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Historically, the name '''Azerbaijan''' was used to refer to the region located south of the [[Aras (river)|Aras River]]- today known as [[Azerbaijan (Iran)|Iranian Azerbaijan]], located in northwestern [[Iran]].<ref>{{cite encyclopedia | title = AZERBAIJAN | last = EI. | url = https://iranicaonline.org/articles/azerbaijan-index | editor-last = | editor-first = | editor-link = | encyclopedia = Encyclopaedia Iranica, Vol. III, Fasc. 2-3 | pages = 205–257 | location = | publisher = | orig-year = 1987 | year = 2011 | isbn = | quote = AZERBAIJAN (Āḏarbāy[e]jān), historical region of northwestern Iran, east of Lake Urmia, since the Achaemenid era. The name Azerbaijan was also adopted for Arrān, historically an Iranian region, by anti-Russian separatist forces of the area when, on 26 May 1918, they declared its independence and called it the Democratic Republic of Azerbaijan. To allay Iranian concerns, the Azerbaijan government used the term “Caucasian Azerbaijan” in the documents for circulation abroad. This new entity consisted of the former Iranian Khanates of Arrān, including Karabagh, Baku, Shirvan, Ganja, Talysh (Ṭāleš), Derbent (Darband), Kuba, and Nakhichevan (Naḵjavān), which had been annexed to Russia by the treaties of Golestān (1813) and Torkamānčāy (1828) under the rubric of Eastern Transcaucasia.
The [[toponym]] "'''Azerbaijan'''" was historically used to refer to the region located south of the [[Aras (river)|Aras River]] (today's [[Azerbaijan (Iran)|Iranian Azerbaijan]] in northwestern [[Iran]]).<ref name="iranica">{{cite encyclopedia | title = AZERBAIJAN | last = EI. | url = https://iranicaonline.org/articles/azerbaijan-index | editor-last = | editor-first = | editor-link = | encyclopedia = Encyclopaedia Iranica, Vol. III, Fasc. 2-3 | pages = 205–257 | location = | publisher = | orig-year = 1987 | year = 2011 | isbn = | quote = AZERBAIJAN (Āḏarbāy[e]jān), historical region of northwestern Iran, east of Lake Urmia, since the Achaemenid era. The name Azerbaijan was also adopted for Arrān, historically an Iranian region, by anti-Russian separatist forces of the area when, on 26 May 1918, they declared its independence and called it the Democratic Republic of Azerbaijan. To allay Iranian concerns, the Azerbaijan government used the term “Caucasian Azerbaijan” in the documents for circulation abroad. This new entity consisted of the former Iranian Khanates of Arrān, including Karabagh, Baku, Shirvan, Ganja, Talysh (Ṭāleš), Derbent (Darband), Kuba, and Nakhichevan (Naḵjavān), which had been annexed to Russia by the treaties of Golestān (1813) and Torkamānčāy (1828) under the rubric of Eastern Transcaucasia.
}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Bournoutian |first1=George |author1-link=George Bournoutian |title=Armenia and Imperial Decline: The Yerevan Province, 1900-1914 |date=2018 |publisher=Routledge |page=xiv|quote=Prior to 1918, the term “Azerbaijan” applied only to the Iranian province of Azarbayjan.}}</ref> The region in the north of the [[Aras (river)|Aras River]], which is today called the [[Azerbaijan|Republic of Azerbaijan]], had not been included within the geographical boundaries of Azerbaijan until 1918. Historians and geographers usually referred to the region north of the [[Aras (river)|Aras River]] as ''[[Arran (Caucasus)|Aran]]''.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Reza |first1=Enayatollah |title=Azerbaijan and Aran : (Caucasian Albania) |date=2014 |publisher=Bennett & Bloom |location=London |isbn=978-1908755186}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Rouben |first1=Galichian |title=Clash of histories in the South Caucasus : redrawing the map of Azerbaijan, Armenia and Iran |date=2012 |publisher=Bennett & Bloom |location=London |isbn=978-1908755018}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Bolukbasi |first1=Suha |title=Azerbaijan : a Political History. |date=2011 |publisher=I.B. Tauris |location=New York |isbn=978-1780767598}}</ref>
}}</ref> Occasionally the toponym "Azerbaijan" has also been extended to the north of the [[Aras (river)|Aras River]], where the modern [[Azerbaijan|Republic of Azerbaijan]] is located. Before 1918 that region was also called ''[[Arran (Caucasus)|Aran]]''.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Reza |first1=Enayatollah |title=Azerbaijan and Aran : (Caucasian Albania) |date=2014 |publisher=Bennett & Bloom |location=London |isbn=978-1908755186}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Rouben |first1=Galichian |title=Clash of histories in the South Caucasus : redrawing the map of Azerbaijan, Armenia and Iran |date=2012 |publisher=Bennett & Bloom |location=London |isbn=978-1908755018}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Bolukbasi |first1=Suha |title=Azerbaijan : a Political History. |date=2011 |publisher=I.B. Tauris |location=New York |isbn=978-1780767598}}</ref> On May 28, 1918, following the collapse of the [[Russian Empire]], the [[Azerbaijan Democratic Republic]] was proclaimed to the north of the Aras.
On May 28, 1918, following the collapse of the [[Russian Empire]], a group of political activists in Aran decided to change the name of their region to Azerbaijan by calling it the [[Azerbaijan Democratic Republic]]. Historians and scholars have argued that the [[Pan-Turkism|Pan-Turkic]] agenda drove the name change.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Reza |first1=Enayatollah |title=Azerbaijan and Aran : (Caucasian Albania) |date=2014 |publisher=Bennett & Bloom |location=London |isbn=978-1908755186 |pages=136–143}}</ref>


