Baku

Baku (Azerbaijani: Bakı), sometimes known as Baky or Baki, is the capital and the largest city of Azerbaijan. It is located on the southern shore of the Apsheron Peninsula, at 40°23′N 49°52′E / 40.383°N 49.867°E / 40.383; 49.867. Modern Baku consists of three parts: the Inner City, the boomtown and the Soviet-built part. Population (2005 estimate): 2,036,000.^[1] About 3 million people live in its metropolitan area (due to large numbers of refugees and internally displaced persons).

The layout of the oil-rich city is rectangular, only in the oldest part of the city within the fortress walls the streets are crooked and narrow. The boomtown, south of the old city, was built after massive petroleum exploitation began nearly a century ago and has interesting beaux-arts architecture. Fine arts, history and literature museums are located there, all housed in the mansions of pre-Revolutionary millionaires.

Modern Baku spreads out from the city walls, its streets and buildings rising up hills that rim the Baku Bay. Greater Baku is divided into 11 districts (Azizbayov, Binagadi, Garadagh, Narimanov, Nasimi, Nizami, Sabail, Sabunchu, Khatai, Surakhany and Yasamal) and 48 townships. Among these are townships on islands in the bay and one island town built on stilts in the Caspian Sea, 50-100 km from Baku proper (the so-called Oil Rocks).

Origin of the name

The name Baku is widely believed to be derived from the old Persian names of the city Bad-kube, meaning "city where the wind blows", or Baghkuh, meaning "Mount of God". Arabic sources refer the city as Baku, Bakukh, Bakuya, and Bakuye, all of which seem to come from the original Persian name.

Other theories suggest that the name dates back to Zoroastrianism and comes from the word Baga meaning "the god" in Avestan and Sanskrit.^[2]^[3]

History

The history of Baku dates back to 1st millennium BC. The first written reference to Baku dates from 885.

The city became important after an earthquake destroyed Shemakha and in the 12th century, ruling Shirvanshah Ahsitan I made Baku the new capital. In 1501 shah Ismail I Safavi laid a siege to Baku. At this time the city was however enclosed with the lines of strong walls, which were washed by sea on one side and protected by a wide trench on land. In 1540 Baku was again captured by the Safavid troops. In 1604 the Baku fortress was destroyed by Iranian shah Abbas I.

File:Baku gub coa n655.gif

Coat of arms of the Baku governorate.

On June 26, 1723 after a lasting siege and firing from the cannons Baku surrendered to the Russians. According to Peter the Great's decree the soldiers of two regiments (2,382 people) were left in the Baku garrison under the command of Prince Baryatyanski, the commandant of the city. In 1795 Baku was invaded by Agha Muhammad Khan Qajar to defend against the tsarist Russia beginning a policy of subduing the South Caucasus to itself. In the spring of 1796 by Yekaterina II’s order General Zubov’s troops started a large campaign in Transcaucasia. Baku surrendered after the first demand of Zubov who had sent 6,000 militants to capture the city. On June 13, 1796 the Russian flotilla entered the Baku bay and a garrison of the Russian troops was placed in the city. General Pavel Tsitsianov was appointed the Baku's commandant. Later, however, Czar Pavel I ordered him to cease the campaign and withdraw the Russian forces. In March, 1797 the tsarist troops left Baku but a new tsar, Alexander I began to show a special interest in capturing Baku. In 1803 Tsitsianov reached an agreement with the Baku khan to compromise, but the agreement was soon annulled. On February 8, 1806, after the city was surrendered, under the accompaniment of the retinue Huseyngulu khan left the city to present the city’s keys to Sisianov.

In 1813 , Russia signed the Treaty of Gulistan with Persia, which provided for the cession of Baku and most of the Caucasus from Iran and their annexation by Russia.

Oil boom

Since 1873 an oil belt of Baku began to be formed which was known as a Black City. Within a short period of time departments and representations of Swiss, English, French, Belgian, German, Swedish and American firms were established in Baku, among them were the firms of the Nobels and Rothschilds. By the beginning of the 20th century almost half of the oil reserves in the world had been extracted in Baku^[1].

