
Turkey	800,000
Russia	622,000
Georgia	284,761
United States	280,000
Kazakhstan	80,000
Germany	55,000
Ukraine	46,000
Canada	1,445
other regions	30,000
Languages
	Azerbaijani
Religion
	Predominantly Muslim; some adherents of Christianity, Bahá'í Faith, Zoroastrianism or other faiths. Unknown numbers of atheists and agnostics.

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The Azerbaijanis^[13]^[14] are an ethnic group mainly in the Republic of Azerbaijan and northwestern Iran. Commonly referred to as Azeris (Azeri: آذریلر Azәrilәr) or Āzarīs (Persian: آذری ), they also live in a wider area from the Caucasus to the Iranian plateau. The Azeris are typically Muslim and have a mixed cultural heritage of Turkic, Iranian, and Caucasian elements.

Despite living on both sides of an international border, the Azeris form a single ethnic group.^[15] However, northerners and southerners differ due to nearly two centuries of separate social evolution in Russian/Soviet-influenced Azerbaijan and Iranian Azarbaijan. The Azerbaijani language unifies Azeris and is mutually intelligible with Turkmen and Turkish (including the dialects spoken by the Iraqi Turkmen and by the Qashqai). All of these languages are traced to the Turkic Oghuz, who moved into the Caucasus from Central Asia in the 11th century. Following the Russian-Persian Wars of the 18th and 19th centuries, territories controlled by Persia in the Caucasus (some merely under nominal control) were ceded to the Russian Empire.^[16] This included parts of the current Republic of Azerbaijan. The treaties of Gulistan in 1813 and Turkmenchay in 1828 finalized the border between Russia and Persia (today known as Iran).

As a result of this separate existence, the Azeris are mainly secularists in Azerbaijan and religious Muslims in Iranian Azarbaijan. Since Azerbaijan's independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, there has been renewed interest in religion and cross-border ethnic ties.

History

Azerbaijan is believed to be named after Atropates, a Median satrap (governor) who ruled in Atropatene (modern Iranian Azarbaijan).^[17] Atropates is derived from Old Persian roots meaning "protected by fire."^[18] Azerbaijan has seen a host of inhabitants and invaders, including Caucasians, Medes, Scythians, Persians, Armenians, Greeks, Romans, Khazars, Arabs, Oghuz, Seljuks, Mongols, and Russians.

Ancient period

Caucasian Albanians are believed to be the earliest inhabitants of the region where modern day Republic of Azerbaijan is located.^[17] Early invaders included the Scythians in the ninth century BCE.^[19] Following the Scythians, the Medes came to dominate the area to the south of the Aras.^[17] The Medes forged a vast empire between 900-700 BCE, which was overthrown by the Achaemenids around 550 BCE. During this period, Zoroastrianism spread in the Caucasus and Atropatene. The Achaemenids in turn were defeated by Alexander the Great in 330 BCE, but the Median satrap Atropates was allowed to remain in power. Following the decline of the Seleucids in Persia in 247 BCE, an Armenian Kingdom exercised control over parts of Azerbaijan between 190 BCE to 428 CE.^[20]^[21] Caucasian Albanians established a kingdom in the first century BCE and largely remained independent until the Sassanids made the kingdom a vassal state in 252 CE.^[17] Caucasian Albania's ruler, King Urnayr, officially adopted Christianity as the state religion in the fourth century CE, and Albania would remain a Christian state until the 8th century.^[22]^[23] Sassanid control ended with their defeat by Muslim Arabs in 642 CE.^[14]

Medieval period

Muslim Arabs defeated the Sassanids and Byzantines as they marched into the Caucasus region. The Arabs made Caucasian Albania a vassal state after the Christian resistance, led by Prince Javanshir, surrendered in 667.^[17] Between the ninth and tenth centuries, Arab authors began to refer to the region between the Kura and Aras rivers as Arran.^[17] During this time, Arabs from Basra and Kufa came to Azerbaijan and seized lands that indigenous peoples had abandoned; the Arabs became a land-owning elite.^[24] Conversion to Islam was slow as local resistance persisted for centuries and resentment grew as small groups of Arabs began migrating to cities such as Tabriz and Maraghah. This influx sparked a major rebellion in Iranian Azarbaijan from 816–837, led by a local commoner named Bābak.^[25] However, despite pockets of continued resistance, the majority of the inhabitants of Azerbaijan converted to Islam. Later on, in the 10th and 11th centuries, Kurdish dynasties of Shaddadid and Rawadid ruled parts of Azerbaijan.

In the middle of the eleventh century, the Seljuq dynasty overthrew Arab rule and established an empire that encompassed most of Southwest Asia. The Seljuk period marked the influx of Oghuz nomads into the region and, thus, the beginning of the turkification of Azerbaijan as the West Oghuz Turkic language supplanted earlier Caucasian and Iranian ones.^[19]^[26]

However, Iranian cultural influence survived, as evidenced by the works of then contemporary writers such as Persian poet Nezāmī Ganjavī. The emerging Turkic identity was chronicled in epic poems or dastans, the oldest being the Book of Dede Korkut, which relate allegorical tales about the early Turks in the Caucasus and Asia Minor.^[17] Turkic dominion was interrupted by the Mongols in 1227 and later the Mongols and Tamerlane ruled the region until 1405. Turkic rule returned with the Sunni Qara Qoyunlū (Black Sheep Turkmen) and Aq Qoyunlū (White Sheep Turkmen), who dominated Azerbaijan until the Shi'a Safavids took power in 1501.^[24]^[17]

Modern period

The Safavids, who rose from Iranian Azerbaijan and lasted until 1722, established the modern Iranian state.^[27]^[28]^[29] Noted for achievements in state building, architecture, and the sciences, the Safavid state crumbled due to internal decay and external pressures from the Russians and Afghans. The Safavids encouraged and spread Shi'a Islam which is an important part of the national identity of Iranian Azerbaijani people as well as many Azerbaijanis north of the Aras. The Safavids encouraged the arts and culture and Shah Abbas the Great created an intellectual atmosphere which according to some scholars was a new Golden Age of Persia.^[30] He reformed the government and the military, and responded to the needs of the common people.^[30]

Ottoman rule followed the brief Safavid state, before conquest by Nadir Shah Afshar, a chieftain from Khorasan who reduced the power of the Shi'a.^[24] The brief reign of Karim Khan came next, followed by the Qajars, who ruled Azerbaijan and Iran starting in 1779.^[17] Russia loomed as a threat to Persian holdings in the Caucasus in this period. The Russo-Persian Wars began in the eighteenth century and ended in the early nineteenth century with the Gulistan Treaty of 1813 and the Turkmenchay Treaty in 1828, which officially gave the Caucasian portion of Qajar Iran to the Russian Empire.^[18]

Iranian Azerbaijan's role in the Iranian constitutional revolution cannot be underestimated. The greatest figures of the democracy seeking revolution Sattar Khan^[31] and Bagher Khan were both from Iranian Azerbaijan. The Constitutional Revolution of 1906–11 shook the Qajar dynasty, whose kings had virtually sold the country to the tobacco and oil interests of the British Empire and had lost territory to the Russian empire. A parliament (Majlis) came into existence by the efforts of the constitutionalists. It was accompanied in some regions by a peasant revolt against tax collectors and landlords, the only indigenous mainstay of the monarchy. Pro-democracy newspapers appeared, and Iranian intellectuals began to relish the modernist breezes blowing from Paris and Petrograd. The Qajar Shah and his British advisers crushed the Constitutional Revolution, but the demise of the dynasty could not be long postponed. The last Shah of the Qajar dynasty was soon removed by a military coup led by Reza Khan, an officer of an old Cossack regiment, which had been created by Czarist Russia and officered by Russians to protect the Qajar ruler and Russian interests. In the quest of imposing national homogeneity on the country where half of the population consisted of ethnic minorities, Reza Shah issued in quick succession bans on the use of Azerbaijani language on the premises of schools, in theatrical performances, religious ceremonies, and, finally, in the publication of books.^[32]

With the dethronement of Reza Shah in September 1941, Russian troops captured Tabriz and northwestern Persia for military and strategic reasons. Azerbaijan People's Government, a client state set up by the order of Stalin himself, under leadership of Sayyid Jafar Pishevari was proclaimed in Tabriz^[33] However, under pressure by the Western countries, the Soviet army was soon withdrawn, and the Iranian government regained control over Iranian Azerbaijan by the end of 1946.

According to Professor. Gary R. Hess:

On December 11, an Iranian force entered Tabriz and the Peeshavari government quickly collapsed. Indeed the Iranians were enthusiastically welcomed by the people of Azerbaijan, who strongly preferred domination by Tehran rather than Moscow. The Soviet willingness to forego its influence in (Iranian) Azerbaijan probably resulted from several factors, including the realization that the sentiment for autonomy had been exaggerated and that oil concessions remained the more desirable long-term Soviet Objective.^[34]

While the Azeris in Iran largely integrated into modern Iranian society, the northern Azeris lived through the transition from the Russian Empire to brief independence from 1918–1920 and then incorporation into the Soviet Union despite pleas by Woodrow Wilson for their independence at the Treaty of Versailles conference. The Republic of Azerbaijan achieved independence in 1991, but became embroiled in a war over the enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh with Armenia.

Origins

In many references, Azerbaijanis are designated as a Turkic people, due to their Turkic language.^[35]^[36]^[37] The Azeris have a multi-ethnic identity with three preeminent designations entailing: a Turkic background from Central Asia, Iranian origins, or an indigenous ancestry derived from the Peoples of the Caucasus who adopted the Azerbaijani language, Persian culture, and Islam. Thus, determining whether a Turkic, Iranian, or Caucasian background defines the Azeris has much to do with the historical views of Azeribaijan's neighbors.

The Encyclopædia Britannica states that Azeris:

are of mixed ethnic origin, the oldest element deriving from the indigenous population of eastern Transcaucasia and possibly from the Medians of northern Persia. This population was Persianized during the period of the Sasanian dynasty of Iran (third to seventh century AD), but, after the region's conquest by the Seljuq Turks in the 11th century, the inhabitants were Turkicized, and further Turkicization of the population occurred in the ensuing centuries.^[38]

And according to orientalist Vladimir F. Minorsky:

[as consequence of Oghuz Turkic domination in the Caucasus, beginning the twelfth century] the Iranian population of Ādharbāyjān and the adjacent parts of Transcaucasia became Turkophone while the characteristic features of Ādharbāyjānī Turkish, such as Persian intonations and disregard of the vocalic harmony, reflect the non-Turkish origin of the Turkicised population.^[39]

This view is supported by initial genetic studies conducted in the Republic of Azerbaijan that link the modern Azeris primarily to their neighbors in the Caucasus and, to a lesser extent, northwestern Iran.^[40] Further studies with Azeris in Iran may help determine to what extent the modern Azeris are related to Caucasian peoples (notably the Albanians and Armenians), Iranians (primarily the Medes).^[41]

Turkic theory

The Turkic origin theory is based upon the Azerbaijani language and favored by those who believe that centuries of heavy Turkic settlement shaped Azerbaijan's Turkic identity. The Turkic theory does not alter the general view of the Azeris as a Turkic people, but discusses to what extent Turkic groups changed the demographics of the Eastern Caucasus and Iranian Azarbaijan.^[42]

Although, "Turkic penetration probably began in the Hunnic era and its aftermath," there is little evidence to indicate, "permanent settlements".^[36] The earliest major Turkic incursion began with Mahmud of Ghazni (971–1040) and accelerated during the Seljuk period. The migration of Oghuz Turks from present day Turkmenistan, which is attested by linguistic similarity, remained high through the Mongol period, as many troops under the Ilkhans were Turkic. By the Safavid period, the turkification of Azerbaijan continued with the influence of the Kizilbash. The very name Azerbaijan is derived from the pre-Turkic name of the province, Azarbayjan or Adarbayjan, and illustrates a gradual language shift that took place as local place names survived turkification, albeit in altered form.^[43]

The Book of Dede Korkut could be a document that supports a substantial Oghuz migration into Azerbaijan. UNESCO recently celebrated the 1300th anniversary of this epic work.^[44] Despite its purported age, most academics believe that the Book of Dede Korkut originated after the Oghuz entered the Caucasus, with its written text having been compiled in the fifteenth century.^[45] Most academics view this migration as the most likely source of a Turkic background, but one that most likely involved the turkification of predominantly indigenous peoples.^[17]^[18]

Iranian theory

File:Nizami monument.jpg

Statue of Nezami Ganjavi, a twelfth-century writer and philosopher, in Baku, Azerbaijan. Nezami is a major literary figure to both Azeris and Persians.

