Şəki

This article covers the city of Sheki. For the district surrounding the city, see Şəki (Rayon) .

Şəki
coat of arms
State :	Azerbaijan
City with rayon status:	Şəki
Coordinates :	41 ° 12 '  N , 47 ° 10'  E Coordinates: 41 ° 12 '0 "  N , 47 ° 10' 0"  E
Height :	630  m
Residents :	64,200 (2014)
Time zone :	AZT ( UTC + 4 )
Telephone code :	(+994) 2424
Postal code :	AZ5050
License plate :	55
Community type:	City (şəhər)

Sheki Khan's Palace

Şəki , German also Schäki ( Russian Шеки Scheki ; until 1968 Нуха Nucha , Azerbaijani Nuxa , also Nukha ) is a city in northwest Azerbaijan with the status of a rayon . It is located around 300 km from Baku on the Kiş River and has 64,200 inhabitants (2014).

Name origin

The name of the city goes back to the Scythian tribe of the Saka, who lived in this area since the 7th century BC. Chr. Settled long. In the Middle Ages, the city had many names such as Sheke, Sheki, Shaka, Shakki, Shakne, Shaken, Shakkan and Shekin.

After a flood of mud in 1772, the city was moved to its present location. In the following years, especially after the dissolution of the Khanate in 1819, the city was named after the nearby village of Nuxa. In 1968 the renaming was reversed.

history

The oldest traces of settlement in Şəki are more than 2,700 years old. The first settlement took place in the Late Bronze Age . In the 7th century BC The Saka immigrated into the area from the north. The region was named Sakasena after them .

In the 1st century, Sheki was one of the largest cities in Albania . The main temples of the Albani were in the city. After the Arab invasion , Şəki was incorporated into the Abbasid caliphate. Later it belonged to the area of ​​the Shirvanshah and was independent from around 1500. In 1551 it was annexed by the Safavids . After 1747 it was the capital of an independent khanate , the Sheki khanate .

In 1805 this khanate became part of the Russian Empire , which was confirmed by the peace of Gulistan in 1813 . In 1819, Şəki became the capital of Nuxa County in the Şamaxı Governorate as Nuxa .

The city has been abandoned and destroyed many times in its history, which is why the oldest historical buildings date from the 16th century.

Attractions

Caravanserai in Sheki

Şəki is known for the 18th century Khan palace and the caravanserais . The old town with the Khan's Palace was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 2019 .

economy

In Şəki there is a food industry and agriculture , especially silk production . Above all, tobacco , grapes , nuts , cereals and dairy products are grown . Also Halva made with traditional recipes. There are also numerous healing springs .

There used to be in the city of gold and silver lace factories and tanneries.

Twin cities

• Giresun , Turkey
• Gabrovo , Bulgaria
• Slutsk , Belarus

Personalities

• Jevansheir, the regent of Arran (VII century)
• Babek, the leader of the Khurremid uprising (817-838)
• Behmenyar El-Azerbaidcshani, philosopher (XI century)
• Nizami Gendschewi, poet (XII century)
• Mehseti Gendschewi, poet (XII century)
• Ajemi Nakhichevani, architect (XII century)
• Imadeddin Nesimi, poet (XIV century)
• Mohammed Füzuli, poet (XVI century)
• Mirza Fatali Akhundov (1812–1878)
• Calil Mamedguluzadeh, writer
• Mammad Amin Rasulzadeh (1884–1955), head of the Azerbaijani Democratic Republic (1918–1920)
• Fətəli Xan Xoyski (1875–1920), Azerbaijani politician, prime minister and foreign minister
• Uzeyir Hacibeyov, composer
• Gara Garayev, composer
• Fikret Emirov, composer
• Niyazi, conductor and composer
• Arif Melikov, composer
• Raschid Behbudov, singer
• Muslim Magomayev, singer
• Lutfi-Zadeh, scientist
• Shahriyar, poet
• Googoosh, singer
• Rustam Ibrahimbeyov, writer
• Vougar Aslanov, writer
• Aziza Mustafazadeh, singer
• Ifsar Sarabski, pianist

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Population by sex, economic and administrative regions, urban settlements of the Republic of Azerbaijan at the beginning of the 2014 ( Memento from July 16, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) on the website of the Azərbaycan Respublikasının Dövlət Statistika Komitəsi (State Statistics Committee of the Republic of Azerbaijan)
2. ↑ ^{a b} Nucha . In: Heinrich August Pierer , Julius Löbe (Hrsg.): Universal Lexicon of the Present and the Past . 4th edition. tape 12 . Altenburg 1861, p. 151 ( zeno.org ).
3. ^ Historic Center of Sheki with the Khan's Palace. UNESCO World Heritage Center, accessed July 8, 2019 . 

Web links

Commons : Şəki  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Wikisource: Description of the city of Nucha in sketches from the Caucasus  - sources and full texts

• Shaki City and Region Administration - website (Azerbaijani)
• Azerbaijan Development Gateway - Sheki ( Memento from December 24, 2004 in the Internet Archive )