Shamkir (city)
40°49′47″N 46°01′08″E / 40.82972°N 46.01889°E
Shamkir
Şəmkir | |
|---|---|
 | |
  Shamkir | |
| Coordinates: 40°49′47″N 46°01′08″E / 40.82972°N 46.01889°E | |
| Country |  Azerbaijan |
| District | Shamkir |
| Founded | 1944 |
| Elevation | 450 m (1,480 ft) |
| Population (2010)[1] | |
| • Total | 67,200 |
| Time zone | UTC+4 (AZT) |
| Area code | +994 241 |
| Website | shamkir-ih |
Shamkir (Azerbaijani: Şəmkir), known historically as Annenfeld, is a city in and the capital of Shamkir District in western Azerbaijan, located in the northern foothills of the Lesser Caucasus, on the coast of the Chagirchay River on Tbilisi-Yevlakh highway, about 4 kilometers (2.5 mi) from Dallar railway station. It is the eighth most populous city in Azerbaijan.
Etymology
[edit]One theory is that the name derives from the dialectal Azerbaijani word sham, meaning a place covered in green.[2][3]
Population
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As of October 1, 2021, the population of the region was 221,372 people.[4]
History
[edit]
In antiquity, the territory of the modern Shamkir was part of the province of Utik, a part of the Kingdom of Armenia until 387 AD. Greco-Roman historians from the 2nd century BC to the 4th century AD state that Utik was a province of Armenia, with the Kura River separating Armenia and Caucasian Albania.[5][6][7]
The historical Shamkur (also known as Shamkhor and Shamkir[2]) has been known since the 5th century as a merchant and craft center of Persia.[3] In 652, the city was seized by Arabs.[8] In 737, Khazars settled in Shamkir after the Arabian commander Mervan's campaign to the Volga.[8] In 752, the city was destroyed by the Sabir people, who lived nearby and rebelled against the Arabs.[8] In 854, the Muslim Khazars took refuge in Shamkir.[8] Later, the city was under the reign of Ganja amirs from the Kurdish dynasty of Shaddadids.[8] In the 12th century and in the beginning of the 13th century, Shamkir was under the Georgian reign.[8] In 1195, the Georgian Queen Tamar's commanders destroyed the troops of Azerbaijan's Atabey Abu-Bakr, who was from Seljuk dynasty of the Ildegizids.[8] In 1235, Shamkir was destroyed by Mongols.[8] From the first quarter of the 16th century till the beginning of the 19th century Shamkir was governed by hereditary rulers a Turkic tribe called Shamsaddinli-Zulgadar.[8] In 1803, during the military actions against the Ganja Khanate of Qajar Iran, Shamkir was taken up by Russian troops and annexed to Russia.[8]
In 1817–1818, a colony of Germans resettled from Württemberg, was established on the site of Shamkir under the name Annenfeld.[2] There were also other Germans in Azerbaijan besides those associated with the colony. On September 3, 1826, during the Russo-Persian War, the Shah's guard consisting of 10,000 soldiers was destroyed near Annenfeld.[8] In 1915, Assyrians from Turkey and Iran were resettled here and still lived here as of the 1930s.[9]
Following World War I, Annenfeld was given the Russian name of Annino (Russian: Аннино).[2] In 1938, it was granted urban-type settlement and renamed Shamkhor (Шамхор), after the nearby railway station and the historical Shamkir.[2][3] In 1944, two years after the German population was deported as part of the population transfer in the Soviet Union, it was granted town status.[3] In 1991, the name was changed to Shamkir.[2]
Economy
[edit]There are cognac and wine plants and also a plant of local industry functioning in the city.
Transportation
[edit]Public transport
[edit]Shamkir has a large urban transport system, mostly managed by the Ministry of Transportation.
Sports
[edit]
The city has one professional football team, Shamkir, currently competing in the second-flight of Azerbaijani football, the Azerbaijan First Division.[10] The club has two Azerbaijani league titles.
As of 2014, city's home of Shamkir Chess a category 22 event and one of the highest rated tournaments of all time.[11]
Notable people
[edit]Some of the city's many prestigious residents include: poets Molla Vali Vidadi and Ahmad Javad, footballer Javid Imamverdiyev and archer Zinyat Valiyeva.
-
Molla Vali Vidadi's poetry expressed positive view on life. -
Ahmad Javad, is known for writings lyrics of Azerbaijan national anthem -
Javid Imamverdiyev, footballer. -
References
[edit]- ^ "The state statistical committee of the Azerbaijan Republic".
- ^ a b c d e f Pospelov, pp. 27–28
- ^ a b c d Kotlyakov, entry on "Shamkir"
- ^ "Əhalisi | Azərbaycan Respublikası Şəmkir Rayon İcra Hakimiyyəti". shamkir-ih.gov.az. Retrieved July 28, 2022.
- ^ Strabo, Geography, 11.14.4, http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?doc=Perseus:text:1999.01.0198&loc=11.14.1 Archived 2012-12-12 at archive.today
- ^ Pliny the Elder, "The Natural history ", 6.39: "..the tribe of Albanians settled on the Caucasian mountains, reaches ... the river Kir making border of Armenia and Iberia"
- ^ Claudius Ptolemy, "Geography" 5.12: "Armenia is located from the north to a part of Colchida, Iberia and Albania along the line, which goes through the river Kir (Kura)"
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Soviet Historical Encyclopedia, entry on "Shamkhor" (in Russian)
- ^ Краткая история появления в России ассирийскиx поселений. HOLY APOSTOLIC CATHOLIC ASSYRIAN CHURCH OF THE EAST.
- ^ ФК "Шамкир" возвращается в профессиональный футбол (in Russian). Archived from the original on March 25, 2012. Retrieved August 19, 2011.
- ^ "Carlsen beats Nakamura for perfect 2/2 start in the Gashimov Memorial". www.theweekinchess.com. Retrieved April 24, 2014.
Sources
[edit]- Е. М. Поспелов (Ye. M. Pospelov). "Имена городов: вчера и сегодня (1917–1992). Топонимический словарь." (City Names: Yesterday and Today (1917–1992). Toponymic Dictionary.) Москва, "Русские словари", 1993.
- "Словарь современных географических названий" (Dictionary of Modern Geographic Names). Под. ред. В. М. Котлякова (ed. V. M. Kotlyakov), 2006.
- "Советская историческая энциклопедия" (Soviet Historical Encyclopedia). Под ред. Е. М. Жукова (ed. Ye. M. Zhukov), 1973–1982.
External links
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