The Iranian origin theory, favoured by notable scholars and sources, is based upon the ancient presence of Iranic tribes, such as the Medes, in Iranian Azarbaijan, and Scythian invasions during the eighth century BCE. It is believed that the Medes mixed with an indigenous population, the Caucasian Mannai, a Northeast Caucasian group related to the Urartians.^[46]

Scholars see cultural similarities between modern Persians and Azeris as evidence of an ancient Iranian influence.^[47] Archaeological evidence indicates that the Iranian religion of Zoroastrianism was prominent throughout the Caucasus before Christianity and Islam and that the influence of various Persian Empires added to the Iranian character of the area.^[48] It has also been hypothesized that the population of Iranian Azarbaijan was predominantly Persian-speaking before the Oghuz arrived.^[49] This claim is supported by the many Azerbaijani literary figures, such as Qatran Tabrizi, Shams Tabrizi, Nezami, and Khaghani, who wrote in Persian prior to and during the Oghuz migration, as well as by Strabo, Al-Istakhri, and Al-Masudi, who all describe the language of the region as Persian. The claim is mentioned by other medieval historians, such as Al-Muqaddasi.^[50]^[43] Other common Perso-Azerbaijani features include Iranian place names such as Tabriz and Baku.^[51]

The modern presence of the Iranian Talysh and Tats in Azerbaijan is further evidence of the former Iranian character of the region.^[52]^[53] As a precursor to these modern groups, the ancient Azaris are hypothesized as the main ancestors of the modern Azerbaijanis. However, ancient historians, including Herodotus, Polybius and Strabo, mention the region as a mixed one, with Iranian and non-Iranian groups, such as the Utii, a Caucasian group that still exists in Azerbaijan.^[54]

Caucasian theory

There is evidence that, despite repeated invasions and migrations, aboriginal Caucasians may have been culturally assimilated, first by Iranians and later by the Oghuz. Audrey Alstadt notes in The Azerbaijani Turks that many Azeris in the Republic of Azerbaijan regard both the Oghuz and the Caucasian Albanians as their ancestors.^[18] Considerable information has been learned about the Caucasian Albanians including their language, history, early conversion to Christianity, and close ties to the Armenians. Many academics believe that the Udi language, still spoken in Azerbaijan, is a remnant of the Albanians' language.^[55]^[23]

This Caucasian influence extended further south into Iranian Azarbaijan. During the 1st millennium BCE, another Caucasian people, the Mannaeans (Mannai) populated much of Iranian Azarbaijan. Weakened by conflicts with the Assyrians, the Mannaeans are believed to have been conquered and assimilated by the Medes by 590 BCE.^[56]

The extent to which cultural assimilation took place is unclear. By examining the historical record, archaeological finds, and, in recent years, genealogical DNA testing, a team of researchers has put forth the view that indigenous peoples were often assimilated rather than being killed or driven out. In the case of the Azeris, this would mean that the majority today are descendants of the earliest settlers of the Caucasus. However, this view would require strong genetic evidence that peoples in the Caucasus are related despite their linguistic and cultural differences.^[40]

Genetics

Though the population of Azerbaijan is culturally diverse, genetic testing has revealed common genetic markers that support an autochthonous background for most Azeris. A 2003 study found that: "Y-chromosome haplogroups indicate that Indo-European-speaking Armenians and Turkic-speaking Azerbaijanians are genetically more closely related to their geographic neighbors in the Caucasus than to their linguistic neighbors elsewhere."^[40] The authors of this study suggest that this indicates a language replacement of indigenous Caucasian peoples. There is evidence of limited genetic admixture derived from Central Asians (specifically Haplogroup H12), notably the Turkmen, that is higher than that of their neighbors, the Georgians and Armenians.^[57] MtDNA analysis indicates that the main relationship with Iranians is through a larger West Eurasian group that is secondary to that of the Caucasus, according to a study that did not include Azeris, but Georgians who have clustered with Azeris in other studies.^[58] The conclusion from the testing shows that the Azeris are a mixed population with relationships, in order of greatest similarity, with the Caucasus, Iranians and Near Easterners, Europeans, and Turkmen. Other genetic analysis of mtDNA and Y-chromosomes indicates that Caucasian populations are genetically intermediate between Europeans and Near Easterners, but that they are more closely related to Near Easterners overall.^[40] Another study, conducted in 2003 by the Russian Journal of Genetics, compared Iranians in Azerbaijan (the Talysh and Tats) with Turkic Azerbaijanis and found that,

the genetic structure of the populations examined with the other Iranian-speaking populations (Persians and Kurds from Iran, Ossetins, and Tajiks) and Azerbaijanis showed that Iranian-speaking populations from Azerbaijan were closer to Azerbaijanis than to Iranian-speaking populations inhabiting other world regions.^[59]

The conclusion from this study further supports the view that groups within close geographic proximity to the Azeris are genetically similar despite linguistic differences. A recent study of the genetic landscape of Iran was completed by a team of Cambridge geneticists led by Dr. Maziar Ashrafian Bonab (an Iranian Azarbaijani).^[60] Bonab remarked that his group had done extensive DNA testing on different language groups, including Indo-European and non Indo-European speakers, in Iran.^[61] The study found that the Azerbaijanis of Iran do not have a similar FSt and other genetic markers found in Anatolian and European Turks. However, the genetic Fst and other genetic traits like MRca and mtDNA of Iranian Azeris were identical to Persians in Iran. These studies suffer from some drawbacks, including a lack of specific comparative studies between Azeribaijanis from Iran and Azerbaijan^{[citation needed]}.

Ethnonym

Historically the Turkic people^[62] of Iranian Azerbaijan and the Caucasus called themselves or were referred to by others as Turks and religious identification prevailed over ethnic identification. When Transacaucasia became part of the Russian empire, Russian authorities, who traditionally called all Turkic people Tatars, called Azeris Aderbeijani/Azerbaijani or Caucasian Tatars to distinguish them from other Turkic people, also called Tatars by Russians.^[63] Russian Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary also refers to Azerbaijanis as Aderbeijans in some articles.^[64] According to the article Turko-Tatars of the above encyclopedia, “some scholars (Yadrintsev, Kharuzin, Shantr) suggested to change the terminology of some Turko-Tatar people, who somatically don’t have much in common with Turks, for instance, to call Aderbaijani Tatars (Iranians by type) Aderbaijans”.^[65] The modern ethnonym Azerbaijani/Azeri in its present form was accepted in 1930s.

Demographics and society

File:AzizaMustafaZadeh.jpg

Azeri jazz singer Aziza Mustafa Zadeh, who is often referred to as the "Princess of Jazz".^{[citation needed]}

There are an estimated 24 to 33 million Azerbaijanis in the world, but census figures are difficult to verify. The vast majority live in Azerbaijan and Iranian Azarbaijan. Between 16 and 23 million Azeris live in Iran, mainly in the northwestern provinces. Approximately 7.6 million Azeris are found in the Republic of Azerbaijan. A diaspora, possibly numbering in the millions, is found in neighboring countries and around the world. There are sizable communities in Turkey, Georgia, Russia, USA, Canada, Germany and other countries.^[66]

While population estimates in Azerbaijan are considered reliable due to regular censuses taken, the figures for Iran remain questionable. Since the early twentieth century, successive Iranian governments have avoided publishing statistics on ethnic groups.^[67] Unofficial population estimates of Azeris in Iran range from 20–24%.^[1]^[68] However, many Iran scholars, such as Nikki Keddie, Patricia J. Higgins, Shahrough Akhavi, Ali Reza Sheikholeslami, and others, claim that Azeris may comprise as much as one third of Iran's population.^[67]^[69]^[70]

A large expatriate community of Azerbaijanis is found outside Azerbaijan and Iran. According to Ethnologue, there were over 1 million Azerbaijani-speakers of the north dialect in southern Dagestan, Armenia, Estonia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan as of 1993.^[66] Other sources, such as national censuses, confirm the presence of Azeris throughout the former Soviet Union. The Ethnologue figures are outdated in the case of Armenia, where conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh has affected the population of Azeris.^[71] Ethnologue further reports that an additional 1 million South Azeris live outside Iran, but these figures most likely are a reference to the Iraqi Turkmen, a distinct though related Turkic people.^[72]

Azeris in Azerbaijan

By far the largest ethnic group in Azerbaijan (over 90%), the Azeris generally tend to dominate most aspects of the country. Unlike most of their ethnic brethren in Iran, the majority of Azeris are secularized from decades of official Soviet atheism. The literacy rate is high, another Soviet legacy, and is estimated at 98.8%.^[73] Whereas most urban Azeris are educated, education remains comparatively lower in rural areas. A similar disparity exists with healthcare.

Azeri society has been deeply impacted by the war with Armenia over Nagorno-Karabakh, which has displaced nearly 1 million Azeris and put strains upon the economy.^[74] Azerbaijan has benefited from the oil industry, but high levels of corruption have prevented greater prosperity for the masses.^[75] Many Azeris have grown frustrated over the political process in Azerbaijan as the election of current president Ilham Aliyev has been described as "marred by allegations of corruption and brutal crackdowns on his political opposition".^[76]^[77] Despite these problems, there is a renaissance in Azerbaijan as positive economic predictions and an active political opposition appear determined to improve the lives of average Azeris.^[78]^[19]

Azeris in Iran

File:Googooshpal.jpg

Googoosh, an Iranian pop diva of Azeri ethnicity.

Azerbaijanis in Iran are mainly found in the northwest provinces: East Azerbaijan, West Azerbaijan, Ardabil, Zanjan, Qazvin,Hamedan, and Markazi. Many others live in Tehran, Fars Province, and other regions.^[14] Generally, Azeris in Iran have been, "a well integrated linguistic minority", according to academics such as anthropologist Patricia Higgins.^[67] In fact, until the Pahlavi period in the twentieth century, "the identity of Iran was not exclusively Persian, but supra-ethnic", as much of the political leadership, starting from the eleventh century, had been Turkic.^[3] The Iranian and Turkic groups were integrated until twentieth century nationalism and communalism began to alter popular perception.^[3] Despite friction, Azerbaijanis in Iran came to be well represented at all levels of, "political, military, and intellectual hierarchies, as well as the religious hierarchy."^[67]

Resentment came with Pahlavi policies that suppressed the use of the Azerbaijani language in local government, schools, and the press.^[79] However with the advent of the Iranian Revolution in 1979, emphasis shifted away from nationalism as the new government highlighted religion as the main unifying factor. Within the Islamic Revolutionary government there emerged an Azeri nationalist faction led by Ayatollah Kazem Shariatmadari, who advocated greater regional autonomy and wanted the constitution to be revised to include secularists and opposition parties; this was denied.^[80] In May 2006 Iranian Azerbaijan witnessed riots over publication of a cartoon that many Azeris found offensive.^[81]^[82] The cartoon was drawn by Mana Neyestani, an ethnic Azeri, who was fired along with his editor as a result of the controversy.^[83]^[84]

Despite sporadic problems, Azeris are an intrinsic community within Iran. Currently, the living conditions of Azeris in Iran closely resemble that of Persians:

The life styles of urban Azerbaijanis do not differ from those of Persians, and there is considerable intermarriage among the upper classes in cities of mixed populations. Similarly, customs among Azerbaijani villagers do not appear to differ markedly from those of Persian villagers.^[14]

Andrew Burke writes:

Azeris are famously active in commerce and in bazaars all over Iran their voluble voices can be heard. Older Azeri men wear the traditional wool hat, and their music & dances have become part of the mainstream culture. Azeris are well integrated, and many Azeri-Iranians are prominent in Farsi literature, politics, and clerical world.^[85]

Azeris in Iran are in high positions of authority with the Ayatollah Ali Khamenei currently sitting as the Supreme Leader. Azeris in Iran remain quite conservative in comparison to most Azeris in the Republic of Azerbaijan. Nonetheless, since the Republic of Azerbaijan's independence in 1991, there has been renewed interest and contact between Azeris on both sides of the border.

Culture

In many respects, Azeris are Eurasian and bi-cultural, as northern Azeris have absorbed Russo-Soviet and Eastern European influences, whereas the Azeris of the south have remained within the Turko-Iranian and Persianate tradition. Modern Azeri culture includes significant achievements in literature, art, music, and film.

Language and literature

Muhammad Fuzûlî, sixteenth-century poet.

The Azerbaijanis speak Azerbaijani (sometimes called Azerbaijani Turkish or Azeri), a Turkic language that is mutually intelligible with Turkish despite minor variations in accent, vocabulary and grammar. Other mutually intelligible Turkic languages include Turkmen and the Turkish spoken by the Turkomans of Iraq and the Qashqai. The Azerbaijani language is descended from the Western Oghuz Turkic language that became established in Azerbaijan in the 11th century CE. Early Oghuz was mainly an oral language. It began to develop as a literary language by the 13th century.^[45] Early oral Azerbaijani, derived from the Oghuz language, began with history recitations (dastans), including the Book of Dede Korkut and Koroglu, which contained Turkic mythology. Some of the earliest Azeri writings of the past are traced back to the poet Nesîmî (died 1417) and then decades later Fuzûlî (1483–1556). Ismail I, Shah of Safavid Persia wrote Azeri poetry under the pen name Khatâ'i. Modern Azeri literature continued with a traditional emphasis upon, humanism, as conveyed in the writings of Samed Vurgun, Reza Baraheni, Shahriar, and many others.^[86]

In addition to their mother tongue, many Azerbaijanis are equally at home in Russian and/or Persian.