On May 28, 1918 the Azerbaijani fraction of the Transcaucasian Sejm proclaimed the Independence from Russia. The first Azerbaijani government was located in the western part of the country, in Ganja. In Baku, however, a coalition of Bolsheviks, Esers, Dashnaks and Mensheviks fought against a Turkish-Islamic army led by Nuru Pasha. This coalition known as the "Baku Commune" also inspired or tacitly condoned the massacres of local Muslims by well-armed Dashnak-Armenian forces during the March Days. This coalition, however, collapsed and was replaced by a British-controlled government known as Central Caspian Dictatorship in July, 1918. British forces under General Dunsterville occupied Baku and helped the mainly Dashnak-Armenian forces to defend the capital. However, Baku fell on September 15, 1918 and an Azeri-Ottoman army entered the capital, causing British forces and much of the Armenian population to flee and since that time Baku was a capital of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic (1918-1920). On April 28, 1920 the 11th Red Army invaded Baku and occupied the city. The National Government had to flee to Europe. Many Azeri personalities in Baku were killed by the Russian troops.

World War II

Baku was the cradle of the Soviet oil industry, and as such, the major supplier of oil and oil products. In 1940 22.2 million tons of oil were extracted which comprised nearly 72% of all the oil extracted in the entire USSR. During the Soviet-German War ten defense zones were built around the city to prevent possible German invasion. Taking into consideration the growing demand for oil, the Baku workers reached the record level of oil extraction in 1941 – 23.482 million tons. Never before had such an amount of oil been extracted and up to now this record has not been surpassed^[2].

In the summer of 1942 , the threat of attack became so strong that the Soviet authorities decided to terminate drilling operations to evacuate the most valuable equipment further East.

Adolf Hitler wrote about his intent to capture Baku's oil fields in his book Mein Kampf published in 1925 as a blueprint for Hitlers military strategies during the WWII.

Historical city core

The centre of Baku is the old town, which is also a fortress. In December 2000, the Inner City of Baku with the Palace of the Shirvanshahs and Maiden Tower became the first location in Azerbaijan classified as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.

Most of the walls and towers, strengthened after the Russian conquest in 1806 , survived. This section is picturesque, with its maze of narrow alleys and ancient buildings: the cobbled streets past the Palace of the Shirvanshahs, two caravansaraies (ancient inns), the Maiden Tower (nice view of the harbor), the baths and the Djuma Mosque (it used to house the Carpet and Applied Arts Museum, but now is a mosque again; the carpets got moved to the former Lenin museum). The old town also has dozens of small mosques, often without any particular sign to distinguish them from the next building.

In 2003 , UNESCO placed the Inner City on the List of World Heritage in Danger, citing damage from a November 2000 earthquake, poor conservation as well as "dubious" restoration efforts^[3]. The Martyrs' Lane, formerly the Kirov Park, is dedicated to the memory of those who lost their lives during the Nagorno-Karabakh War and also to the 137 people who were killed on Black January, 1990. A sizable and influential Armenian population of Baku going back to 15th century was virtually annihilated or deported after the independence from USSR. Many Armenian churches, once prominently preset in the city are now either destroyed or purposely neglected.

Climate

File:Baku Satellite.jpg

Satellite view of Baku

Baku was one of very few places where Soviet citizens could actually enjoy beaches or relax in now-dilapidated spa complexes overlooking the salty Caspian Sea. The climate is hot and humid in the summer, cool and wet in the winter, when gale-force winds sweep through on occasion, driven by masses of polar air (strong northern winds Khazri and southern Gilavar are typical here); however, snow is rare at 28 m below sea level, temperatures on the coast rarely drop to freezing. The average annual temperature of Baku and that of the Earth come together to the tenth portions (14.2°C).^[4] The southwestern part of Great Baku is a more arid part of Azerbaijan (precipitation here is less than 150 mm a year). In the vicinities of the city there are a number of mud volcanoes (Keyraki, Bogkh-bogkha, Lokbatan and others) and salt lakes (Boyukshor, Khodasan etc.).

Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Avg (°F)	37	37	42	51	62	71	77	77	69	60	51	42	55
Avg (°C)	3	3	6	11	17	22	25	25	21	16	11	6	13
Avg precipitation (in)	1.4	0.8	0.8	0.8	0.5	0.3	0.1	0.3	0.8	1.3	1.2	1.3	9.4
Avg precipitation (cm)	3.6	2.0	2.0	2.0	1.3	0.8	0.3	0.8	2.0	3.3	3.0	3.3	23.9
Source: Weatherbase