==Pre-Islamic evidence==
==Pre-Islamic period==
The name of the region north of the [[Aras (river)|Aras River]] known today as the [[Azerbaijan|Republic of Azerbaijan]] was previously an unrelated entity called [[Caucasian Albania]] by ancient Greek geographers and historians. For example, [[Strabo]] (64 or 63 BC – c. AD 24), a Greek geographer, identifies Albania as a separate territory from [[Atropatene]] (the ancient name of Azerbaijan) and describes it as “a land extending from the [[Caspian Sea]] to the Alazani River and the land of Mede Atropatene to the south.”<ref>{{cite book |last1=Strabo |title=The Geography of Strabo |date=2014 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |location=Cambridge |isbn=978-1107038257}}</ref>{{page needed|date=October 2022}}
The name of the region north of the [[Aras (river)|Aras River]] known today as the [[Azerbaijan|Republic of Azerbaijan]] was previously called [[Caucasian Albania]] by ancient Greek geographers and historians. For example, [[Strabo]] (64 or 63 BC – c. AD 24), a Greek geographer, identifies Albania as a separate territory from [[Atropatene]] (the ancient name of Azerbaijan) and describes it as “a land extending from the [[Caspian Sea]] to the Alazani River and the land of Mede Atropatene to the south.”<ref>{{cite book |last1=Strabo |title=The Geography of Strabo |date=2014 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |location=Cambridge |isbn=978-1107038257}}</ref>{{page needed|date=October 2022}}


[[Movses Kaghankatvatsi]], the author of the book [[the History of the Country of Albania]], which covers the period between 4th century AD and 10th century AD, describes the boundaries of [[Caucasian Albania|Albania]] as one that does not go beyond the [[Aras (river)|Aras River]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Kaghankatvatsi |first1=Movses |title=Istoriia Agvan [History of Aghvanak (Albania)] |date=1861 |location=Sankt Petersburg |page=145-148}}</ref>
[[Movses Kaghankatvatsi]], the author of ''[[The History of the Country of Albania]]'', which covers the period between 4th century AD and 10th century AD, describes the boundaries of Caucasian Albania as one that does not go beyond the [[Aras (river)|Aras River]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Kaghankatvatsi |first1=Movses |title=Istoriia Agvan [History of Aghvanak (Albania)] |date=1861 |location=Sankt Petersburg |page=145-148}}</ref>


==Islamic period==
==Islamic period==
In addition to Greek works, there are numerous Muslim geographers and historians that have provided information on the geographical boundaries of [[Arran (Caucasus)|Aran]] and [[Azerbaijan (Iran)|Azerbaijan]]. For instance, [[Ibn Hawqal]], a 10th-century Muslim geographer, draws a map of Azerbaijan and Aran with the [[Aras (river)|Aras River]] as the natural boundary between these two regions.<ref>{{cite book |last1=ابن حوقل |title=صورة الارض |date=1345 |publisher=انتشارات بنیاد فرهنگ ایران |location=تهران |page=128}}</ref> [[Istakhri|Estakhri]], Another Muslim geographer from the 10th century identifies Aran and Azerbaijan as two separate regions.<ref>{{cite book |last1=اصطخری |first1=ابواسحاق ابراهیم |title=مسالک و ممالک |date=1347 |publisher=بنگاه ترجمه و نشر کتاب |location=تهران |edition=ترجمه فارسی |page=167}}</ref> In his book, the Mu'jam ul-Buldān (Dictionary of Countries), [[Yaqut al-Hamawi]], a Muslim biographer and geographer of the 14th century, clearly separates the geographical boundaries of Aran and Azerbaijan:<br>
In addition to Greek works, there are numerous Muslim geographers and historians that have provided information on the geographical boundaries of [[Arran (Caucasus)|Aran]] and [[Azerbaijan (Iran)|Azerbaijan]]. For instance, [[Ibn Hawqal]], a 10th-century Muslim geographer, draws a map of Azerbaijan and Aran with the [[Aras (river)|Aras River]] as the natural boundary between these two regions.<ref>{{cite book |last1=ابن حوقل |title=صورة الارض |date=1345 |publisher=انتشارات بنیاد فرهنگ ایران |location=تهران |page=128}}</ref> [[Istakhri|Estakhri]], Another Muslim geographer from the 10th century identifies Aran and Azerbaijan as two separate regions.<ref>{{cite book |last1=اصطخری |first1=ابواسحاق ابراهیم |title=مسالک و ممالک |date=1347 |publisher=بنگاه ترجمه و نشر کتاب |location=تهران |edition=ترجمه فارسی |page=167}}</ref> In his book, ''Mu'jam ul-Buldān'' (''Dictionary of Countries''), [[Yaqut al-Hamawi]], a Muslim biographer and geographer of the 14th century, clearly separates the geographical boundaries of Aran and Azerbaijan:<br>
“''Aran, an Iranian name, is a vast territory with many cities, one of which is Janzeh. This is the same town that people refer to as Ganja and also, Bardha’a, Shamkor, and Bilaqan. Separating Azerbaijan and Aran is a river called Aras. Everything north and west of this river is Aran and everything else located in the south is Azerbaijan.''”<ref>{{cite book |last1=حموی |first1=یاقوت |title=معجم البلدان |date=1906 |publisher=مطبعة السعادة |location=قاهره |page=170}}</ref><br>
“''Aran, an Iranian name, is a vast territory with many cities, one of which is Janzeh. This is the same town that people refer to as Ganja and also, Bardha’a, Shamkor, and Bilaqan. Separating Azerbaijan and Aran is a river called Aras. Everything north and west of this river is Aran and everything else located in the south is Azerbaijan.''”<ref>{{cite book |last1=حموی |first1=یاقوت |title=معجم البلدان |date=1906 |publisher=مطبعة السعادة |location=قاهره |page=170}}</ref><br>
[[Abu'l-Fida|Abu al-Fida]], a historian of the 14th century, specifies that Azerbaijan and Aran are two different regions. In his book, [[Burhan-i Qati|Borhan-e Qati]], Borhan Khalaf-e Tabrizi, an author of the 17th century, writes that “Aras is the name of a famous river” that “separates Aran from Azerbaijan.”''<ref>{{cite book |last1=خلف تبریزی |first1=محمد حسین |title=برهان قاطع |date=1335 |publisher=ابن سینا |location=تهران |page=41}}</ref>
[[Abu'l-Fida|Abu al-Fida]], a historian of the 14th century, specifies that Azerbaijan and Aran are two different regions. In his book, [[Burhan-i Qati|Borhan-e Qati]], Borhan Khalaf-e Tabrizi, an author of the 17th century, writes that “Aras is the name of a famous river” that “separates Aran from Azerbaijan.”''<ref>{{cite book |last1=خلف تبریزی |first1=محمد حسین |title=برهان قاطع |date=1335 |publisher=ابن سینا |location=تهران |page=41}}</ref>