Religion

The majority of Azerbaijanis are Shi'a Muslims. Religious minorities include Sunni Muslims, Jews, Zoroastrians, Christians and Bahá'ís. While only a small minority of Azeris in Iran are Sunni, between 25 and 40 percent of Azeris in the Republic of Azerbaijan identify as nominal Sunnis, and an unknown number show no religious affiliation.^[19]^[87] In the Republic of Azerbaijan traditions from other religions are often celebrated in addition to Islamic holidays, including Norouz and Christmas.

Performance art

File:Azeri Cultural Concert Rotterdam.jpg

Azeri dance

Azeris express themselves in a variety of artistic ways including dance, music, and the media. Azeri folk dances are ancient and similar to that of their neighbours in the Caucasus and Iran. The group dance is a common form found from southeastern Europe to the Caspian Sea. In the group dance the performers come together in a semi-circular or circular formation as, "The leader of these dances often executes special figures as well as signaling and changes in the foot patterns, movements, or direction in which the group is moving, often by gesturing with his or her hand, in which a kerchief is held."^[88] Solitary dances are performed by both men and women and involve subtle hand motions in addition to sequenced steps.

Azeri musical tradition can be traced back to singing bards called Ashiqs, a vocation that survives to this day. Modern Ashiqs play the saz (lute) and sing dastans (historical ballads).^[89] Other musical instruments include the tar (another type of lute), duduk (a wind instrument), Kamancha (fiddle), and the dhol (drums). Azeri classical music, called mugham, is often an emotional singing performance. Composers Uzeyir Hajibeyov, Gara Garayev and Fikret Amirov created a hybrid style that combines Western classical music with mugham. Other Azeris, notably Vagif Mustafa Zadeh and Aziza Mustafa Zadeh, mixed jazz with mugham. Some Azeri musicians have received international acclaim, including Rashid Behbudov (who could sing in over eight languages) and Muslim Magomayev (a pop star from the Soviet era).

Meanwhile in Iran, Azeri music has taken a different course. According to Iranian Azeri singer Hossein Alizadeh, "Historically in Iran, music faced strong opposition from the religious establishment, forcing it to go underground."^[90] As a result, most Iranian Azeri music is performed outside of Iran amongst exile communities.

Azeri film and television is largely broadcast in Azerbaijan with limited outlets in Iran. Some Azeris have been prolific film-makers, such as Rustam Ibragimbekov, who wrote Burnt by the Sun, winner of the Grand Prize at the Cannes Film Festival and an Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 1994. Many Iranian Azeris have been prominent in the cinematic tradition of Iran, which has received critical praise since the 1980s.

Sports

File:Teimour Radjabov grandmaster.jpg

Chess player Teimour Radjabov.

Sports have historically been an important part of Azeri life. Numerous competitions were conducted on horseback and praised by poets and writers such as Gatran Tabrizi and Nezami Ganjavi.^[91] Other ancient sports include wrestling, javelin throwing and ox-wrestling.

The Soviet legacy has in modern times propelled some Azeris to become accomplished athletes at the Olympic level.^[91] The Azeri government supports the country's athletic legacy and encourages Azeri youth to take part. Football is very popular in both Azerbaijan and Iranian Azarbaijan. There are many prominent Azeri soccer players such as Ali Daei, the world's all-time leading goal scorer in international matches and the former captain of the Iran national soccer team. Azeri athletes have particularly excelled in weight lifting, gymnastics, shooting, javelin throwing, karate, boxing, and wrestling.^[92] Weight lifters, such as Iran's Hossein Reza Zadeh, world’s super heavyweight lifting record holder and two times Olympic champion in 2000 and 2004 and Nizami Pashayev, who won the European heavyweight title in 2006, have excelled at the international level.

Chess is another popular pastime in Azerbaijan. The country has produced many notable players, such as Teimour Radjabov and Shakhriyar Mamedyarov, both highly ranked internationally.

Institutions

Azerbaijan and Iranian Azerbaijan have developed distinct institutions as a result of divergent socio-political evolution. Azerbaijan began the twentieth century with institutions based upon those of Russia and the Soviet Union, with strict state control over most aspects of society. Since, they have moved towards the adoption of Western social models as of the late twentieth century. Since independence, relaxed state controls have allowed local civil society to develop. In contrast, in Iranian Azerbaijan Islamic theocratic institutions dominate nearly all aspects of society, with most political power in the hands of the Supreme Leader of Iran and the Council of Guardians. Yet both societies are in a state of change. In Azerbaijan there is a secular democratic system that is mired in political corruption and charges of election fraud. Azerbaijan's civil society is a work in progress:

The lack of more 'modern' forms of self-organization and the experience of liberal democratic rule is the main reason why the building of civil society and the process of democratization in Azerbaijan takes place in a parallel rather than linear way. In the result, today Azerbaijan society may be characterized mostly as quasi civil and quasi democratic society the structures and institutions of which having signs of civil and democratic society from the standpoint of their level of development do not correspond to the modern criteria of the modern democratic society.^[93]

Despite these problems Azerbaijan has an active political opposition that seeks more expansive democratic reforms.^[78] Azeris in Iran remain intertwined with the Islamic republic's theocratic regime and lack any significant civil society of a secular nature that can pose a major challenge. There are signs of civil unrest due to the policies of the Iranian government in Iranian Azarbaijan and increased interaction with fellow Azeris in Azerbaijan and satellite broadcasts from Turkey have revived Azeri nationalism.^[94]

Women

Azeri females have historically struggled against a legacy of male domination but have made great strides since the twentieth century. In Azerbaijan, women were granted the right to vote in 1919.^[95] Women have attained Western-style equality in major cities such as Baku, although in rural areas more traditional views remain.^[96]^[19] Some problems that are especially prevalent include violence against women, especially in rural areas. Crimes such as rape are severely punished in Azerbaijan, but rarely reported, not unlike other parts of the former Soviet Union.^[97] Azeri women were forced to "give up the veil,"^[17] placing Azerbaijan in sharp contrast with Iranian Azarbajan. Women are underrepresented in elective office but have attained high positions in parliament. An Azeri woman is the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court in Azerbaijan, and two others are Justices of the Constitutional Court. As of 6 November, 2005, women constituted 12% of all MPs (fifteen seats in total) in the National Assembly of Azerbaijan.^[98] The Republic of Azerbaijan is also one of the few Muslim countries where abortion is available on demand.^[99]

In Iran, the continued unequal treatment of women has been met with increasingly vocal protests, including that of Shirin Ebadi, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2003 for her strong advocacy for women's rights. A groundswell of grassroots movements have emerged seeking gender equality since the 1980s.^[100]^[14] Regular protests take place in defiance of government bans and are often dispersed through violence, as in June 2006 when "[t]housands of women and male supporters came together on June 12 in Haft Tir Square in Tehran" and were dispersed through "brutal suppression".^[101] Past Iranian leaders, such as Mohammad Khatami, promised women greater rights, but the government has opposed changes that they interpret as contrary to Islamic doctrine. As of 2004, nine Azeri women have been elected to parliament (Majlis) and while most are committed to social change, some represent conservative positions regarding gender issues.^[102] The social fate of Azeri women largely mirrors that of other women in Iran.

External links

Embassy of Azerbaijan, Washington DC
BBC News Europe Country Profile: Azerbaijan
Encyclopedia of the Orient: Azerbaijan
The BBC Azeri news site written in Azeri language.
Azeri.net All About Azerbaijani

