- Nakhchivan City
Infobox Settlement
official_name =Nakhchivan
native_name = Naxçıvan
pushpin_
pushpin_mapsize =300
subdivision_type = Country
subdivision_name = flag|Azerbaijan
subdivision_type1 = Autonomous republic
subdivision_name1 =Nakhchivan
leader_title =
leader_name =
established_title =
established_date =
area_total_km2 = 15
area_land_km2 = 14.2
area_water_km2 = 0.8
area_footnotes =
population_as_of =2008
population_total =74203
population_density_km2 =
timezone =AZT
utc_offset = +4
timezone_DST =AZT
utc_offset_DST = +5
latd=39 |latm=12 |lats=32 |latNS=N
longd=45|longm=24 |longs=44 |longEW=E
elevation_m =
area_code =
website =Nakhchivan City (Azerbaijani: Naxçıvan şəhəri; also, Nachitschewan, Nakhchyvan, Nakhicevan, Nakhichevan’, and Nakhjavan), is the capital of the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic of
Azerbaijan , located 450 km west ofBaku . It was an ancient trading center and some historians consider that it was founded in the 16th century BCE. According to a legend, the city was founded byNoah , and one interpretation of the meaning of the city's name is "the place of first descent", ("nakh-ijevan" in Armenian) a reference to the descent fromNoah's Ark . This meaning was first written down by the 5th century Armenian historian Movses Khorenatsi. TheGreeks and Romans called it Naxuana. In Persian, the region is called "Nagsh-e-Jahan" or "image of the world," a reference to the city's beauty. As early as the 2nd century CE it is mentioned byPtolemy as a thriving city.It is spread over the foothills of Zangezur chain, on the right bank of the Nakhchivan river at an altitude of almost 1000 m.
Nakhichevan was one of the prominent cities of the
Armenia n Kingdom under theArtaxides ,Arshakides andBagratides dynasties since II century B.C. until XI century A.D. Invader after invader looted, destroyed and (in some cases) rebuilt the city. It was the capital of theAtabek Eldegiz emirate in the 12th century and theNakhchivan khanate in the 18th century.The main sight in the city is the heavily restored 12th century
Momine Khatun Mausoleum , also known as 'Atabek Gumbezi'. Momine Khatun was the wife of EldegizidAtabek Djakhan Pakhlevan , ruler of the Atabek Eldegiz emirate. The 10-sided monument is decorated with intricate geometrical motives and Kufic script, it uses turquoise glazed bricks. It shares the neighbourhood with a statue of itsarchitect -Ajami Nakhchivani - and a bust ofHeydar Aliyev . Also from the 12th century and by the same architect, is the octagonal Yusuf Ibn Kuseir tomb, known as 'Atababa', half abandoned near the main cemetery.More recent (1993) is the white marble mausoleum of
Hussein Javid . The Azeri writer died in theGulag underStalin . Both the mausoleum and his house museum are located east of the theatre. Although being a recent construction, Hussein Javid's mausoleum is of great iconic importance, representing the ability of the exclave to live despite the Armenian embargo and becoming a symbol of Nakhchivan itself.The city also has an historical museum, a literary museum (both on
Nizami street) and the house museum of Nakhchivanski (on Atatürk street). There is also an archeological museum on (?) Istiqlal street. Have a look also at the baths and the blue domed Imamzade, the Uzbek style tomb of Abu Muzaffar Bahdur Khan. The city has a few interestingmosque s, particularly the Jumamosque , with its large dome.Today Nakhchivan city is home to over 60.000 inhabitants. It has some industry, centred around
glass ,furniture ,textile s andcarpet s,aluminum ,tobacco andgrape processing. Currently the government is looking for investment to develop tourism and oil production. Socially, this regional capital is quite sophisticated with its own university and a significant scientific and artistic community. For entertainment try the palace of culture, on Azadlyg avenue, the state musical and drama theatre on Ahmed Javad street or the puppet theatre onNizami street. The city has a lot of business visitors fromIran ,Turkey andRussia (these countries have consulates in the city), leading to a reasonable offer of hotels.Nakhchivan city is served by an
airport and theoretically has good road and rail links, however theNagorno-Karabakh war has made access more difficult contributing to a greater isolation. The best way to get to Nakhchivan is to fly fromBaku or from Ganja. You can also fly directly toMoscow withSamara Airlines . If you are arriving from Baku there is no passport check and you can simply walk out of the terminal. There are buses and taxis to the city, which is only 3km away. From the city, buses to the airport leave from theShahbuz bus station on the NW part of the city.Several buses a day depart for
Iğdır and Erzurum in easternTurkey , allowing easy connections to the rest of Turkey. There are train services toOrdubad andSharur . Inside the city there are buses and trolley-buses and numerous taxis.References
*
GEOnet Names Server
* [http://world-gazetteer.com/wg.php?x=&men=gcis&lng=en&des=wg&geo=-26&srt=npan&col=abcdefghinoq&msz=1500&pt=c&va=x World Gazetteer: Azerbaijan] – World-Gazetteer.comExternal links
* [http://www.azeri.net/azerbaijan/category/cities/nakhchivan/ Nakhchivan Guide]
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