===Extension to the north of the Aras===
⚫
==Name change in 1918==
A number of medieval authors (such as [[Ya'qubi]] in ''[[Kitab al-Buldan (Ya'qubi book)|Kitab al-Buldan]]''<ref name="karaulov">{{cite web | url =http://apsnyteka.org/626-svedeniya_arabskih_pisatelei_10_i_11_vekov_po_r_hr_o_kavkaze_armenii_i_aderbeidzhane.html |title=Сведения арабских писателей X и XI веков по Р. Хр. о Кавказе, Армении и Адербейджане'' (Information from Arab Writers of the 10th and 11th Centuries AD About the Caucasus, Armenia and Aderbeijan)|author=[[Nikolay Karaulov]]|website=Abkhaz Internet Library| language=Russian| accessdate =}}</ref>, [[Istakhri]] in ''Kitab al-masalik wa-l-mamalik'',<ref name="karaulov"/>  [[Qudama ibn Ja'far]] in ''Kitab al-kharaj'',<ref name="karaulov"/> [[Yaqut al-Hamawi]]<ref name="iranica"/>) have extended the toponym "Azerbaijan" to the north of the Aras River, up to the present [[Republic of Azerbaijan]].  Istakhri and Yaqut al-Hamawi included the entire Arran into Azerbaijan, while Qudama ibn Ja'far or [[Hamdallah Mustawfi]] included in it only particular cities to the north of the Aras.<ref>{{cite book | author=| title =[[Encyclopaedia of Islam]]|volume =I| year =1986| page =191| quote =In [[Nuzhat al-Qulub|Nuzhat al-Kulub]] (730/1340), 89, [[Nakhchivan (city)|Nakhicewan]] and [[Ordubad]], on the left bank of the Araxes, are mentioned under Adharbaydjan.}}</ref> In [[Safavid dynasty|Safavi]] times, "Azerbaijan" was applied to all the [[Khanates of the Caucasus|khanates of the eastern Caucasus]], alongside the area south of the Aras River.<ref>{{cite book | author=Muriel Atkin| title =Russia and Iran, 1780-1828|publisher =University of Minnesota Press| year =1980| page =xi| isbn =}}</ref>

The toponym, under slightly different obsolete spelling, was also applied to the north of the Aras in several 18th-century Russian documents.<ref>{{cite web | author=[[Vadim Leviatov]]| url=https://ebooks.az/download/PWNq4Q8n.pdf| title=Очерки из истории Азербайджана в XVIII веке|language =Russian| year =1948| page =114| isbn =}}</ref><ref>{{cite book | author=[[Nikolai Dubrovin]]|url=https://runivers.ru/include/lib/download.php?file=99869| title =История войны и владычества русских на Кавказе|language=Russian| year =1886|volume=3| page =25| isbn =}}</ref>

19th-century ''[[Encyclopædia Metropolitana]]'' stated that the notion of Azerbaijan appears to have varied in extent at different periods, and comprehended several tracts not belonging to Iranian province of Azerbaijan, such as [[Mughan plain|Mughan]], near the [[River mouth|mouths]] of the [[Kura (river)|Kura]], [[Talysh Mountains|Talish or Talij]].<ref>{{cite book | title =[[Encyclopædia Metropolitana]]| publisher =B. Fellowes| year =1845| volume=22|page =67}}</ref> In 1804 Russian general [[Pavel Tsitsianov]] reported that the local position of the [[Ganja Fortress]] commands all Adribeijan.<ref>{{cite book | author=[[Vladimir Lapin]]| title =Цицианов|language=Russian| publisher =Молодая гвардия| year =2011| page =386| isbn =}}</ref> After the [[Russo-Persian War (1826–1828)|Russo-Persian War of 1826–1828]] Russian diplomat and writer [[Alexander Griboyedov]] prepared "The Statute on the Governance of Azerbaijan" and "The General Rules for the Operation of the Azerbaijani Administration" for the Russian forces occupying north of the Aras.<ref>{{cite book | author=[[Sergey Shostakovich]]| title = Дипломатическая деятельность А. С. Грибоедова| publisher =Изд-во соц.-эконом. лит.| year =1960|language=Russian| page =114| isbn =}}</ref> In 1861 Russian general [[Dmitri Osten-Sacken]] published an article "On the Governance of Aderbijan During the Persian War of 1827–1828".<ref>{{cite newspaper| author=[[Dmitri Osten-Sacken]]| title =Об управлении Адербиджаном во время персидской войны 1827–1828 годов|language=Russian| newspaper =[[Russky Invalid]]| year =1861| issue =79}}</ref>