Notes and references

^ ^a ^b "Iran: People", CIA: The World Factbook (retrieved 7 June 2006). Cite error: The named reference "CIA Iran" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
^ "Iran", Amnesty International report on Iran and Azerbaijanis (retrieved 30 July 2006).
^ ^a ^b ^c "Borders and Brethren: Iran and the Challenge of Azerbaijani Identity" in The Azerbaijani Population by Brenda Shaffer, pp. 221–225. The MIT Press (2003), ISBN 0-262-19477-5 (retrieved 10 June 2006). Cite error: The named reference "ISBNShaffer" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
^ "Iran" in the Encyclopedia Orient (retrieved 18 Aug 2006).
^ "Population by ethnic groups", The State Statistical Committee of Azerbaijan Republic (retrieved 19 June 2006).
^ "Azerbaijan: ɹPeople", CIA Factbook. Azeri ethnic percentage of 90.6% used to calculate population derived from Azeri census (retrieved 7 June 2006).
^ "Turkey: Religions & Peoples", Encyclopedia of the Orient (retrieved 7 June 2006)
^ "Azerbaijanis in Russia", 2002 Russian Census (retrieved 7 June 2006)
^ State Statistics Department of Georgia: 2002 census (retrieved 16 July 2006)
^ "Ethnodemographic situation in Kazakhstan" (1999 census) (retrieved 7 June 2006).
^ "About number and composition population of Ukraine by data All-Ukrainian census of the population 2001", Ukraine Census 2001 (retrieved 7 June 2006).
^ List of Canadians by ethnicity (following 2001 census). NB Canadian census on ancestry may not reflect current ethnic affiliation in Canada. (retrieved 7 June 2006)
^ (IPA: [æzə(ɹ)baɪˈdʒɑːni]; in Azerbaijani: Azərbaycanlılar, Azeris/Azərilər, Azeri Turks/Azəri Türkləri; Azeri Cyrillic: Азәриләр) or Azarbaijanis
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e "Iran", US Library of Congress Country Studies (retrieved 7 June 2006). (in Iran; also Azaris, Turks/Torks) Cite error: The named reference "Library of Congress Iran" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
^ "Azerbaijani", Encyclopedia Britannica (retrieved 7 June 2006).
^ "Azerbaijan", MSN Encarta (retrieved 25 January 2007)
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k Historical Dictionary of Azerbaijan by Tadeusz Swietochowski and Brian C. Collins. The Scarecrow Press, Inc., Lanham, Maryland (1999), ISBN 0-8108-3550-9 (retrieved 7 June 2006). Cite error: The named reference "ISBN 2" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d The Azerbaijani Turks: Power and Identity under Russian Rule by Audrey Altstadt. Hoover Institution Press (1992), ISBN 0-8179-9182-4 (retrieved 7 June 2006). Cite error: The named reference "ISBN" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Azerbaijan, US Library of Congress Country Studies (retrieved 7 June 2006). Cite error: The named reference "Library of Congress Azerbaijan" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
^ "Armenia-Ancient Period", US Library of Congress Country Studies (retrieved 23 June 2006)
^ Strabo, "Geography", Perseus Digital Library, Tufts University (retrieved 24 June 2006).
^ "Albania", Encyclopedia Iranica, p. 807 (retrieved 15 June 2006).
^ ^a ^b "Voices of the Ancients: Heyerdahl Intrigued by Rare Caucasus Albanian Text" by Dr. Zaza Alexidze, Azerbaijan International, Summer 2002 (retrieved 7 June 2006). Cite error: The named reference "Heyerdahl" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
^ ^a ^b ^c A History of Islamic Societies by Ira Lapidus, p. 48. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge (1988), ISBN 0-521-77933-2 (retrieved 7 June 2006). Cite error: The named reference "ISBN 3" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
^ The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates by Hugh Kennedy, p. 166. Longman Group, London (1992), ISBN 0-582-40525-4 (retrieved 7 June 2006).
^ Turkic Languages: Classification - Encyclopedia Britannica (retrieved 8 June 2006)
^ The Safavid Empire, University of Calgary (retrieved 8 June 2006).
^ Shi'a: The Safavids, Washington State University (retrieved 8 June 2006).
^ Safavid Empire 1502–1736, Iran Chamber (retrieved 19 June 2006).
^ ^a ^b Kathy Sammis, Focus on World History: The First Global Age and the Age of Revolution, pg 39.
^ Sattar Khan
^ Tadeusz Swietochowski, Russia and Azerbaijan: A Borderland in Transition (ISBN 0-231-07068-3)
^ Cold War International History Project 1945–46 Iranian Crisis
^ Gary. R. Hess Political Science Quarterly, Vol. 89, No. 1 (March 1974) [1]
^ "Azerbaijan: People", Encyclopedia Britannica (retrieved 11 June 2006)
^ ^a ^b An Introduction to the History of the Turkic Peoples by Peter B. Golden. Otto Harrasowitz (1992), ISBN 3-447-03274-X (retrieved 8 June 2006). Cite error: The named reference "ISBN 5" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
^ "Turkic Peoples", Encyclopedia Americana, volume 27, page 276. Grolier Inc., New York (1998) ISBN 0-7172-0130-9 (retrieved 8 June 2006).
^ Cite error: The named reference Britannica was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Cite error: The named reference EI was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d "Testing hypotheses of language replacement in the Caucasus: evidence from the Y-chromosome", Human Genetics (2003) 112 : 255–261 (retrieved 9 June 2006) Cite error: The named reference "Human Genes 2003" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
^ "Maziar Ashrafian Bonab" — heredity, v. 98, no. 3, Year: 2007 (retrieved 03 March 2007)
^ "Writing Azerbaijan's History-Fear of Pan-Turkism", Azerbaijan International, Autumn 2001 (retrieved 24 June 2006).
^ ^a ^b "The spread of Turkish in Azerbaijan", Encyclopedia Iranica, (retrieved 11 June 2006).
^ "1300th Anniversary of Kitab-i Dede Qorqud", UNESCO (retrieved 8 June 2006).
^ ^a ^b "x. Azeri Literature in Iran", Encyclopedia Iranica (retrieved 10 June 2006). Cite error: The named reference "IranicaPage251" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
^ "Ancient Persia", Encyclopedia Americana (retrieved 8 June 2006).
^ "Azerbaijan", Columbia Encyclopedia (retrieved 8 June 2006).
^ "Various Fire-Temples", University of Calgary (retrieved 8 June 2006).
^ Encyclopedia Iranica: p238–245
^ Al-Muqaddasi, Ahsan al-Taqāsīm, p. 259 & 378, "... the Azerbaijani language is not pretty [...] but their Persian is intelligible, and in articulation it is very similar to the Persian of Khorasan ...", tenth century, Persia (retrieved 18 June 2006).
^ "Tabriz" (retrieved 8 June 2006).
^ "Report for Talysh", Ethnologue (retrieved 8 June 2006).
^ "Report for Tats", Ethnologue (retrieved 8 June 2006).
^ Encyclopedia Britannica, Volume V18, Page 22.
^ "The Udi Language", University of Munich, Wolfgang Schulze 2001/2 (retrieved 19 June 2006).
^ "Mannai", Encyclopedia Britannica (retrieved 19 June 2006).
^ "A Genetic Landscape Reshaped by Recent Events: Y-Chromosomal Insights into Central Asia", American Journal of Human Genetics, 71:466–482, 2002 (retrieved 9 June 2006).
^ "Where West Meets East: The Complex mtDNA Landscape of the Southwest and Central Asian Corridor", American Journal of Human Genetics, 74:827–845, 2004 (retrieved 9 June 2006).
^ "Genetic Structure of Iranian-Speaking Populations from Azerbaijan Inferred from the Frequencies of Immunological and Biochemical Gene Markers", Russian Journal of Genetics, Volume 39, Number 11, November 2003, pp. 1334–1342(9) (retrieved 9 June 2006).
^ "Maziar Ashrafian Bonab", Department of Genetics, University of Cambridge (retrieved 9 June 2006).
^ "Cambridge Genetic Study of Iran", ISNA (Iranian Students News Agency), 06-12-2006, news-code: 8503-06068 (retrieved 9 June 2006).
^ Azerbaijani article, Encyclopaedia Britannica Online.
^ Template:Ru icon Demoscope Weekly, alphabetical list of people living in the Russian Empire (1895).
^ Template:Ru icon Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary. "Turks". St. Petersburg, Russia, 1890–1907
^ Template:Ru icon Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary. "Turko-Tatars". St. Petersburg, Russia, 1890–1907.
^ ^a ^b "Azerbaijani, North: A language of Azerbaijan", Ethnologue report (retrieved 24 June 2006). Cite error: The named reference "Ethnologue North" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d The State, Religion, and Ethnic Politics: Afghanistan, Iran, and Pakistan edited by Ali Banuazizi and Myron Weiner, Part II: Iran. Syracuse University Press, Syracuse, N.Y. (1988), ISBN 0-8156-2448-4 (retrieved 9 June 2006). Cite error: The named reference "ISBN 6" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
^ "Ethnische Gruppen", Iranian embassy in Germany (retrieved 17 June 2006).
^ Shahrough Akhavi, Religion and Politics in Contemporary Iran: Clergy-State Relations in the Pahlavi Period, State University of New York (1980), ISBN 0-87395-456-4 (retrieved 9 June 2006).
^ Nikki Keddie, Modern Iran: Roots and Results of Revolution, Yale University Press (2003), ISBN 0-300-09856-1 (retrieved 9 June 2006).
^ Peace Talks at Key West between Armenia and Azerbaijan, US State Department, April 3, 2001 (retrieved 9 June 2006).
^ ibid.
^ "Human Development Index, 12. Literacy and enrolment", Human Development Reports (retrieved 10 June 2006).
^ "Caspian Country Rich in Petroleum", The Korea Times (retrieved 10 June 2006)
^ "Report on corruption in Azerbaijan oil industry prepared for EBRD & IFC investigation arms", The Committee of Oil Industry Workers’ Rights Protection, October 2003 (retrieved 10 June 2006).
^ "Azerbaijan: A New Muslim Ally for the U.S.?", FrontPageMagazine.com, May 22, 2006 (retrieved 10 June 2006).
^ "The Crude Doctrine", Mother Jones, July/August, 2004 (retrieved 11 June 2006).
^ ^a ^b "Civil Society, Azerbaijan: Opposition parties prepare to vigorously contest parliamentary election", Eurasia.net, 3/28/05 (retrieved 10 June 2006). Cite error: The named reference "Opposition" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
^ Ervand Abrahamian, Iran between Two Revolutions, Princeton University Press (1982), ISBN 0-691-10134-5 (retrieved 10 June 2006).
^ David Menashri, "Shi'ite Leadership: In the Shadow of Conflicting Ideologies", Iranian Studies, 13:1–4 (1980) (retrieved 10 June 2006).
^ "Ethnic Tensions Over Cartoon Set Off Riots in Northwest Iran", The New York Times (retrieved 12 June 2006)
^ "Iran Azeris protest over cartoon", BBC News (retrieved 12 June 2006)
^ "Cockroach Cartoonist Jailed In Iran", The Comics Reporter, May 24, 2006 (retrieved 15 June 2006)
^ "Iranian paper banned over cartoon" , BBC News, May 23, 2006 (retrieved 15 June 2006).
^ Burke, Andrew. Iran. Lonely Planet, Nov 1, 2004, P 42–43. 1740594258
^ "Contemporary Literature", Azerbaijan International, Spring 1996, (4.1) (retrieved 10 June 2006).
^ "Azerbaijan", US State Department, October 26, 2001 (retrieved 9 June 2006).
^ "Avaz", Stanford University Persian Student Association (retrieved 11 June 2006).
^ "Guba", Azerbaijan: The Land of the Arts (retrieved 11 June 2006).
^ "Hossein Alizadeh Personal Reflections on Playing Tar", Azerbaijan International, Winter 1997 (retrieved 11 June 2006).
^ ^a ^b "Azerbaijan", Sports history of Azerbaijanis (retrieved 24 June 2006). Cite error: The named reference "Olympics" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
^ "The Ministry of Youth and Sports", Azerbaijan International, Winter 1996 (retrieved 11 June 2006).
^ "Civil Society, Democratization & Development in Azerbaijan", The Watson Institute for International Studies, Brown University, 4.28.05 (retrieved 12 June 2006).
^ "Iranian Azeris: A Giant Minority", Policy Watch/Policy Peace, The Washington Institute for Near East Policy (retrieved 7 June 2006).
^ "US Suffrage Movement Timeline, 1792 to present", Susan B. Anthony Center for Women's Leadership (retrieved 19 August 2006)
^ "Azerbaijan: Women", OnlineWomen (retrieved 12 June 2006)
^ "Women's rights in Azerbaijan", OneWomen (retrieved 12 June 2006)
^ Gender Panorama: Elections to the Milli Majlis of the Republic of Azerbaijan appointed on November 6, 2005, Azerbaijan Gender Information Centre (retrieved 3 September, 2006.
^ Abortion Laws Around the World (retrieved 25 June 2006)
^ Iran: "Amnesty International calls for action to end discrimination against women", Amnesty International (retrieved 12 June 2006).
^ "Iran: women's protest brutally attacked", Iranian, Jun 15, 2006 (retrieved 12 June 2006)
^ Iran: "Women's Gains at Risk in Iran's New Parliament", Women's Enews (retrieved 12 June 2006)

Important note: population statistics for Azerbaijanis (including those without a notation) in foreign countries were derived from various census counts, the UN, the CIA Factbook, Ethnologue, and the Joshua Project.

Template:Link FA

[CIA_Iran-1] "Iran: People", CIA: The World Factbook (retrieved 7 June 2006). Cite error: The named reference "CIA Iran" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).

[Amnesty_International-2] "Iran", Amnesty International report on Iran and Azerbaijanis (retrieved 30 July 2006).

[ISBNShaffer-3] "Borders and Brethren: Iran and the Challenge of Azerbaijani Identity" in The Azerbaijani Population by Brenda Shaffer, pp. 221–225. The MIT Press (2003), ISBN 0-262-19477-5 (retrieved 10 June 2006). Cite error: The named reference "ISBNShaffer" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).

[Encyclopedia_of_Orient-4] "Iran" in the Encyclopedia Orient (retrieved 18 Aug 2006).

[Azerbaijan_in_figures_2006-5] "Population by ethnic groups", The State Statistical Committee of Azerbaijan Republic (retrieved 19 June 2006).

[CIA_Factbook_Azerbaijan-6] "Azerbaijan: ɹPeople", CIA Factbook. Azeri ethnic percentage of 90.6% used to calculate population derived from Azeri census (retrieved 7 June 2006).

[Encyclopedia_Orient-7] "Turkey: Religions & Peoples", Encyclopedia of the Orient (retrieved 7 June 2006)

[Russian_Census-8] "Azerbaijanis in Russia", 2002 Russian Census (retrieved 7 June 2006)

[9] State Statistics Department of Georgia: 2002 census (retrieved 16 July 2006)

[Kazakh_Demographics-10] "Ethnodemographic situation in Kazakhstan" (1999 census) (retrieved 7 June 2006).

[Ukraine_Census-11] "About number and composition population of Ukraine by data All-Ukrainian census of the population 2001", Ukraine Census 2001 (retrieved 7 June 2006).

[12] List of Canadians by ethnicity (following 2001 census). NB Canadian census on ancestry may not reflect current ethnic affiliation in Canada. (retrieved 7 June 2006)

[13] (IPA: [æzə(ɹ)baɪˈdʒɑːni]; in Azerbaijani: Azərbaycanlılar, Azeris/Azərilər, Azeri Turks/Azəri Türkləri; Azeri Cyrillic: Азәриләр) or Azarbaijanis

[Library_of_Congress_Iran-14] "Iran", US Library of Congress Country Studies (retrieved 7 June 2006). (in Iran; also Azaris, Turks/Torks) Cite error: The named reference "Library of Congress Iran" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).

[Britannica_Azerbaijani-15] "Azerbaijani", Encyclopedia Britannica (retrieved 7 June 2006).

[Encarta_Azerbaijan-16] "Azerbaijan", MSN Encarta (retrieved 25 January 2007)

[ISBN_2-17] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k Historical Dictionary of Azerbaijan by Tadeusz Swietochowski and Brian C. Collins. The Scarecrow Press, Inc., Lanham, Maryland (1999), ISBN 0-8108-3550-9 (retrieved 7 June 2006). Cite error: The named reference "ISBN 2" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).

[ISBN-18] The Azerbaijani Turks: Power and Identity under Russian Rule by Audrey Altstadt. Hoover Institution Press (1992), ISBN 0-8179-9182-4 (retrieved 7 June 2006). Cite error: The named reference "ISBN" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).

[Library_of_Congress_Azerbaijan-19] Azerbaijan, US Library of Congress Country Studies (retrieved 7 June 2006). Cite error: The named reference "Library of Congress Azerbaijan" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).

[Library_of_Congress_Armenia-20] "Armenia-Ancient Period", US Library of Congress Country Studies (retrieved 23 June 2006)

[Strabo_Geography-21] Strabo, "Geography", Perseus Digital Library, Tufts University (retrieved 24 June 2006).

[Iranica-22] "Albania", Encyclopedia Iranica, p. 807 (retrieved 15 June 2006).

[Heyerdahl-23] "Voices of the Ancients: Heyerdahl Intrigued by Rare Caucasus Albanian Text" by Dr. Zaza Alexidze, Azerbaijan International, Summer 2002 (retrieved 7 June 2006). Cite error: The named reference "Heyerdahl" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).

[ISBN_3-24] A History of Islamic Societies by Ira Lapidus, p. 48. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge (1988), ISBN 0-521-77933-2 (retrieved 7 June 2006). Cite error: The named reference "ISBN 3" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).

[ISBN_4-25] The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphates by Hugh Kennedy, p. 166. Longman Group, London (1992), ISBN 0-582-40525-4 (retrieved 7 June 2006).

