Qırmızı Qəsəbə

Infobox Settlement
name =Qırmızı Qəsəbə
settlement_type=Municipality
native_name =
pushpin_

pushpin_mapsize =300
subdivision_type = Country
subdivision_name = flag|Azerbaijan
subdivision_type1 = Rayon
subdivision_name1 =Quba
leader_title =
leader_name =
established_title =
established_date =
area_total_km2 =
area_footnotes =
population_as_of =
population_total =3598
population_footnotes = [TCSC|30]
population_density_km2 =
timezone =AZT
utc_offset = +4
timezone_DST =AZT
utc_offset_DST = +5
latd=41 |latm=22 |lats=25 |latNS=N
longd=48|longm=30 |longs=38 |longEW=E
elevation_m =
area_code =
website =

Qırmızı Qəsəbə (also, Krasnaya Sloboda) is a village and municipality in the Quba Rayon of Azerbaijan. It has a population of 3,598.

The village is located across the Qudiyalçay River (or Kudyal River) from the larger town of Quba, Azerbaijan. It is the primary settlement of Azerbaijan's population of Mountain Jews, who make up the population of approximately 4,000. It is one of the only Jewish towns outside of Israel.

History

While the Mountain Jews had been in the area around Quba since at least the 13th century, the formal creation Krasnaya Sloboda traces to the 18th century, when in 1742 the khan of Quba gave the Jews permission to set up a community free of persecution across the river from the city of Quba. Originally referred to as Yevreiskaya Sloboda (Jewish Settlement), under Soviet rule the name was changed to the current name, translated as "Red Settlement".

Present day

The town has had an influx of financial support from relatives living in Israel and features the new Bet Knesset Synagogue. However, after Azeribaijan's independence in 1991, many residents emigrated to Israel, the United States and Europe and the population dropped from the roughly 18,000 that lived there during the era of Communism. Although it maintains friendly relations with its Muslim neighbors, the community's long-term viability remains in question.

ee also

* Israel-Azerbaijan relations
* Kiryas Joel, New York
* New Square, New York

References

*GEOnet Names Server
*Inga Saffron, " [http://www.azer.com/aiweb/categories/magazine/62_folder/62_articles/62_mountainjews.html The Mountain Jews of Guba] ", "Azerbaijan International", (6.2) Summer 1998, "Accessed on May 1, 2006"
*Tom Parfitt, " [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=%2Fnews%2F2003%2F04%2F27%2Fwjews27.xml Life drains away from lost tribe of Mountain Jews] ", "The Daily Telegraph", April 27, 2003, "Accessed on May 1, 2006"
*Amiram Barkat, " [http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/pages/ShArt.jhtml?itemNo=769003 The village people] ", "Haaretz" September 29 2006, "Accessed on September 31 2006"