Demographics

Until 1988 Baku had very large Armenian, Russian, and Jewish population that contributed to cultural diversity and added in various ways (music, literature, architecture) to Baku's history treasure chest. However, after the pogroms of 1988-1989 , about 100 ^{[citation needed]}ethnic Armenians were murdered (in retaliation of the massacres and ethnic cleansing of Azeri population in Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh^{[citation needed]}) others fleed, often leaving behind all they had with only the clothes on their backs. Russian and Jewish population soon followed. Under Communism, the Soviets took over the majority of Jewish property in Baku and Kuba. Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, Azerbaijani President Heydar Aliev has returned several synagogues and a Jewish college nationalized by the Soviets, to the Jewish community. He has encouraged the restoration of these buildings and is well-liked by the Jews of Azerbaijan. Renovation has begun on seven of the original eleven synagogues, including the Gilah synagogue, built in 1896, and the large Kruei Synagogue.[4]^{. The new Azerbaijan constitution grants religious freedom and asserts that there is no state religion. [5]}

Since the pogrom vast majority of the population of Baku are ethnic Azeris (more than 90%). The intensive growth of the population started in the middle of the 19th century when Baku was a small town with the population of about 7 thousand people all in all. The population increased again from about 13,000 in the 1860s to 112,000 in 1897 and 215,000 in 1913, making Baku the largest city in the Caucasus region [6]^.

Baku was also a cosmopolitan city, where at certain times throughout its history, ethnic Azeris did not constitute the majority of population. ^[5]

Year	Armenians	Azeris	Georgians	Iranian Citizens	Jews	Russians	Total
1897	19,060	40,148	971	9,426	2,341	37,399	111,904
1903	26,151	44,257	N/A	11,132	N/A	56,955	155,876
1913	41,680	45,962	4,073	25,096	9,690	76,288	214,672

Economy

File:Neftyanikom.jpg

A sandstone monument to the Baku oil men.

The basis of Baku's economy is petroleum. The existence of petroleum has been known since the 8th century. In the 10th century, the Arabian traveler, Marudee, reported that both white and black oil were being extracted naturally from Baku^[7]. By the 15th century oil for lamps was obtained from hand dug surface wells. Commercial exploitation began in 1872 , and by the beginning of the 20th century the Baku oil fields were the largest in the world. Towards the end of the 20th century much of the onshore petroleum had been exhausted, and drilling had extended into the sea offshore. By the end of the 19th century skilled workers and specialists flocked to Baku. By 1900 the city had more than 3,000 oil wells of which 2,000 of them were producing oil at industrial levels. Baku ranked as one of the largest centres for the production of oil industry equipment before WWII. The World War II Battle of Stalingrad was fought to determine who would have control of the Baku oil fields. Fifty years before the battle, Baku produced half of the world's oil supply: Azerbaijan and the United States are the only two countries ever to have been the world's majority oil producer. Currently the oil economy of Baku is undergoing a resurgence, with the development of the massive Azeri-Chirag-Gunashli field (Shallow water Gunashli by SOCAR, deeper areas by a consortium lead by BP) and the Shah Deniz gas field. The old Inturist Hotel was one of Baku's largest, now being renovated, but overshadowed by the newer Hyatt Park, Hyatt Regency, Park Inn and Excelsior.

Baku Stock Exchange has been operating since February of 2001.

Transportation and communication

As the largest town in the country, the city is served by the Heydar Aliyev International Airport and Baku Metro. There were once also trams There are two official taxi companies in the city: the yellow Star cabs and the white taxis with blue sign from "Azerq Taxis". The van buses stop at any point along that route when flagged down or told to stop. Shipping services operate regularly from Baku across the Caspian Sea to Turkmenbashi (formerly Krasnovodsk) in Turkmenistan and to Bandar Anzali and Bandar Nowshar in Iran. The city's main Internet providers are ADaNet and AzInternet Services.

Education

As Azerbaijan's centre of education, Baku boasts many universities and vocational schools. After Azerbaijan gained independence, the fall of Communism led to development of a number of private institutions. Baku also houses the Academy of Sciences of Azerbaijan founded here in 1945 .

Public universities

Azerbaijan Medical University (founded 1930)
Azerbaijan State Economic University (1930)
Azerbaijan State Oil Academy (1920)
Azerbaijan Technical University (1950)
Azerbaijan University of Languages (1973)
Baku Academy of Music (1920)
Baku Slavic University (1946)
Baku State University (1919)

Private universities

Azerbaijan International University (1997)
Khazar University (1991)
Odlar Yurdu University (1995)
Qafqaz University (1992)
Western University (1991)

Entertainment

Baku has a vibrant life regarding theatre, opera and ballet, drawing both from the rich local dramatic portfolio and from the international repertoire. The main movie theatre is "Azerbaijan Cinema". The Azerbaijan State Theater of Opera and Ballet, designed by architect N. G. Bayev, is one of the most ornate music halls in the city. The State Philharmonic Hall with excellent acoustic conditions often holds performances outside, in a pleasant park. The Carpet and Applied Arts Museum exhibits the carpets from all periods, styles and from both Azerbaijan proper and the Azeri provinces in Iran.