[Britannica_Oghuz-26] Turkic Languages: Classification - Encyclopedia Britannica (retrieved 8 June 2006)

[UCalgary-27] The Safavid Empire, University of Calgary (retrieved 8 June 2006).

[Washington_State-28] Shi'a: The Safavids, Washington State University (retrieved 8 June 2006).

[IranChamberSafavids-29] Safavid Empire 1502–1736, Iran Chamber (retrieved 19 June 2006).

[Sammis-30] Kathy Sammis, Focus on World History: The First Global Age and the Age of Revolution, pg 39.

[31] Sattar Khan

[32] Tadeusz Swietochowski, Russia and Azerbaijan: A Borderland in Transition (ISBN 0-231-07068-3)

[33] Cold War International History Project 1945–46 Iranian Crisis

[34] Gary. R. Hess Political Science Quarterly, Vol. 89, No. 1 (March 1974) [1]

[Britannica_Turkic-35] "Azerbaijan: People", Encyclopedia Britannica (retrieved 11 June 2006)

[ISBN_5-36] An Introduction to the History of the Turkic Peoples by Peter B. Golden. Otto Harrasowitz (1992), ISBN 3-447-03274-X (retrieved 8 June 2006). Cite error: The named reference "ISBN 5" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).

[Americana-37] "Turkic Peoples", Encyclopedia Americana, volume 27, page 276. Grolier Inc., New York (1998) ISBN 0-7172-0130-9 (retrieved 8 June 2006).

[Britannica-38] Cite error: The named reference Britannica was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[EI-39] Cite error: The named reference EI was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[Human_Genes_2003-40] "Testing hypotheses of language replacement in the Caucasus: evidence from the Y-chromosome", Human Genetics (2003) 112 : 255–261 (retrieved 9 June 2006) Cite error: The named reference "Human Genes 2003" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).

[Studies_in_Cambridge_University-41] "Maziar Ashrafian Bonab" — heredity, v. 98, no. 3, Year: 2007 (retrieved 03 March 2007)

[Turkic_theory-42] "Writing Azerbaijan's History-Fear of Pan-Turkism", Azerbaijan International, Autumn 2001 (retrieved 24 June 2006).

[IranicaPage238-43] "The spread of Turkish in Azerbaijan", Encyclopedia Iranica, (retrieved 11 June 2006).

[UNESCO-44] "1300th Anniversary of Kitab-i Dede Qorqud", UNESCO (retrieved 8 June 2006).

[IranicaPage251-45] "x. Azeri Literature in Iran", Encyclopedia Iranica (retrieved 10 June 2006). Cite error: The named reference "IranicaPage251" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).

[Mannai-46] "Ancient Persia", Encyclopedia Americana (retrieved 8 June 2006).

[Columbia_Encyclopedia-47] "Azerbaijan", Columbia Encyclopedia (retrieved 8 June 2006).

[UCalgaryFireTemples-48] "Various Fire-Temples", University of Calgary (retrieved 8 June 2006).

[49] Encyclopedia Iranica: p238–245

[50] Al-Muqaddasi, Ahsan al-Taqāsīm, p. 259 & 378, "... the Azerbaijani language is not pretty [...] but their Persian is intelligible, and in articulation it is very similar to the Persian of Khorasan ...", tenth century, Persia (retrieved 18 June 2006).

[Tabriz-51] "Tabriz" (retrieved 8 June 2006).

[Talysh-52] "Report for Talysh", Ethnologue (retrieved 8 June 2006).

[Tats-53] "Report for Tats", Ethnologue (retrieved 8 June 2006).

[Media-54] Encyclopedia Britannica, Volume V18, Page 22.

[Udi-55] "The Udi Language", University of Munich, Wolfgang Schulze 2001/2 (retrieved 19 June 2006).

[Mannai2-56] "Mannai", Encyclopedia Britannica (retrieved 19 June 2006).

[Human_Genes_2002-57] "A Genetic Landscape Reshaped by Recent Events: Y-Chromosomal Insights into Central Asia", American Journal of Human Genetics, 71:466–482, 2002 (retrieved 9 June 2006).

[University_of_Chicago-58] "Where West Meets East: The Complex mtDNA Landscape of the Southwest and Central Asian Corridor", American Journal of Human Genetics, 74:827–845, 2004 (retrieved 9 June 2006).

[Talysh_&_Tat_Genes-59] "Genetic Structure of Iranian-Speaking Populations from Azerbaijan Inferred from the Frequencies of Immunological and Biochemical Gene Markers", Russian Journal of Genetics, Volume 39, Number 11, November 2003, pp. 1334–1342(9) (retrieved 9 June 2006).

[Dr._Bonab_page-60] "Maziar Ashrafian Bonab", Department of Genetics, University of Cambridge (retrieved 9 June 2006).

[Iran_Cambridge_Genetic_Study-61] "Cambridge Genetic Study of Iran", ISNA (Iranian Students News Agency), 06-12-2006, news-code: 8503-06068 (retrieved 9 June 2006).

[62] Azerbaijani article, Encyclopaedia Britannica Online.

[63] Template:Ru icon Demoscope Weekly, alphabetical list of people living in the Russian Empire (1895).

[64] Template:Ru icon Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary. "Turks". St. Petersburg, Russia, 1890–1907

[65] Template:Ru icon Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary. "Turko-Tatars". St. Petersburg, Russia, 1890–1907.

[Ethnologue_North-66] "Azerbaijani, North: A language of Azerbaijan", Ethnologue report (retrieved 24 June 2006). Cite error: The named reference "Ethnologue North" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).

[ISBN_6-67] The State, Religion, and Ethnic Politics: Afghanistan, Iran, and Pakistan edited by Ali Banuazizi and Myron Weiner, Part II: Iran. Syracuse University Press, Syracuse, N.Y. (1988), ISBN 0-8156-2448-4 (retrieved 9 June 2006). Cite error: The named reference "ISBN 6" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).

[Iran_German_embassy-68] "Ethnische Gruppen", Iranian embassy in Germany (retrieved 17 June 2006).

[ISBN_7-69] Shahrough Akhavi, Religion and Politics in Contemporary Iran: Clergy-State Relations in the Pahlavi Period, State University of New York (1980), ISBN 0-87395-456-4 (retrieved 9 June 2006).

[ISBN_8-70] Nikki Keddie, Modern Iran: Roots and Results of Revolution, Yale University Press (2003), ISBN 0-300-09856-1 (retrieved 9 June 2006).

[Peace_Talks-71] Peace Talks at Key West between Armenia and Azerbaijan, US State Department, April 3, 2001 (retrieved 9 June 2006).

[Ethnologue_South-72] .

[Azeri_literacy-73] "Human Development Index, 12. Literacy and enrolment", Human Development Reports (retrieved 10 June 2006).

[Azeri_refugees-74] "Caspian Country Rich in Petroleum", The Korea Times (retrieved 10 June 2006)

[Azeri_corruption-75] "Report on corruption in Azerbaijan oil industry prepared for EBRD & IFC investigation arms", The Committee of Oil Industry Workers’ Rights Protection, October 2003 (retrieved 10 June 2006).

[Ilham_Aliyev-76] "Azerbaijan: A New Muslim Ally for the U.S.?", FrontPageMagazine.com, May 22, 2006 (retrieved 10 June 2006).

[MotherJonesAzeriPolitics-77] "The Crude Doctrine", Mother Jones, July/August, 2004 (retrieved 11 June 2006).

[Opposition-78] "Civil Society, Azerbaijan: Opposition parties prepare to vigorously contest parliamentary election", Eurasia.net, 3/28/05 (retrieved 10 June 2006). Cite error: The named reference "Opposition" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).

[ISBNAbrahamian-79] Ervand Abrahamian, Iran between Two Revolutions, Princeton University Press (1982), ISBN 0-691-10134-5 (retrieved 10 June 2006).

[Iranian_Studies-80] David Menashri, "Shi'ite Leadership: In the Shadow of Conflicting Ideologies", Iranian Studies, 13:1–4 (1980) (retrieved 10 June 2006).

[Ethnic_tensions-81] "Ethnic Tensions Over Cartoon Set Off Riots in Northwest Iran", The New York Times (retrieved 12 June 2006)

[Iran_Azeris_protest-82] "Iran Azeris protest over cartoon", BBC News (retrieved 12 June 2006)

[Cockroach_cartoonist-83] "Cockroach Cartoonist Jailed In Iran", The Comics Reporter, May 24, 2006 (retrieved 15 June 2006)

[Iran_paper_cartoon_ban-84] "Iranian paper banned over cartoon" , BBC News, May 23, 2006 (retrieved 15 June 2006).

[85] Burke, Andrew. Iran. Lonely Planet, Nov 1, 2004, P 42–43. 1740594258

[AzeriLit-86] "Contemporary Literature", Azerbaijan International, Spring 1996, (4.1) (retrieved 10 June 2006).

[Azerbaijan_Religion-87] "Azerbaijan", US State Department, October 26, 2001 (retrieved 9 June 2006).

[Azerbaijan_Dance-88] "Avaz", Stanford University Persian Student Association (retrieved 11 June 2006).

[Guba-89] "Guba", Azerbaijan: The Land of the Arts (retrieved 11 June 2006).

[Alizadeh-90] "Hossein Alizadeh Personal Reflections on Playing Tar", Azerbaijan International, Winter 1997 (retrieved 11 June 2006).

[Olympics-91] "Azerbaijan", Sports history of Azerbaijanis (retrieved 24 June 2006). Cite error: The named reference "Olympics" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).

[MinistrySports-92] "The Ministry of Youth and Sports", Azerbaijan International, Winter 1996 (retrieved 11 June 2006).

[Azeri_civil_society-93] "Civil Society, Democratization & Development in Azerbaijan", The Watson Institute for International Studies, Brown University, 4.28.05 (retrieved 12 June 2006).

[Azeri_nationalism-94] "Iranian Azeris: A Giant Minority", Policy Watch/Policy Peace, The Washington Institute for Near East Policy (retrieved 7 June 2006).

[95] "US Suffrage Movement Timeline, 1792 to present", Susan B. Anthony Center for Women's Leadership (retrieved 19 August 2006)

[Azeriwomen-96] "Azerbaijan: Women", OnlineWomen (retrieved 12 June 2006)

[Azeriwomen2-97] "Women's rights in Azerbaijan", OneWomen (retrieved 12 June 2006)

[98] Gender Panorama: Elections to the Milli Majlis of the Republic of Azerbaijan appointed on November 6, 2005, Azerbaijan Gender Information Centre (retrieved 3 September, 2006.

[Abortion_Law_in_Azerbaijan-99] Abortion Laws Around the World (retrieved 25 June 2006)

[AmnestyIranwomen-100] Iran: "Amnesty International calls for action to end discrimination against women", Amnesty International (retrieved 12 June 2006).

[Iran_Women's_Protest-101] "Iran: women's protest brutally attacked", Iranian, Jun 15, 2006 (retrieved 12 June 2006)