⚫
==Official adoption in 1918==
Following the [[Russo-Persian War (1826–1828)|Russo-Iranian wars]] of the 19th century, and the consequent [[Treaty of Turkmenchay]] in 1828, the [[Aras (river)|Aras River]] was set to be the boundary between [[Iran]] and [[Russia]]. As a result, the entire [[Caucasus]] was incorporated into the [[Russian Empire]]. Given the military weakness of Iran, the Turkish-speaking Muslims of the Caucasus, who were unhappy with [[Russia]] and had no hope of protection from [[Iran]], turned to the [[Ottoman Empire]].
Following the [[Russo-Persian War (1826–1828)|Russo-Iranian wars]] of the 19th century, and the consequent [[Treaty of Turkmenchay]] in 1828, the [[Aras (river)|Aras River]] was set to be the boundary between [[Iran]] and [[Russia]]. As a result, the entire [[Caucasus]] was incorporated into the [[Russian Empire]]. Given the military weakness of Iran, the Turkish-speaking Muslims of the Caucasus, who were unhappy with [[Russia]] and had no hope of protection from [[Iran]], turned to the [[Ottoman Empire]].
The [[Ottoman Empire]] who claimed to be the champion of the Muslim world increased its support for Muslims in the [[Caucasus]]. At the same time, in the late 19th century, ideas on Islamic unity and Turkish unity had gained popularity among Ottoman intellectuals. It resulted in the establishment of [[Committee of Union and Progress|the Committee of Union and Progress]] in 1889 which called for the preservation of all peoples under the Ottoman Empire around the three pillars of Islam, Turkishness, and Caliphate.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Akçam |first1=Taner |title=From Empire to Republic: Turkish Nationalism and the Armenian Genocide |url=https://archive.org/details/fromempiretorepu00akca |url-access=limited |date=2004 |publisher=Zed Books |location=London & New York |page=[https://archive.org/details/fromempiretorepu00akca/page/n144 132]}}</ref>
The [[Ottoman Empire]] who claimed to be the champion of the Muslim world increased its support for Muslims in the [[Caucasus]]. At the same time, in the late 19th century, ideas on Islamic unity and Turkish unity had gained popularity among Ottoman intellectuals. It resulted in the establishment of [[Committee of Union and Progress|the Committee of Union and Progress]] in 1889 which called for the preservation of all peoples under the Ottoman Empire around the three pillars of Islam, Turkishness, and Caliphate.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Akçam |first1=Taner |title=From Empire to Republic: Turkish Nationalism and the Armenian Genocide |url=https://archive.org/details/fromempiretorepu00akca |url-access=limited |date=2004 |publisher=Zed Books |location=London & New York |page=[https://archive.org/details/fromempiretorepu00akca/page/n144 132]}}</ref>
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Some scholars argue that the reason behind choosing the name Azerbaijan over Aran was because of the demands of the Turks (Ottomans who had a profound influence on [[Musavat]] leaders). Naming Aran as Azerbaijan could provide sufficient justification for the political unity of Turkish-speaking people of [[Transcaucasia|South Caucasus]] and northwest Iran under the name of Azerbaijan. It could facilitate the process of Azerbaijan annexation to the [[Ottoman Empire]] (later [[Turkey]]).<ref>{{cite book |last1=Reza |first1=Enayatollah |title=Azerbaijan and Aran : (Caucasian Albania) |date=2014 |publisher=Bennett & Bloom |location=London |isbn=978-1908755186 |page=136-143}}</ref>
Some scholars argue that the reason behind choosing the name Azerbaijan over Aran was because of the demands of the Turks (Ottomans who had a profound influence on [[Musavat]] leaders). Naming Aran as Azerbaijan could provide sufficient justification for the political unity of Turkish-speaking people of [[Transcaucasia|South Caucasus]] and northwest Iran under the name of Azerbaijan. It could facilitate the process of Azerbaijan annexation to the [[Ottoman Empire]] (later [[Turkey]]).<ref>{{cite book |last1=Reza |first1=Enayatollah |title=Azerbaijan and Aran : (Caucasian Albania) |date=2014 |publisher=Bennett & Bloom |location=London |isbn=978-1908755186 |page=136-143}}</ref>


==Reactions in Iran==
===Reactions in Iran===
Naming Aran as Azerbaijan caused surprise, confusion, and rage in Iran, especially, among Iranian Azeri intellectuals. [[Mohammad Khiabani]], an Iranian Azeri political activist and some other Iranian Azeri intellectuals recommended changing the name of Iranian Azerbaijan to [[Azadistan]] (the Land of freedom) to protest the name change.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia | title = ĀZĀDĪSTĀN | last = Parvīn | first = N. | url = https://iranicaonline.org/articles/azadistan | editor-last = | editor-first = | editor-link = | encyclopedia = Encyclopaedia Iranica, Vol. III, Fasc. 2 | page = 177 | location = | publisher = | year = 2011 | isbn = | quote = The first issue of the magazine was brought out on 15 Jawzā 1299/5 June 1920, one month after the historic province had been renamed “Āzādīstān” (Land of freedom) by Ḵīābānī and his followers as a gesture of protest against the giving of the name “Azerbaijan” to the part of Caucasia centered on Bākū. }}</ref> [[Ahmad Kasravi]], an Iranian Azeri historian, also got surprised when he heard about the name change, although it seems that he was unaware of the motives behind choosing the name Azerbaijan. In his book, Forgotten Rulers, he wrote:
Naming Aran as Azerbaijan caused surprise, confusion, and rage in Iran, especially, among Iranian Azeri intellectuals. [[Mohammad Khiabani]], an Iranian Azeri political activist and some other Iranian Azeri intellectuals recommended changing the name of Iranian Azerbaijan to [[Azadistan]] (the Land of freedom) to protest the name change.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia | title = ĀZĀDĪSTĀN | last = Parvīn | first = N. | url = https://iranicaonline.org/articles/azadistan | editor-last = | editor-first = | editor-link = | encyclopedia = Encyclopaedia Iranica, Vol. III, Fasc. 2 | page = 177 | location = | publisher = | year = 2011 | isbn = | quote = The first issue of the magazine was brought out on 15 Jawzā 1299/5 June 1920, one month after the historic province had been renamed “Āzādīstān” (Land of freedom) by Ḵīābānī and his followers as a gesture of protest against the giving of the name “Azerbaijan” to the part of Caucasia centered on Bākū. }}</ref> [[Ahmad Kasravi]], an Iranian Azeri historian, also got surprised when he heard about the name change, although it seems that he was unaware of the motives behind choosing the name Azerbaijan. In his book, Forgotten Rulers, he wrote:


