Azerbaijan

An important event that happened in the historical fate of the Azerbaijani people in the first quarter of the XIX century was that pro-western tendencies got considerably strong both in the Karabakh culture and literature after Azerbaijan’s forceful annexation by the Russian empire. 

Under its influence, national, realistic and worldly motifs came to the foreground. With direct impact of Molla Panah Vaqif’s creative activities, Qasim bey Zakir, a representative of the critical-realistic satire, grew up in the Karabakh literary atmosphere to be a pacesetter of the poetic development for a long period.

At the same time, we observe the continuation of Mahammad Fuzuli’s traditions both in Qasim bey Zakir’s own creative activities as well as in the works of poets of his age at a new level with Khurshud Banu Natavan (1830-1897) as one of their greatest representatives.

The Susa-based poetic gatherings Maclisi-uns, or Friendship gathering, and Maclisi-faramusan, or The Gathering of the Forgotten, were led by Khurshud Banu Natavan and Mirza Mohsun Navvab respectively. The poetic gatherings enjoyed closer contacts and poets were communicating with one another. In general, the XIX century literature laid the solid foundation for the transition to the XX century literature considered to be a new prime stage of the Karabakh literary school.

The dramaturgy of the enlightment that developed as the follow-up of Mirza Fatali Akhundzada’s traditions further enriched the Azerbaijani literature with Najaf bay Vezirov’s (1854-1926) comedies, like “Musibati Fakhraddin”, or “Fakhraddin’s tragedy” (1894) penned at the end of the XIX century; Abdurrahim bey Haqverdiyev’s (1870-1933) comedies, including “Dagilan tifaq”, or “Collapsing family”, “Bakhtsiz javan”, or “Ill-fated young man” (1900), and “Aga Mahammad shah Qajar” tragedies.

The first professional Azerbaijani female ashug (folk poet and singer) also grew up in Karabakh and Ashiq Pari personality (XIX century) is a vivid proof of it. However, this occurrred at the complete stage of the merger of the literature and folklore. 

At late of XIX century and early of XX century one of the outstanding representatives of Karabagh was  Uzeyir Hajibeyli – a genius composer, the founder of the first opera in the east, a great playwright, the author of the first libretto, the founder of the musical comedy genre, journalist, great publicist, the author of the Azerbaijani national anthem;

Yusif Vazir Chamanzaminli – the author of the first historical novels (“Between two fires’ (In blood), “Girls spring” etc); novelist-ethnographer, folklorist, diplomat;

Jeyhun bey Hajıbeyli – writer, publicist, diplomat, folklore scholar (for the first time he published in Paris book "Karabagh folklore” in French and with original texts); 

Ahmed bey Aghayev – one of the great ideologist of Azerbaijani statehood, writer- -publicist scholar, news paper man, founder of 1st national Turkic organization fighting the Armenian terrorism "Difai";

Firudin bey Kocharli (1863-1920), the first literary historician, principal of the Gori and Qazakh Teachers’ Seminary, 

Suleyman Sani Akhundov – one of the 1st founder of child literature, he was the creator of 1st image of bey that concentrated Azeri mentality in self in  "Nestle of falcon" drama, 1st writer-pedagogist named as National Hero; 

These art figures born as Karabagh children turned to be coryphaeus of Azerbaijani culture and literature thought and evaluated as sons of Turkic people.