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@@ Line 80: / Line 80: @@
 ==Origins==
-[[Image:Azeri 1.jpg|thumb|200px|right|Azeris in downtown [[Baku]], [[Azerbaijan]].]]
-In many references, Azerbaijanis are designated as a [[Turkic peoples|Turkic people]], due to their [[Turkic languages|Turkic language]].<ref name="Britannica Turkic"> [http://www.britannica.com/ebi/article-197117 "Azerbaijan: People"], ''Encyclopedia Britannica'' (retrieved [[11 June]] [[2006]])</ref><ref name="ISBN 5"> ''An Introduction to the History of the Turkic Peoples'' by Peter B. Golden. Otto Harrasowitz (1992), ISBN 3-447-03274-X (retrieved [[8 June]] [[2006]]).</ref><ref name="Americana"> "Turkic Peoples", ''Encyclopedia Americana'', volume 27, page 276. Grolier Inc., New York (1998) ISBN 0-7172-0130-9 (retrieved [[8 June]] [[2006]]).</ref> However, modern day Azerbaijani's are not ethnically Turkic, but are mainly descendants of the Caucasian and Iranic peoples who lived in the area prior to Turkification.
+In many references, Azerbaijanis are designated as a [[Turkic peoples|Turkic people]], due to their [[Turkic languages|Turkic language]].<ref name="Britannica Turkic"> [http://www.britannica.com/ebi/article-197117 "Azerbaijan: People"], ''Encyclopedia Britannica'' (retrieved [[11 June]] [[2006]])</ref><ref name="ISBN 5"> ''An Introduction to the History of the Turkic Peoples'' by Peter B. Golden. Otto Harrasowitz (1992), ISBN 3-447-03274-X (retrieved [[8 June]] [[2006]]).</ref><ref name="Americana"> "Turkic Peoples", ''Encyclopedia Americana'', volume 27, page 276. Grolier Inc., New York (1998) ISBN 0-7172-0130-9 (retrieved [[8 June]] [[2006]]).</ref> The Azeris have a multi-ethnic identity with three preeminent designations entailing: a Turkic background from [[Central Asia]], Iranian origins, or an indigenous ancestry derived from the [[Peoples of the Caucasus]] who adopted the Azerbaijani language, Persian culture, and Islam. Thus, determining whether a Turkic, Iranian, or Caucasian background defines the Azeris has much to do with the historical views of Azeribaijan's neighbors.
-===Turkification===
-{{see also|Ancient Azari language}}
-[[Image:Sattar Khan.jpg|thumb|150px|[[Sattar Khan]] (1868-1914) was a major revolutionary figure in the late [[Qajar dynasty|Qajar]] period in Iran.]]
-Although, "Turkic penetration probably began in the [[Huns|Hunnic]] era and its aftermath," there is little evidence to indicate, "permanent settlements".<ref name="ISBN 5">pp. 385-386</ref> The earliest major Turkic incursion began with [[Mahmud of Ghazni]] (971-1040) and accelerated during the [[Seljuk Turks|Seljuk]] period. The migration of Oghuz Turks from present day [[Turkmenistan]], which is attested by linguistic similarity, remained high through the Mongol period, as many troops under the [[Ilkhan]]s were Turkic. By the [[Safavid dynasty|Safavid]] period, the ''Turkification'' of Azerbaijan continued with the influence of the [[Kizilbash]]. The very name Azerbaijan is derived from the pre-Turkic name of the province, Azarbayjan or Adarbayjan, and illustrates a gradual language shift that took place as local place names survived Turkification, albeit in altered form.<ref name="IranicaPage238"> [http://www.iranica.com/newsite/search/searchpdf.isc?ReqStrPDFPath=/home1/iranica/articles/v3_articles/azerbaijan/language_azerbaijan&OptStrLogFile=/home/iranica/public_html/logs/pdfdownload.html "The spread of Turkish in Azerbaijan"], ''Encyclopedia Iranica'', (retrieved [[11 June]] [[2006]]).</ref>
+[[Image:Azeri 1.jpg|thumb|200px|right|Azeris in downtown [[Baku]], [[Azerbaijan]].]]
-Most academics view this migration as the most likely source of a Turkic background, but one that it most likely involved the ''Turkification'' of predominantly non-Turkic indigenous peoples.<ref name="ISBN 2">Dictionary</ref><ref name="ISBN">Altstadt</ref>
+The [[Encyclopædia Britannica]] states that Azeris:
+{{cquote|are of mixed ethnic origin, the oldest element deriving from the indigenous population of eastern Transcaucasia and possibly from the Medians of northern Persia. This population was Persianized during the period of the Sasanian dynasty of Iran (third to seventh century AD), but, after the region's conquest by the Seljuq Turks in the 11th century, the inhabitants were Turkicized, and further Turkicization of the population occurred in the ensuing centuries.<ref name="Britannica"/>}}
+And according to orientalist [[Vladimir Minorsky|Vladimir F. Minorsky]]:
-===Historical accounts===
+{{cquote|[as consequence of Oghuz Turkic domination in the Caucasus, beginning the twelfth century] the Iranian population of Ā<u>dh</u>arbāyjān and the adjacent parts of Transcaucasia became Turkophone while the characteristic features of Ā<u>dh</u>arbāyjānī Turkish, such as Persian intonations and disregard of the vocalic harmony, reflect the non-Turkish origin of the Turkicised population.<ref name="EI"/>}}
-====Medieval====
+This view is supported by initial genetic studies conducted in the Republic of Azerbaijan that link the modern Azeris primarily to their neighbors in the Caucasus and, to a lesser extent, northwestern Iran.<ref name="Human Genes 2003">[http://www.eva.mpg.de/genetics/pdf/Y-paper.pdf "Testing hypotheses of language replacement in the Caucasus: evidence from the Y-chromosome"], ''Human Genetics'' (2003) 112 : 255–261 (retrieved [[9 June]] [[2006]])</ref> Further studies with Azeris in Iran may help determine to what extent the modern Azeris are related to Caucasian peoples (notably the Albanians and Armenians), Iranians (primarily the [[Medes]]).<ref name="Studies in Cambridge University"> [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=17106453"Maziar Ashrafian Bonab"] — ''heredity, v. 98, no. 3, Year: 2007'' (retrieved [[03 March]] [[2007]])</ref>
-{{see main|Ancient Azari language}}
+===Turkic theory===
-Medieval scholars have also described the [[Azerbaijan (Iran)|Iranian region of Azerbaijan]] as being Iranic speaking.
+[[Image:Sattar Khan.jpg|thumb|150px|[[Sattar Khan]] (1868–1914) was a major revolutionary figure in the late [[Qajar dynasty|Qajar]] period in Iran.]]
+The Turkic origin theory is based upon the [[Azerbaijani language]] and favored by those who believe that centuries of heavy Turkic settlement shaped Azerbaijan's Turkic identity. The Turkic theory does not alter the general view of the Azeris as a [[Turkic people]], but discusses to what extent Turkic groups changed the demographics of the Eastern Caucasus and Iranian Azarbaijan.<ref name="Turkic theory"> [http://www.azer.com/aiweb/categories/magazine/93_folder/93_articles/93_farid_alakbarov.html "Writing Azerbaijan's History-Fear of Pan-Turkism"], ''Azerbaijan International'', Autumn 2001 (retrieved [[24 June]] [[2006]]).</ref>
+Although, "Turkic penetration probably began in the [[Huns|Hunnic]] era and its aftermath," there is little evidence to indicate, "permanent settlements".<ref name="ISBN 5">pp. 385–386</ref> The earliest major Turkic incursion began with [[Mahmud of Ghazni]] (971–1040) and accelerated during the [[Seljuk Turks|Seljuk]] period. The migration of Oghuz Turks from present day [[Turkmenistan]], which is attested by linguistic similarity, remained high through the Mongol period, as many troops under the [[Ilkhan]]s were Turkic. By the [[Safavid dynasty|Safavid]] period, the ''turkification'' of Azerbaijan continued with the influence of the [[Kizilbash]]. The very name Azerbaijan is derived from the pre-Turkic name of the province, Azarbayjan or Adarbayjan, and illustrates a gradual language shift that took place as local place names survived turkification, albeit in altered form.<ref name="IranicaPage238"> [http://www.iranica.com/newsite/search/searchpdf.isc?ReqStrPDFPath=/home1/iranica/articles/v3_articles/azerbaijan/language_azerbaijan&OptStrLogFile=/home/iranica/public_html/logs/pdfdownload.html "The spread of Turkish in Azerbaijan"], ''Encyclopedia Iranica'', (retrieved [[11 June]] [[2006]]).</ref>
-Ibn Muqaffa (d. 760) a Muslim or Zoroastrian scholar and translator of Persian background is quoted by [[Ibn Nadeem]] (d. 988) as writing:<ref>Kitab al-Fihrist mit Anmerkungen hrsg. von Gustav Flügel, t vols., Leipzig 1871.  Original Arabic: فأما الفهلوية فمنسوب إلى فهله اسم يقع على خمسة بلدان وهي أصفهان والري وهمدان وماه نهاوند وأذربيجان</ref>:{{cquote| And Fahlavi (Pahlavi language) pertains to the region of Fahla which is the region compromised of Esfahan, Ray, Hamadan, Mah Nahavand and Azerbaijan}}
+The ''[[Book of Dede Korkut]]'' could be a document that supports a substantial Oghuz migration into Azerbaijan. [[UNESCO]] recently celebrated the 1300th anniversary of this epic work.<ref name="UNESCO"> [http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0011/001194/119498E.pdf "1300th Anniversary of Kitab-i Dede Qorqud"], ''UNESCO'' (retrieved [[8 June]] [[2006]]).</ref> Despite its purported age, most academics believe that the ''Book of Dede Korkut'' originated after the Oghuz entered the Caucasus, with its written text having been compiled in the fifteenth century.<ref name="IranicaPage251">[http://www.iranica.com/newsite/search/searchpdf.isc?ReqStrPDFPath=/home1/iranica/articles/v3_articles/azerbaijan/azeri_literature_iran&OptStrLogFile=/home/iranica/public_html/logs/pdfdownload.html "x. Azeri Literature in Iran"], ''Encyclopedia Iranica'' (retrieved [[10 June]] [[2006]]).</ref> Most academics view this migration as the most likely source of a Turkic background, but one that most likely involved the ''turkification'' of predominantly indigenous peoples.<ref name="ISBN 2">Dictionary</ref><ref name="ISBN">Altstadt</ref>
-Abu al-Hasan Ali ibn al-Husayn al-Masudi(896-956), the Arab historian states that the regions of Iranian Azerbaijan and Aran were inhabited by Persians:
-{{cquote|The Persians are a people whose borders are the Mahat Mountains and Azarbaijan up to Armenia and Aran, and Bayleqan and Darband, and Ray and Tabaristan and Masqat and Shabaran and Jorjan and Abarshahr, and that is Nishabur, and Herat and Marv and other places in land of Khorasan, and Sejistan and Kerman and Fars and Ahvaz...All these lands were once one kingdom with one sovereign and one language...although the language differed slightly.  The language, however, is one, in that its letters are written the same way and used the same way in composition.  There are, then, different languages such as Pahlavi, Dari, Azari, as well as other Persian languages.}}<ref> (Al Mas'udi, Kitab al-Tanbih wa-l-Ishraf, De Goeje, M.J. (ed.), Leiden, Brill, 1894, pp. 77-8)</ref>
+===Iranian theory===
-====Modern accounts (19th, 20th, 21st centuries)====
-According to the eminent historian Vladimir Minorsky:
-{{cquote|''In the beginning of the 5th/11th century the G̲h̲uzz hordes, first in smaller parties, and then in considerable numbers, under the Seljuqids occupied Azarbaijan.  In consequence, the Iranian population of Azarbaijan and the adjacent parts of Transcaucasia became Turkophone."<ref> Minorsky, V.; Minorsky, V. "( Azarbaijan).'' Encyclopaedia of Islam. Edited by: P.
-Bearman , Th. Bianquis , C.E. Bosworth , E. van Donzel and W.P. Heinrichs. Brill</ref>}}
-According to Professor. Richard Frye:
-{{cquote|''The Turkish speakers of Azerbaijan (q.v.) are mainly descended from the earlier Iranian speakers</u>, several pockets of whom still exist in the region. A massive migration of Oghuz Turks in the 11th and 12th centuries not only Turkified Azerbaijan but also Anatolia.’’<ref> R.N. Frye, Peoples of Iran in Encyclopaedia Iranica [http://www.iranica.com/newsite/articles/v13f3/v13f3004a.html] </ref>}}
-According to ''The Languages and Literatures of the Non-Russian Peoples of the Soviet Union'':
-{{cquote|The language spoken prior to the Turkic people's coming to Azarbayjan was Persian in its diverse forms:  Ghillani, Kurdi, and Daeri;<ref>''The Languages and Literatures of the Non-Russian Peoples of the Soviet Union'' By Canada Council, George Thomas, McMaster University Interdepartmental Committe on Communist and East European Affairs, published in 1977, page 45</ref>}}
-According to Professor Xavier De Planhol:
-{{cquote|''Azeri material culture, a result of this multi-secular symbiosis, is thus a subtle combination of indigenous elements and nomadic contributions, but the ratio between them is remains to be determined. The few researches undertaken (Planhol, 1960) demonstrate the indisputable predominance of Iranian tradition in agricultural techniques (irrigation, rotation systems, terraced cultivation) and in several settlement traits (winter troglodytism of people and livestock, evident in the widespread underground stables). The large villages of Iranian peasants in the irrigated valleys have worked as points for crystallization of the newcomers even in the course of linguistic transformation; these places have preserved their sites and transmitted their knowledge. The toponymy, with more than half of the place names of Iranian origin in some areas, such as the Sahand, a huge volcanic massif south of Tabriz, or the Qara Dagh, near the border (Planhol, 1966, p. 305; Bazin, 1982, p. 28) bears witness to this continuity. The language itself provides eloquent proof. Azeri, not unlike Uzbek (see above), lost the vocal harmony typical of Turkish languages. It is a Turkish language learned and spoken by Iranian peasants.’’<ref> X.D. Planhol, LANDS OF IRAN  in Encyclopedia Iranica [http://www.iranica.com/newsite/articles/v13f2/v13f2024i.html] </ref>}}