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After the [[dissolution of the Soviet Union]], the "southern" theme was revived again.<ref name="Astourian"/> Utilization of the term has been an integral part of a [[nation-building]] attempt by the present-day [[Republic of Azerbaijan]] and its government.<ref name="Astourian"/><ref name="Morozova"/> Official history thought at schools and universities tends to rediscover the separation of the nation when [[Russo-Persian Wars]] took place in the early 19th century, and a revisionist interpretation of events to show "constant struggle of the Azerbaijanis for their unity".<ref name="Morozova"/> As a result, usage of the term [[Iranian Azerbaijan]] would automatically adjust Republic of Azerbaijan to Iran and undermine justification for independence of the former, and is thus.<ref name="Morozova">{{citation|first=Irina|last=Morozova|title=Contemporary Azerbaijani Historiography on the Problem of "Southern Azerbaijan" after World War II|journal=Iran & the Caucasus|volume=9|number=1|year=2005|pages=85-120|jstor=4030908}}</ref> Certain political circles in Baku welcome the so-called [[Southern Azerbaijan National Awakening Movement]].<ref name="Morozova"/>
After the [[dissolution of the Soviet Union]], the "southern" theme was revived again.<ref name="Astourian"/> Utilization of the term has been an integral part of a [[nation-building]] attempt by the present-day [[Republic of Azerbaijan]] and its government.<ref name="Astourian"/><ref name="Morozova"/> Official history thought at schools and universities tends to rediscover the separation of the nation when [[Russo-Persian Wars]] took place in the early 19th century, and a revisionist interpretation of events to show "constant struggle of the Azerbaijanis for their unity".<ref name="Morozova"/> As a result, usage of the term [[Iranian Azerbaijan]] would automatically adjust Republic of Azerbaijan to Iran and undermine justification for independence of the former, and is thus.<ref name="Morozova">{{citation|first=Irina|last=Morozova|title=Contemporary Azerbaijani Historiography on the Problem of "Southern Azerbaijan" after World War II|journal=Iran & the Caucasus|volume=9|number=1|year=2005|pages=85-120|jstor=4030908}}</ref> Certain political circles in Baku welcome the so-called [[Southern Azerbaijan National Awakening Movement]].<ref name="Morozova"/>


Several scholars, such as [[George Bournoutian]],<ref>{{cite book |last1=Bournoutian |first1=George |author1-link=George Bournoutian |title=Armenia and Imperial Decline: The Yerevan Province, 1900-1914 |date=2018 |publisher=Routledge |page=xiv|quote=Prior to 1918, the term “Azerbaijan” applied only to the Iranian province of Azarbayjan.}}</ref> insist on the application of the toponym "Azerbaijan" exclusively to the south of the Aras River.
==Statements by historian George Bournoutian==
According to the historian [[George Bournoutian]] in his ''The 1820 Russian Survey of the Khanate of Shirvan: A Primary Source on the Demography and Economy of an Iranian Province prior to its Annexation by Russia.'' (2016, Gibb Memorial Trust.);

p. xvi

{{blockquote|"As noted, in order to construct an Azerbaijani national history and identity based on the territorial definition of a nation, as well as to reduce the influence of Islam and Iran, the [[Azerbaijani nationalism|Azeri nationalists]], prompted by Moscow devised an [[Azerbaijani alphabet#History and development|"Azeri" alphabet]], which replaced the Arabo-Persian script. In the 1930s a number of Soviet historians, including the prominent Russian Orientalist, [[Ilya Pavlovich Petrushevsky|Ilya Petrushevskii]], were instructed by the Kremlin to accept the totally unsubstantiated notion that the territory of the [[Khanates of the Caucasus|former Iranian khanates]] (except [[Erivan Khanate|Yerevan]], which had become [[Soviet Armenia]]) was part of an Azerbaijani nation. Petrushevskii's two important studies dealing with the [[South Caucasus]], therefore, use the term Azerbaijan and Azerbaijani in his works on the history of the region from the sixteenth to the nineteenth centuries. Other Russian academics went even further and claimed that an Azeri nation had existed from ancient times and had continued to the present. Since all the Russian surveys and almost all nineteenth-century Russian primary sources referred to the Muslims who resided in the South Caucasus as "Tatars" and not "[[Azerbaijanis]]", Soviet historians simply substituted Azerbaijani for Tatars. Azeri historians and writers, starting in 1937, followed suit and began to view the three-thousand-year history of the region as that of Azerbaijan. The pre-Iranian, Iranian, and Arab eras were expunged. Anyone who lived in the territory of Soviet Azerbaijan was classified as Azeri; hence the great Iranian poet [[Nizami Ganjavi|Nezami]], who had written only in Persian, became the national poet of [[Azerbaijan]]."}}

p. xvii;

{{blockquote|"Although after [[Stalin]]'s death arguments rose between Azerbaijani historians and Soviet Iranologists dealing with the history of the region in ancient times (specifically the era of the [[Medes]]), no Soviet historian dared to question the use of the term Azerbaijan or Azerbaijani in modern times. As late as 1991, the Institute of History of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR, published a book by an Azeri historian, in which it not only equated the "Tatars" with the present-day Azeris, but the author, discussing the population numbers in 1842, also included [[Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic|Nakhichevan]] and [[Ordubad]] in "Azerbaijan". The author, just like Petrushevskii, totally ignored the fact that between 1828 and 1921, Nakhichivan and Ordubad were first part of the [[Armenian Oblast|Armenian Province]] and then part of the [[Erivan Governorate|Yerevan guberniia]] and had only become part of Soviet Azerbaijan, some eight decades later."}}

p. xv;

{{blockquote|"Although the overwhelming number of nineteenth-century Russian and Iranian, as well as present-day European historians view the Iranian province of [[Azerbaijan (Iran)|Azarbayjan]] and the present-day [[Republic of Azerbaijan]] as two separate ''geographical'' and ''political'' entities, modern Azeri historians and geographers view it as a single state that has been separated into "northern" and "southern" sectors and which will be united in the future."}}

p. xviii;

{{blockquote|"Since the collapse of the Soviet Union the current Azeri historians have not only continued to use the terms "northern" and "southern" Azerbaijan, but also assert that the present-day [[Armenian Republic]] was a part of northern Azerbaijan. In their fury over what they view as the "Armenian occupation" of [[Nagorno-Karabakh]] [which incidentally was [[Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast|an autonomous Armenian region within Soviet Azerbaijan]]], Azeri politicians and historians deny any historic Armenian presence in the South Caucasus and add that all Armenian architectural monuments located in the present-day Republic of Azerbaijan are not Armenian but [[Caucasian Albania|[Caucasian] Albanian]]."}}


==See also==
==See also==

Revision as of 21:37, 4 July 2023

The toponym "Azerbaijan" was historically used to refer to the region located south of the Aras River (today's Iranian Azerbaijan in northwestern Iran).[1] Occasionally the toponym "Azerbaijan" has also been extended to the north of the Aras River, where the modern Republic of Azerbaijan is located. Before 1918 that region was also called Aran.[2][3][4] On May 28, 1918, following the collapse of the Russian Empire, the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic was proclaimed to the north of the Aras.