Heydar Aliyev Palace is one of the main venues featuring sizeable performances (e.g. that of Coolio). Some of the most popular discotheques and night clubs include "Club 1033", "X-site", "Capitol Night Club", "Hyatt Disco", Zagulba Disco Club and "Le Mirage". Most of them are open till the wee hours in the morning. "1033" is considered to be the hottest disco in Baku, serving a massive list of drinks. The "Capitol Night Club" is a lively night spot with gay elements, playing a blend of local, Russian and Western music, R&B, trance, europop and techno.

Most of the pubs and bars are located within the Fountain Square and are usually open till the last order. There are several English pubs, among them "Chaplins", "Shakespeares", "Finigans" and the "Rig bar", and one International, "Phoenix Bar" which tends to be the liveliest bar in town,especially at weekends^[8]. There is also a Jazz Club. The Baku International Jazz Festival is organized annually.

Notable beaches include Shikhovo and "One Thousand and One Nights".

Sister cities

Baku currently has sixteen sister cities (aka "twin towns"):

Famous people from Baku

Genrich Altshuller lived and worked in Baku since he was 5 years old. Genrich Altshuller is the father of TRIZ (TIPS) system, inventor and author.
Lev Davidovich Landau [9] was born in Baku on January 22 1908. He won The Nobel Prize in Physics in 1962 for his pioneering theories for condensed matter, especially liquid helium.
Prominent Chess Grandmasters hailing from Baku include Garry Kasparov, who is ethnic Armenian, Elmar Magerramov and Teimour Radjabov
Kerim Kerimov, head of Soviet space program for 25 years and one of the founders of the Soviet space industry, was born in Baku on 14 November 1917.
Lev Nussimbaum a prolific Jewish writer who reinvented himself as a Muslim under the pseudonyms Essad Bey and Kurban Said.
Mstislav Rostropovich [10] was born in Baku on March 27 1927, and died in Moscow. He was one of the most esteemed cellists of his generation.
Richard Sorge [11], one of the greatest spies in modern history, was born in 1895 in Baku. Acting as a German journalist in Germany, China and Japan he passed vital information to the Soviet intelligence agencies.
Lotfi Zadeh, inventor of fuzzy logic, was born in Baku on 4 February 1921, grew up in Iran, and is now (2005) a professor of computer science at University of California, Berkeley.

Pictures of Baku

Philharmonic Hall

Philharmonic Hall
Opera

Opera
Museum of Art

Museum of Art
Puppet Theatre

Puppet Theatre
City hall

City hall
Nizami Cinema

Nizami Cinema
Baku Academy of Music

Baku Academy of Music
New office building

New office building
Wedding Palace
Academy of Sciences (Ismailiyya)
Maiden Tower
Street in oil boom-era Baku

Street in oil boom-era Baku
Old city and soviet-era buildings
Renovated office of Bank Standart

Renovated office of Bank Standart
Gates to the Old City
Yacht Club

Notes

References

Sources

Abbasov, Mazakhir. Baku During the Great Patriotic War.
Madatov, G. Azerbaijan During the Great Patriotic War. Baku, 1975.

External links

Template:Azerbaijan

^ Population estimates for Baku, Azerbaijan, 1950-2015
^ On the Etymology of the Name “Baku” Retrieved on July 8, 2006
^ Baku (Baki) Retrieved on July 8, 2006
^ Window to Baku
^ Audrey Altstadt, Conflict, Cleavage, and Change in Central Asia and the Caucasus, Cambridge University Press, 1997, p. 112, table 4.1, Ethnic composition of Baku, 1897, 1903,1913

[1] Population estimates for Baku, Azerbaijan, 1950-2015

[2] On the Etymology of the Name “Baku” Retrieved on July 8, 2006

[3] Baku (Baki) Retrieved on July 8, 2006

[4] Window to Baku

[5] Audrey Altstadt, Conflict, Cleavage, and Change in Central Asia and the Caucasus, Cambridge University Press, 1997, p. 112, table 4.1, Ethnic composition of Baku, 1897, 1903,1913

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