-{{cquote|''Thus Turkish nomads, in spite of their deep penetration throughout Iranian lands, only slightly influenced the local culture. Elements borrowed by the Iranians from their invaders were negligible.’’ <ref> X.D. Planhol, LANDS OF IRAN  in Encyclopedia Iranica [http://www.iranica.com/newsite/articles/v13f2/v13f2024i.html] </ref>}}
-According to Tadeusz Swietochowski:
-{{cquote|''The original Persian population became fused with the Turks, and gradually the Persian language was supplanted by a Turkic dialect that evolved into the distinct Azerbaijani language. The process of Turkification was long and complex, sustained by successive waves of incoming nomads from Central Asia.''<ref>Colliers Encyclopedia Vol. 3</ref>}}
-According to Encyclopedia Britannica:
-{{cquote|''The Azerbaijani are of mixed ethnic origin, the oldest element deriving from the indigenous population of eastern Transcaucasia and possibly from the Medians of northern Persia. This population was Persianized during the period of the Sasanian dynasty of Iran (3rd–7th century AD), but, after the region's conquest by the Seljuq Turks in the 11th century, the inhabitants were Turkicized, and further Turkicization of the population occurred in the ensuing centuries.''<ref>Azerbaijani." Encyclopædia Britannica. 2007. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 5 Apr. 2007  <http://search.eb.com/eb/article-9011540>.</ref>}}
-According to [[Grand Dictionnaire Encyclopedique Larousse]]:
-{{cquote|Azeris are descendants of older Iranophone inhabitants of the Eastern Transcaucasia, turkicized since 11th century.<ref name="Larousse"/>}}
-According to World Book:
-{{cquote|From the 1000’s to the 1200’s. Turkic tribes migrated to the region by large numbers and mixed with the Persians who lived there. These people became the ancestors of the Azerbaijanis.<ref name="World Book"/>}}
-The book ''Man'', published in 1901, comes to the same conclusion:
-{{cquote|It does not, of course, follow that such tribes may not be mainly Iranian in blood, as the Turkish-speaking Azerbaijani Tatars have been shown to be, but the persistence of foreign languages among tribal communities is not a factor to be neglected.}}<ref>''Man'' By: Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland, JSTOR (Organization)</ref>
-[[Encyclopaedia Iranica]] also states:
-{{cquote|The Turkish speakers of Azerbaijan (q.v.) are mainly descended from the earlier Iranian speakers, several pockets of whom still exist in the region.<ref>[Encyclopaedia Iranica http://www.iranica. com/newsite/ articles/ v13f3/v13f3004a. html]</ref>}}
-[[Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography]], published in 1854, states:
-{{cquote|Pliny (l.c), affirms that Atropatene extended to the Caspian Sea, and that its inhabitants were a part of the Medes.<ref>''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography'' by Willion Smith, Vol 1. page 320</ref>}}
-===Iranian origin===
 {{main|Iranian theory regarding the origin of the Azerbaijanis}}
 [[Image:Nizami monument.jpg|thumb|150px|right|Statue of [[Nezami|Nezami Ganjavi]], a twelfth-century writer and philosopher, in [[Baku]], [[Azerbaijan]]. Nezami is a major literary figure to both Azeris and Persians.]]
-The Iranian origin, favoured by notable scholars and sources, along with genetic testing, mostly applies to Iranian Azeri's and is based upon the ancient presence of [[Iranian peoples|Iranic tribes]], such as the [[Medes]], in [[Azarbaijan (Iran)|Iranian Azarbaijan]], and [[Scythia]]n invasions during the eighth century BCE. It is believed that the Medes mixed with an indigenous population, the Caucasian [[Mannai]], a [[Northeast Caucasian languages|Northeast Caucasian]] group related to the [[Urartian]]s.<ref name="Mannai">[http://oke.grolier.com/InfoOffset=30818&FFC=F&OEMTag=RV&MajorVersion=11&EAID=0308950-00.ea "Ancient Persia"], ''Encyclopedia Americana'' (retrieved [[8 June]] [[2006]]).</ref>
+The Iranian origin theory, favoured by notable scholars and sources, is based upon the ancient presence of [[Iranian peoples|Iranic tribes]], such as the [[Medes]], in [[Azarbaijan (Iran)|Iranian Azarbaijan]], and [[Scythia]]n invasions during the eighth century BCE. It is believed that the Medes mixed with an indigenous population, the Caucasian [[Mannai]], a [[Northeast Caucasian languages|Northeast Caucasian]] group related to the [[Urartian]]s.<ref name="Mannai">[http://oke.grolier.com/InfoOffset=30818&FFC=F&OEMTag=RV&MajorVersion=11&EAID=0308950-00.ea "Ancient Persia"], ''Encyclopedia Americana'' (retrieved [[8 June]] [[2006]]).</ref>
-Scholars see cultural similarities between modern Persians and Azeris as evidence of an ancient Iranian influence.<ref name="Columbia Encyclopedia">[http://www.bartleby.com/65/az/Azerbaij.html "Azerbaijan"], ''Columbia Encyclopedia'' (retrieved [[8 June]] [[2006]]).</ref> Archaeological evidence indicates that the Iranian religion of [[Zoroastrianism]] was prominent throughout the Caucasus before Christianity and Islam and that the influence of various [[Persian Empire]]s added to the Iranian character of the area.<ref name="UCalgaryFireTemples">[http://www.iras.ucalgary.ca/~volk/sylvia/FireTemple.htm "Various Fire-Temples"], ''University of Calgary'' (retrieved [[8 June]] [[2006]]).</ref> It has also been hypothesized that the population of Iranian Azarbaijan was predominantly Persian-speaking before the Oghuz arrived. This claim is supported by the many Azerbaijani literary figures, such as [[Qatran Tabrizi]], [[Shams Tabrizi]], [[Nezami]], and [[Khaghani]], who wrote in Persian prior to and during the Oghuz migration, as well as by [[Strabo]], Al-Istakhri, and Al-Masudi, who all describe the language of the region as [[Persian language|Persian]]. The claim is mentioned by other medieval historians, such as [[Al-Muqaddasi]].<ref>[[Al-Muqaddasi]], ''Ahsan al-Taqāsīm'', p. 259 & 378, ''"... the Azerbaijani language is not pretty [...] but their Persian is intelligible, and in articulation it is very similar to the Persian of Khorasan ..."'', tenth century, Persia (retrieved [[18 June]] [[2006]]).</ref><ref name="IranicaPage238"/> Other common Perso-Azeribaijani features include Iranian place names such as [[Tabriz]]<ref name="Tabriz">[http://encyclopedia.jrank.org/SUS_TAV/TABRIZ.html "Tabriz"] (retrieved [[8 June]] [[2006]]).</ref> and the name Azerbaijan itself.
+Scholars see cultural similarities between modern Persians and Azeris as evidence of an ancient Iranian influence.<ref name="Columbia Encyclopedia">[http://www.bartleby.com/65/az/Azerbaij.html "Azerbaijan"], ''Columbia Encyclopedia'' (retrieved [[8 June]] [[2006]]).</ref> Archaeological evidence indicates that the Iranian religion of [[Zoroastrianism]] was prominent throughout the Caucasus before Christianity and Islam and that the influence of various [[Persian Empire]]s added to the Iranian character of the area.<ref name="UCalgaryFireTemples">[http://www.iras.ucalgary.ca/~volk/sylvia/FireTemple.htm "Various Fire-Temples"], ''University of Calgary'' (retrieved [[8 June]] [[2006]]).</ref> It has also been hypothesized that the population of Iranian Azarbaijan was predominantly Persian-speaking before the Oghuz arrived.<ref>[[Encyclopedia Iranica]]: [http://www.azargoshnasp.net/languages/Azari/Azariyarshater.pdf p238–245]</ref> This claim is supported by the many Azerbaijani literary figures, such as [[Qatran Tabrizi]], [[Shams Tabrizi]], [[Nezami]], and [[Khaghani]], who wrote in Persian prior to and during the Oghuz migration, as well as by [[Strabo]], Al-Istakhri, and Al-Masudi, who all describe the language of the region as [[Persian language|Persian]]. The claim is mentioned by other medieval historians, such as [[Al-Muqaddasi]].<ref>[[Al-Muqaddasi]], ''Ahsan al-Taqāsīm'', p. 259 & 378, ''"... the Azerbaijani language is not pretty [...] but their Persian is intelligible, and in articulation it is very similar to the Persian of Khorasan ..."'', tenth century, Persia (retrieved [[18 June]] [[2006]]).</ref><ref name="IranicaPage238"/> Other common Perso-Azerbaijani features include Iranian place names such as [[Tabriz]] and [[Baku]].<ref name="Tabriz">[http://encyclopedia.jrank.org/SUS_TAV/TABRIZ.html "Tabriz"] (retrieved [[8 June]] [[2006]]).</ref>
-The modern presence of the Iranian [[Talysh people|Talysh]] and [[Tats]] in Azerbaijan is further evidence of the former Iranian character of the region.<ref name="Talysh">[http://www.ethnologue.com/show_language.asp?code=tly "Report for Talysh"], ''Ethnologue'' (retrieved [[8 June]] [[2006]]).</ref><ref name="Tats">[http://www.ethnologue.com/show_language.asp?code=ttt "Report for Tats"], ''Ethnologue'' (retrieved [[8 June]] [[2006]]).</ref> As a precursor to these modern groups, the [[Ancient Azari language|ancient Azaris]] are hypothesized as the main ancestors of the modern Azerbaijanis.
+The modern presence of the Iranian [[Talysh people|Talysh]] and [[Tats]] in Azerbaijan is further evidence of the former Iranian character of the region.<ref name="Talysh">[http://www.ethnologue.com/show_language.asp?code=tly "Report for Talysh"], ''Ethnologue'' (retrieved [[8 June]] [[2006]]).</ref><ref name="Tats">[http://www.ethnologue.com/show_language.asp?code=ttt "Report for Tats"], ''Ethnologue'' (retrieved [[8 June]] [[2006]]).</ref> As a precursor to these modern groups, the [[Ancient Azari language|ancient Azaris]] are hypothesized as the main ancestors of the modern Azerbaijanis. However, ancient historians, including [[Herodotus]], [[Polybius]] and [[Strabo]], mention the region as a mixed one, with Iranian and non-Iranian groups, such as the ''[[Udi language|Utii]]'', a Caucasian group that still exists in Azerbaijan.<ref name="Media">Encyclopedia Britannica, Volume V18, Page 22.</ref>
-===Caucasian origin===
+===Caucasian theory===
-[[Image:132 610 taghiyev.jpg|thumb|150px|right|[[Haji Zeynalabdin Taghiyev]] (1838-1924), a leading Azeri industrialist and philanthropist.]]
+[[Image:132 610 taghiyev.jpg|thumb|150px|right|[[Haji Zeynalabdin Taghiyev]] (1838–1924), a leading Azeri industrialist and philanthropist.]]
-The Caucasian origin mostly applies to the Azeri's of the Caucasus, most of whom are now inhabitants of the Republic of Azerbaijan. There is evidence that, despite repeated invasions and migrations, aboriginal [[Caucasian Albania|Caucasian]]s may have been culturally assimilated, first by [[Ancient Iranian peoples|Iranians]] and later by the Oghuz. Considerable information has been learned about the Caucasian Albanians including their language, history, early conversion to [[Christianity]], and close ties to the [[Armenians]]. Many academics believe that the [[Udi language]], still spoken in Azerbaijan, is a remnant of the Albanians' language.<ref name="Udi">[http://www.lrz-muenchen.de/~wschulze/Udigen1.htm "The Udi Language"], ''University of Munich'', Wolfgang Schulze 2001/2 (retrieved [[19 June]] [[2006]]).</ref><ref name="Heyerdahl">Rare Caucasus Albanian Text</ref>
+There is evidence that, despite repeated invasions and migrations, aboriginal [[Caucasian Albania|Caucasian]]s may have been culturally assimilated, first by [[Ancient Iranian peoples|Iranians]] and later by the Oghuz. Audrey Alstadt notes in ''The Azerbaijani Turks'' that many Azeris in the Republic of Azerbaijan regard both the Oghuz and the Caucasian Albanians as their ancestors.<ref name="ISBN">Altstadt</ref> Considerable information has been learned about the Caucasian Albanians including their language, history, early conversion to [[Christianity]], and close ties to the [[Armenians]]. Many academics believe that the [[Udi language]], still spoken in Azerbaijan, is a remnant of the Albanians' language.<ref name="Udi">[http://www.lrz-muenchen.de/~wschulze/Udigen1.htm "The Udi Language"], ''University of Munich'', Wolfgang Schulze 2001/2 (retrieved [[19 June]] [[2006]]).</ref><ref name="Heyerdahl">Rare Caucasus Albanian Text</ref>
 This Caucasian influence extended further south into [[Iranian Azarbaijan]]. During the 1st millennium BCE, another Caucasian people, the [[Mannaeans]] (''Mannai'') populated much of Iranian Azarbaijan. Weakened by conflicts with the [[Assyrians]], the Mannaeans are believed to have been conquered and assimilated by the Medes by 590 BCE.<ref name="Mannai2">[http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9050573 "Mannai"], ''Encyclopedia Britannica'' (retrieved [[19 June]] [[2006]]).</ref>