Pre-Islamic period

The name of the region north of the Aras River known today as the Republic of Azerbaijan was previously called Caucasian Albania by ancient Greek geographers and historians. For example, Strabo (64 or 63 BC – c. AD 24), a Greek geographer, identifies Albania as a separate territory from Atropatene (the ancient name of Azerbaijan) and describes it as “a land extending from the Caspian Sea to the Alazani River and the land of Mede Atropatene to the south.”[5][page needed]

Movses Kaghankatvatsi, the author of The History of the Country of Albania, which covers the period between 4th century AD and 10th century AD, describes the boundaries of Caucasian Albania as one that does not go beyond the Aras River.[6]

Islamic period

In addition to Greek works, there are numerous Muslim geographers and historians that have provided information on the geographical boundaries of Aran and Azerbaijan. For instance, Ibn Hawqal, a 10th-century Muslim geographer, draws a map of Azerbaijan and Aran with the Aras River as the natural boundary between these two regions.[7] Estakhri, Another Muslim geographer from the 10th century identifies Aran and Azerbaijan as two separate regions.[8] In his book, Mu'jam ul-Buldān (Dictionary of Countries), Yaqut al-Hamawi, a Muslim biographer and geographer of the 14th century, clearly separates the geographical boundaries of Aran and Azerbaijan:
“Aran, an Iranian name, is a vast territory with many cities, one of which is Janzeh. This is the same town that people refer to as Ganja and also, Bardha’a, Shamkor, and Bilaqan. Separating Azerbaijan and Aran is a river called Aras. Everything north and west of this river is Aran and everything else located in the south is Azerbaijan.”[9]
Abu al-Fida, a historian of the 14th century, specifies that Azerbaijan and Aran are two different regions. In his book, Borhan-e Qati, Borhan Khalaf-e Tabrizi, an author of the 17th century, writes that “Aras is the name of a famous river” that “separates Aran from Azerbaijan.”[10]

Extension to the north of the Aras

A number of medieval authors (such as Ya'qubi in Kitab al-Buldan[11], Istakhri in Kitab al-masalik wa-l-mamalik,[11]  Qudama ibn Ja'far in Kitab al-kharaj,[11] Yaqut al-Hamawi[1]) have extended the toponym "Azerbaijan" to the north of the Aras River, up to the present Republic of Azerbaijan.  Istakhri and Yaqut al-Hamawi included the entire Arran into Azerbaijan, while Qudama ibn Ja'far or Hamdallah Mustawfi included in it only particular cities to the north of the Aras.[12] In Safavi times, "Azerbaijan" was applied to all the khanates of the eastern Caucasus, alongside the area south of the Aras River.[13]

The toponym, under slightly different obsolete spelling, was also applied to the north of the Aras in several 18th-century Russian documents.[14][15]

19th-century Encyclopædia Metropolitana stated that the notion of Azerbaijan appears to have varied in extent at different periods, and comprehended several tracts not belonging to Iranian province of Azerbaijan, such as Mughan, near the mouths of the Kura, Talish or Talij.[16] In 1804 Russian general Pavel Tsitsianov reported that the local position of the Ganja Fortress commands all Adribeijan.[17] After the Russo-Persian War of 1826–1828 Russian diplomat and writer Alexander Griboyedov prepared "The Statute on the Governance of Azerbaijan" and "The General Rules for the Operation of the Azerbaijani Administration" for the Russian forces occupying north of the Aras.[18] In 1861 Russian general Dmitri Osten-Sacken published an article "On the Governance of Aderbijan During the Persian War of 1827–1828".[19]

Official adoption in 1918

Following the Russo-Iranian wars of the 19th century, and the consequent Treaty of Turkmenchay in 1828, the Aras River was set to be the boundary between Iran and Russia. As a result, the entire Caucasus was incorporated into the Russian Empire. Given the military weakness of Iran, the Turkish-speaking Muslims of the Caucasus, who were unhappy with Russia and had no hope of protection from Iran, turned to the Ottoman Empire. The Ottoman Empire who claimed to be the champion of the Muslim world increased its support for Muslims in the Caucasus. At the same time, in the late 19th century, ideas on Islamic unity and Turkish unity had gained popularity among Ottoman intellectuals. It resulted in the establishment of the Committee of Union and Progress in 1889 which called for the preservation of all peoples under the Ottoman Empire around the three pillars of Islam, Turkishness, and Caliphate.[20]

In 1911, a group of Muslim Turkish-speaker intellectuals founded the Muslim Democratic Musavat Party, a small and secret underground organization to work for political unity among Muslims and Turkish-speaking peoples. Influenced by the Young Turks ideas, the leaders of Organizations were sympathetic to Pan-Turkism.[21] On June 17, 1917, Musavat merged with the Party of Turkic Federalists, another national-democratic right-wing organization, and adopted a new name, Musavat Party of Turkic Federalists. At this time, the main goal of Musavat leaders was to create a united Muslim state under the protection of the Ottoman Empire. After the October Revolution in 1917, when Musavat leaders failed to reach an agreement with Caucasian Bolsheviks, they decided to establish their own government and declare independence. Thus, on May 28, 1918, Musavat leaders declared independence under the name of the Azerbaijan People’s Republic.[22]