+The extent to which cultural assimilation took place is unclear. By examining the historical record, archaeological finds, and, in recent years, [[genealogical DNA test]]ing, a team of researchers has put forth the view that indigenous peoples were often assimilated rather than being killed or driven out. In the case of the Azeris, this would mean that the majority today are descendants of the earliest settlers of the Caucasus. However, this view would require strong genetic evidence that peoples in the Caucasus are related despite their linguistic and cultural differences.<ref name="Human Genes 2003">ibid.</ref>
 ===Genetics===
+Though the population of Azerbaijan is culturally diverse, [[genetic testing]] has revealed common genetic markers that support an autochthonous background for most Azeris. A 2003 study found that: "[[Human Y-chromosome DNA haplogroup|Y-chromosome haplogroups]] indicate that Indo-European-speaking Armenians and Turkic-speaking Azerbaijanians are genetically more closely related to their geographic neighbors in the Caucasus than to their linguistic neighbors elsewhere."<ref name="Human Genes 2003">ibid.</ref> The authors of this study suggest that this indicates a language replacement of indigenous Caucasian peoples. There is evidence of limited genetic admixture derived from Central Asians (specifically [[Haplogroup H (Y-DNA)|Haplogroup H12]]), notably the [[Turkmen people|Turkmen]], that is higher than that of their neighbors, the [[Georgians]] and [[Armenians]].<ref name="Human Genes 2002">[http://www.journals.uchicago.edu/AJHG/journal/issues/v71n3/023927/023927.html "A Genetic Landscape Reshaped by Recent Events: Y-Chromosomal Insights into Central Asia"], ''American Journal of Human Genetics'', 71:466–482, 2002 (retrieved [[9 June]] [[2006]]).</ref> [[MtDNA]] analysis indicates that the main relationship with Iranians is through a larger West Eurasian group that is secondary to that of the Caucasus, according to a study that did not include Azeris, but Georgians who have clustered with Azeris in other studies.<ref name="University of Chicago">[http://www.journals.uchicago.edu/AJHG/journal/issues/v74n5/40813/40813.html "Where West Meets East: The Complex mtDNA Landscape of the Southwest and Central Asian Corridor"], ''American Journal of Human Genetics'', 74:827–845, 2004 (retrieved [[9 June]] [[2006]]).</ref> The conclusion from the testing shows that the Azeris are a mixed population with relationships, in order of greatest similarity, with the Caucasus, Iranians and Near Easterners, Europeans, and Turkmen. Other genetic analysis of [[mtDNA]] and [[Y-chromosome]]s indicates that Caucasian populations are genetically intermediate between Europeans and Near Easterners, but that they are more closely related to Near Easterners overall.<ref name="Human Genes 2003">ibid.</ref> Another study, conducted in 2003 by the ''Russian Journal of Genetics'', compared Iranians in Azerbaijan (the [[Talysh people|Talysh]] and [[Tats]]) with Turkic Azerbaijanis and found that,
-Some new genetic studies suggest that recent erosion of human population structure might not be as important as previously thought, and overall genetic structure of human populations may not change with the immigration events and thus in the Azerbaijani case; the Azeris of Azerbaijan republic most of all genetically resemble to other Caucasian people like Armenians <ref>[http://www.eva.mpg.de/genetics/pdf/Y-paper.pdf Testing hypotheses of language replacement in the Caucasus]</ref> and people the Azarbaijan region of Iran to other Iranians <ref>[http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=1808191 Is urbanisation scrambling the genetic structure of human populations?]</ref>.
+{{cquote|the genetic structure of the populations examined with the other Iranian-speaking populations (Persians and Kurds from Iran, Ossetins, and Tajiks) and Azerbaijanis showed that Iranian-speaking populations from Azerbaijan were closer to Azerbaijanis than to Iranian-speaking populations inhabiting other world regions.<ref name="Talysh & Tat Genes"> [http://www.ingentaconnect.com/search/article?title=azerbaijanis+in+iran&title_type=tka&year_from=1998&year_to=2005&database=1&pageSize=20&index=2 "Genetic Structure of Iranian-Speaking Populations from Azerbaijan Inferred from the Frequencies of Immunological and Biochemical Gene Markers"], ''Russian Journal of Genetics'', Volume 39, Number 11, November 2003, pp. 1334–1342(9) (retrieved [[9 June]] [[2006]]).</ref>}}
-====Studies conducted in the Caucasus====
-A 2003 study found that: "[[Human Y-chromosome DNA haplogroup|Y-chromosome haplogroups]] indicate that Indo-European-speaking Armenians and Turkic-speaking Azerbaijanians (of the Republic of Azerbaijan) are genetically more closely related to their geographic neighbors in the Caucasus than to their linguistic neighbors elsewhere."<ref name="Human Genes 2003">ibid.</ref> The authors of this study suggest that this indicates a language replacement of indigenous Caucasian peoples. There is evidence of limited genetic admixture derived from Central Asians (specifically [[Haplogroup H (Y-DNA)|Haplogroup H12]]), notably the [[Turkmen people|Turkmen]], that is higher than that of their neighbors, the [[Georgians]] and [[Armenians]].<ref name="Human Genes 2002">[http://www.journals.uchicago.edu/AJHG/journal/issues/v71n3/023927/023927.html "A Genetic Landscape Reshaped by Recent Events: Y-Chromosomal Insights into Central Asia"], ''American Journal of Human Genetics'', 71:466-482, 2002 (retrieved [[9 June]] [[2006]]).</ref> [[MtDNA]] analysis indicates that the main relationship with Iranians is through a larger West Eurasian group that is secondary to that of the Caucasus, according to a study that did not include Azeris, but Georgians who have clustered with Azeris in other studies.<ref name="University of Chicago">[http://www.journals.uchicago.edu/AJHG/journal/issues/v74n5/40813/40813.html "Where West Meets East: The Complex mtDNA Landscape of the Southwest and Central Asian Corridor"], ''American Journal of Human Genetics'', 74:827-845, 2004 (retrieved [[9 June]] [[2006]]).</ref> The conclusion from the testing shows that the Caucasian Azeris are a mixed population with relationships, in order of greatest similarity, with the Caucasus, Iranians and Near Easterners, Europeans, and Turkmen. Other genetic analysis of [[mtDNA]] and [[Y-chromosome]]s indicates that Caucasian populations are genetically intermediate between Europeans and Near Easterners, but that they are more closely related to Near Easterners overall.<ref name="Human Genes 2003">ibid.</ref> Another study, conducted in 2003 by the ''Russian Journal of Genetics'', compared Iranians in Azerbaijan (the [[Talysh people|Talysh]] and [[Tats]]) with Turkic Azerbaijanis and found that,
+The conclusion from this study further supports the view that groups within close geographic proximity to the Azeris are genetically similar despite linguistic differences. A recent study of the genetic landscape of Iran was completed by a team of [[Cambridge University|Cambridge]] geneticists led by Dr. Maziar Ashrafian Bonab (an Iranian Azarbaijani).<ref name="Dr. Bonab page">[http://www.gen.cam.ac.uk/Research/balloux.htm "Maziar Ashrafian Bonab"], ''Department of Genetics, University of Cambridge'' (retrieved [[9 June]] [[2006]]).</ref> Bonab remarked that his group had done extensive DNA testing on different language groups, including [[Indo-European languages|Indo-European]] and non Indo-European speakers, in Iran.<ref name="Iran Cambridge Genetic Study">[http://www.isna.ir/Main/NewsView.aspx?ID=News-727489&Lang=P "Cambridge Genetic Study of Iran"], ''ISNA (Iranian Students News Agency)'', 06-12-2006, news-code: 8503-06068 (retrieved [[9 June]] [[2006]]).</ref> The study found that the Azerbaijanis of Iran do not have a similar FSt and other genetic markers found in Anatolian and European Turks. However, the genetic Fst and other genetic traits like MRca and mtDNA of Iranian Azeris were identical to Persians in Iran. These studies suffer from some drawbacks, including a lack of ''specific'' comparative studies between Azeribaijanis from Iran and Azerbaijan{{Fact|date=June 2007}}.
-{{cquote|the genetic structure of the populations examined with the other Iranian-speaking populations (Persians and Kurds from Iran, Ossetins, and Tajiks) and Azerbaijanis showed that Iranian-speaking populations from Azerbaijan were closer to Azerbaijanis than to Iranian-speaking populations inhabiting other world regions.<ref name="Talysh & Tat Genes"> [http://www.ingentaconnect.com/search/article?title=azerbaijanis+in+iran&title_type=tka&year_from=1998&year_to=2005&database=1&pageSize=20&index=2 "Genetic Structure of Iranian-Speaking Populations from Azerbaijan Inferred from the Frequencies of Immunological and Biochemical Gene Markers"], ''Russian Journal of Genetics'', Volume 39, Number 11, November 2003, pp. 1334-1342(9) (retrieved [[9 June]] [[2006]]).</ref>}}
-====Studies conducted in Iran====
-A recent study of the genetic landscape of Iran was completed by a team of [[Cambridge University|Cambridge]] geneticists led by Dr. Maziar Ashrafian Bonab (an Iranian Azarbaijani).<ref name="Dr. Bonab page">[http://www.gen.cam.ac.uk/Research/balloux.htm "Maziar Ashrafian Bonab"], ''Department of Genetics, University of Cambridge'' (retrieved [[9 June]] [[2006]]).</ref> Bonab remarked that his group had done extensive DNA testing on different language groups, including [[Indo-European languages|Indo-European]] and non Indo-European speakers, in Iran.<ref name="Iran Cambridge Genetic Study">[http://www.isna.ir/Main/NewsView.aspx?ID=News-727489&Lang=P "Cambridge Genetic Study of Iran"], ''ISNA (Iranian Students News Agency)'', 06-12-2006, news-code: 8503-06068 (retrieved [[9 June]] [[2006]]).</ref> The study found that the Azerbaijanis of Iran do not have a similar FSt and other genetic markers found in Anatolian and European Turks. However, the genetic Fst and other genetic traits like MRca and mtDNA of Iranian Azeris were identical to Persians in Iran.
 ===Ethnonym===
-Historically the Turkic speakers<ref>[http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9011540/Azerbaijani  Azerbaijani article], Encyclopaedia Britannica Online.</ref> of Iranian Azerbaijan and the Caucasus called themselves or were referred to by others as Turks and religious identification prevailed over ethnic identification. When Transacaucasia became part of the [[Russian empire]], Russian authorities, who traditionally called all Turkic people [[Tatar]]s, called Azeris Aderbeijani/Azerbaijani or Caucasian Tatars to distinguish them from other Turkic people, also called Tatars by Russians.<ref>{{ru icon}} [http://www.demoscope.ru/weekly/2005/0187/perep04.php Demoscope Weekly], alphabetical list of people living in the Russian Empire (1895).</ref> Russian [[Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary]] also refers to Azerbaijanis as Aderbeijans in some articles.<ref>{{ru icon}} [http://www.cultinfo.ru/fulltext/1/001/007/103/103729.htm Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary. "Turks".] St. Petersburg, Russia, 1890-1907</ref> According to the article Turko-Tatars of the above encyclopedia,
+Historically the Turkic people<ref>[http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9011540/Azerbaijani  Azerbaijani article], Encyclopaedia Britannica Online.</ref> of Iranian Azerbaijan and the Caucasus called themselves or were referred to by others as Turks and religious identification prevailed over ethnic identification. When Transacaucasia became part of the [[Russian empire]], Russian authorities, who traditionally called all Turkic people [[Tatar]]s, called Azeris Aderbeijani/Azerbaijani or Caucasian Tatars to distinguish them from other Turkic people, also called Tatars by Russians.<ref>{{ru icon}} [http://www.demoscope.ru/weekly/2005/0187/perep04.php Demoscope Weekly], alphabetical list of people living in the Russian Empire (1895).</ref> Russian [[Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary]] also refers to Azerbaijanis as Aderbeijans in some articles.<ref>{{ru icon}} [http://www.cultinfo.ru/fulltext/1/001/007/103/103729.htm Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary. "Turks".] St. Petersburg, Russia, 1890–1907</ref> According to the article Turko-Tatars of the above encyclopedia, “some scholars (Yadrintsev, Kharuzin, Shantr) suggested to change the terminology of some Turko-Tatar people, who somatically don’t have much in common with Turks, for instance, to call Aderbaijani Tatars (Iranians by type) Aderbaijans”.<ref>{{ru icon}} [http://www.cultinfo.ru/fulltext/1/001/007/103/103731.htm Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary. "Turko-Tatars".] St. Petersburg, Russia, 1890–1907.</ref> The modern ethnonym Azerbaijani/Azeri in its present form was accepted in 1930s.
-{{cquote|''some scholars (Yadrintsev, Kharuzin, Shantr) suggested to change the terminology of some Turko-Tatar people, who somatically don’t have much in common with Turks, for instance, to call Aderbaijani Tatars (Iranians by race) Aderbaijans.''<ref>{{ru icon}} [http://www.cultinfo.ru/fulltext/1/001/007/103/103731.htm Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary. "Turko-Tatars".] St. Petersburg, Russia, 1890-1907.</ref>}}
 ==Demographics and society==