Some scholars argue that the reason behind choosing the name Azerbaijan over Aran was because of the demands of the Turks (Ottomans who had a profound influence on Musavat leaders). Naming Aran as Azerbaijan could provide sufficient justification for the political unity of Turkish-speaking people of South Caucasus and northwest Iran under the name of Azerbaijan. It could facilitate the process of Azerbaijan annexation to the Ottoman Empire (later Turkey).[23]

Reactions in Iran

Naming Aran as Azerbaijan caused surprise, confusion, and rage in Iran, especially, among Iranian Azeri intellectuals. Mohammad Khiabani, an Iranian Azeri political activist and some other Iranian Azeri intellectuals recommended changing the name of Iranian Azerbaijan to Azadistan (the Land of freedom) to protest the name change.[24] Ahmad Kasravi, an Iranian Azeri historian, also got surprised when he heard about the name change, although it seems that he was unaware of the motives behind choosing the name Azerbaijan. In his book, Forgotten Rulers, he wrote:

“It is astonishing that Aran is named Azerbaijan now. Azerbaijan or Azerbaigan has always been the name of the territory that is bigger and more famous than its neighbor, Aran, and the two territories have always been distinct from each other. To this day, we have not been able to understand that why our brethren in Aran who strived for a free rule for their country would want to put aside the ancient and historical name of their country and transgresses towards Azerbaijan [‘s name]?”[25]

The decision to use the name "Azerbaijan" drew protests from Iran. According to Hamid Ahmadi:[26]

Though the weak Iranian state was in a transitional period, struggling with foreign domination, the Iranian political and intellectual elites in Tehran and Tabriz, the capital of Iranian Azerbaijan, soon protested against such naming. For almost a year, the printed media in Tehran, Tabriz, and other big Iranian cities on the one side, and the media in Baku, the capital of the newly independent Republic of Azerbaijan, on the other side, presented their arguments to prove that such naming was wrong or right. Iranians were generally suspicious of Baku’s choice and regarded confiscating the historical name of Iran’s north-western province as a pan-Turkist conspiracy planned by the Ottoman Young Turks, then active in Baku, for their ultimate goal of establishing a pan-Turk entity (Turan) from Central Asia to Europe. By calling the real historical Azerbaijan located in Iran “southern Azerbaijan”, the pan-Turkists could claim the necessity of unifying the Republic of Azerbaijan and “southern Azerbaijan” in their future “Turan.” Fearing such threats, Shaikh Mohammad Khiabani, a popular member of the political elite in Iranian Azerbaijan and the leader of the Democratic Party (Firqhe Democrat), changed the name of the province to Azadistan (land of freedom). According to Ahmad Kasravi, Khiabani’s deputy at the time, the main reason for such a change was to prevent any future claim by the pan-Turkist Ottomans to Iranian Azerbaijan on the basis of the similarity of the names.

According to Tadeusz Swietochowski:[27]

Although the proclamation restricted its claim to the territory north of the Araz River, the use of the name Azerbaijan would soon bring objections from Iran. In Teheran, suspicions were aroused that the Republic of Azerbaijan served as an Ottoman device for detaching the Tabriz province from Iran. Likewise, the national revolutionary Jangali movement in Gilan, while welcoming the independence of every Muslim land as a "source of joy," asked in its newspaper if the choice of the name Azerbaijan implied the new republic's desire to join Iran. If so, they said, it should be stated clearly, otherwise, Iranians would be opposed to calling that republic Azerbaijan. Consequently, to allay Iranian fears, the Azerbaijani government would accommodatingly use the term Caucasian Azerbaijan in its documents for circulation abroad.

Southern Azerbaijan

See also: Historical negationism § Azerbaijan, Whole Azerbaijan, and Campaign on granting Nizami the status of the national poet of Azerbaijan

Southern Azerbaijan is a Soviet-invented word,[28] originally used to lay the Soviet Union's territorial claim on the Iranian historical region of Azerbaijan in line with a propaganda campaign to construct a national narrative.[29][30] Though documents reveal that Moscow was behind instructing such propaganda work, there is also evidence of Soviet internal dissent to this policy, as Sergey Kavtaradze warned Vyacheslav Molotov that "renaming of Iranian Azerbaijan into Southern Azerbaijan... would be inexpedient and fraught with the risk of unwanted consequences".[31] The Soviets continued to promote this word even after demise of Ja'far Pishevari and the puppet state Azerbaijan People's Government.[30]

After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the "southern" theme was revived again.[30] Utilization of the term has been an integral part of a nation-building attempt by the present-day Republic of Azerbaijan and its government.[30][32] Official history thought at schools and universities tends to rediscover the separation of the nation when Russo-Persian Wars took place in the early 19th century, and a revisionist interpretation of events to show "constant struggle of the Azerbaijanis for their unity".[32] As a result, usage of the term Iranian Azerbaijan would automatically adjust Republic of Azerbaijan to Iran and undermine justification for independence of the former, and is thus.[32] Certain political circles in Baku welcome the so-called Southern Azerbaijan National Awakening Movement.[32]

Several scholars, such as George Bournoutian,[33] insist on the application of the toponym "Azerbaijan" exclusively to the south of the Aras River.

See also

References

  1. ^ a b EI. (2011) [1987]. "AZERBAIJAN". Encyclopaedia Iranica, Vol. III, Fasc. 2-3. pp. 205–257. AZERBAIJAN (Āḏarbāy[e]jān), historical region of northwestern Iran, east of Lake Urmia, since the Achaemenid era. The name Azerbaijan was also adopted for Arrān, historically an Iranian region, by anti-Russian separatist forces of the area when, on 26 May 1918, they declared its independence and called it the Democratic Republic of Azerbaijan. To allay Iranian concerns, the Azerbaijan government used the term "Caucasian Azerbaijan" in the documents for circulation abroad. This new entity consisted of the former Iranian Khanates of Arrān, including Karabagh, Baku, Shirvan, Ganja, Talysh (Ṭāleš), Derbent (Darband), Kuba, and Nakhichevan (Naḵjavān), which had been annexed to Russia by the treaties of Golestān (1813) and Torkamānčāy (1828) under the rubric of Eastern Transcaucasia.
  2. ^ Reza, Enayatollah (2014). Azerbaijan and Aran : (Caucasian Albania). London: Bennett & Bloom. ISBN 978-1908755186.
  3. ^ Rouben, Galichian (2012). Clash of histories in the South Caucasus : redrawing the map of Azerbaijan, Armenia and Iran. London: Bennett & Bloom. ISBN 978-1908755018.
  4. ^ Bolukbasi, Suha (2011). Azerbaijan : a Political History. New York: I.B. Tauris. ISBN 978-1780767598.
  5. ^ Strabo (2014). The Geography of Strabo. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-1107038257.
  6. ^ Kaghankatvatsi, Movses (1861). Istoriia Agvan [History of Aghvanak (Albania)]. Sankt Petersburg. p. 145-148.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  7. ^ ابن حوقل (1345). صورة الارض. تهران: انتشارات بنیاد فرهنگ ایران. p. 128.
  8. ^ اصطخری, ابواسحاق ابراهیم (1347). مسالک و ممالک (ترجمه فارسی ed.). تهران: بنگاه ترجمه و نشر کتاب. p. 167.
  9. ^ حموی, یاقوت (1906). معجم البلدان. قاهره: مطبعة السعادة. p. 170.
  10. ^ خلف تبریزی, محمد حسین (1335). برهان قاطع. تهران: ابن سینا. p. 41.
  11. ^ a b c Nikolay Karaulov. "Сведения арабских писателей X и XI веков по Р. Хр. о Кавказе, Армении и Адербейджане (Information from Arab Writers of the 10th and 11th Centuries AD About the Caucasus, Armenia and Aderbeijan)". Abkhaz Internet Library (in Russian).
  12. ^ Encyclopaedia of Islam. Vol. I. 1986. p. 191. In Nuzhat al-Kulub (730/1340), 89, Nakhicewan and Ordubad, on the left bank of the Araxes, are mentioned under Adharbaydjan.
  13. ^ Muriel Atkin (1980). Russia and Iran, 1780-1828. University of Minnesota Press. p. xi.
  14. ^ Vadim Leviatov (1948). "Очерки из истории Азербайджана в XVIII веке" (PDF) (in Russian). p. 114.
  15. ^ Nikolai Dubrovin (1886). История войны и владычества русских на Кавказе (in Russian). Vol. 3. p. 25.
  16. ^ Encyclopædia Metropolitana. Vol. 22. B. Fellowes. 1845. p. 67.
  17. ^ Vladimir Lapin (2011). Цицианов (in Russian). Молодая гвардия. p. 386.
  18. ^ Sergey Shostakovich (1960). Дипломатическая деятельность А. С. Грибоедова (in Russian). Изд-во соц.-эконом. лит. p. 114.
  19. ^ Dmitri Osten-Sacken (1861). "Об управлении Адербиджаном во время персидской войны 1827–1828 годов". Russky Invalid (in Russian). No. 79.
  20. ^ Akçam, Taner (2004). From Empire to Republic: Turkish Nationalism and the Armenian Genocide. London & New York: Zed Books. p. 132.
  21. ^ Bolukbasi, Suha (2011). Azerbaijan: a Political History. New York: I.B. Tauris. p. 28. ISBN 978-1780767598.
  22. ^ "Müsavat partiyasının Aran üçün Azərbaycan adını seçməsi haqda". Badkubeh.
  23. ^ Reza, Enayatollah (2014). Azerbaijan and Aran : (Caucasian Albania). London: Bennett & Bloom. p. 136-143. ISBN 978-1908755186.
  24. ^ Parvīn, N. (2011). "ĀZĀDĪSTĀN". Encyclopaedia Iranica, Vol. III, Fasc. 2. p. 177. The first issue of the magazine was brought out on 15 Jawzā 1299/5 June 1920, one month after the historic province had been renamed "Āzādīstān" (Land of freedom) by Ḵīābānī and his followers as a gesture of protest against the giving of the name "Azerbaijan" to the part of Caucasia centered on Bākū.
  25. ^ کسروی, احمد (1335). شهریاران گمنام. تهران. p. 265.
  26. ^ Ahmadi, Hamid (2017). "The Clash of Nationalisms: Iranian response to Baku's irredentism". In Kamrava, Mehran (ed.). The Great Game in West Asia: Iran, Turkey and the South Caucasus. Oxford University Press. p. 108. ISBN 978-0190869663.
  27. ^ Tadeusz Swietochowski, Russia, and Azerbaijan: A Borderland in Transition (New York: Columbia University Press, 1995). pg 69
  28. ^ Lornejad, Siavash; Doostzadeh, Ali (2012). Arakelova, Victoria; Asatrian, Garnik (eds.). On the modern politicization of the Persian poet Nezami Ganjavi (PDF). Caucasian Centre for Iranian Studies. p. 10.
  29. ^ Yilmaz, Harun (2015). National Identities in Soviet Historiography: The Rise of Nations Under Stalin. Routledge. p. 173. ISBN 978-1317596646.
  30. ^ a b c d Astourian, Stephan H. (2005), "State, Homeland and Diaspora", in Atabaki, Touraj; Mehendale, Sanjyot (eds.), Central Asia and the Caucasus: Transnationalism and Diaspora, Routledge, p. 99, ISBN 978-0-415-33260-6
  31. ^ Fawcett, Louise (2014), "Revisiting the Iranian Crisis of 1946: How Much More Do We Know?", Iranian Studies, 47 (3): 379–399, doi:10.1080/00210862.2014.880630
  32. ^ a b c d Morozova, Irina (2005), "Contemporary Azerbaijani Historiography on the Problem of "Southern Azerbaijan" after World War II", Iran & the Caucasus, 9 (1): 85–120, JSTOR 4030908
  33. ^ Bournoutian, George (2018). Armenia and Imperial Decline: The Yerevan Province, 1900-1914. Routledge. p. xiv. Prior to 1918, the term "Azerbaijan" applied only to the Iranian province of Azarbayjan.

Further reading

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