AZERBAIJANI LITERATURE

Azerbaijani literature is deeply rooted in the rich substance of Azerbaijani folklore which is equally rich in genres. Epic folklore genres such as tales and dastans or epic narratives, as well as proverbs and sayings that express the wisdom of the people, have had a strong influence on the folklore and classical literature of the neighbouring nations throughout history.

 

The greatest monument of Azerbaijani folklore that has survived in writing to this day is the heroic epic poem “The Book of Dada Gorgud” (Kitabi-Dada Gorgud). Having found their root in mythological worldview, the eposes of Dada Gorgud were compiled in a book under the title “The Book of Dada Gorgud” in the 11th century. The only copies known to science are but manuscripts copied in the 16th century.

 

The poems of Abu Muhammad ibn Bashar, Musa Shehevat and Ismail ibn Yasar, poets of Azerbaijani origin who wrote in Arabic in the 7th-8th centuries, are to some extent distinguished from the Arabic poetry of that time by their fighting spirit and original creativity peculiarities. The tradition of writing literary works in Arabic continued among Azerbaijani poets until the 11th-12th centuries, and prominent authors of literary masterpieces such as Khatib Tebrizi and Masud ibn Namdar created literary works that enriched Azerbaijani literature in this language. From the 11th century, with the creativity of Gatran Tabrizi (1012-1088), the Azerbaijani school of poetry entered a new stage of development using Persian (the Dari language).

 

When in 1054 Azerbaijan became a part of the Great Seljuk Empire, a high medieval empire that originated from the Qiniq (Kynyg) branch of Oghuz Turks, it not only stimulated the development of science, art and literature, but also completed the formation of the Turkic-speaking Azerbaijani people.

 

 In the 12th century, Azerbaijani literature had a strong influence on the subsequent development of literature in the broader Middle East and the world at large. It was also during this period that the school of poetry completed its formation and its world-famous coryphaeus such as Khagani Shirvani (1126-1199) and Nizami Ganjavi (1141-209) appeared.

 

The work of the world-famous Azerbaijani poet and thinker Nizami Ganjavi with his humanism and high mastery had a strong impact on the development of the literature of the peoples of the Caucasus and Middle East (Persian, Turkmen, Uzbek, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Kurdish, Tajik, Indian, Afghan and so on). His works collected in “Khamsa” are still read with love.

 

Poets such as Abul-ula Ganjavi (1096-1159), Mahsati Ganjavi (1089-1183), Falaki Shirvani (1126-1160) and Mujiraddin Beylagani (12th century) grew up in the 12th century under the care of Azerbaijani states such as Shirvanshahs and Atabeys.

 

 

From the 13th century onwards, the number of poets and artists writing in their mother tongue, along with poets writing mainly in Arabic and Persian, began to grow in Azerbaijan, and native language literature began to develop. Izzeddin Hasanoghlu (13th-14th centuries), Sheikh Safiaddin Ardabili (1252-1334), Sheikh Mahmud Shabustari (1287-1320), Nasreddin Tusi (1201-1274), Maraghali Ahvadi (1274-1338) and Arif Ardabili (1311-) basically drew upon Nizami traditions. The 14th century poet and ruler Gazi Burhaneddin (1314-1398) was the first to use tuyug, the pure Turkish poetic genre.

 

The principles of humanism formed in literature and socio-political thought during this period reached their peak, especially in the works of Imadeddin Nasimi (1369-1417). In Azerbaijani literature, the 15th century is a period of transition, both chronologically and artistically, between the peaks of Gazi-Nasimi and Khatai-Fuzuli. Among these poets, the name of Garagoyunlu ruler-poet Muzaffaraddin Jahan Shah Hagigi is deserving of a special mention.

 

Azerbaijani literature has been continuing its tradition as an independent literature since the 16th century. The post-Nizami peak of Renaissance ideas in Azerbaijani literature of the 12th-16th centuries was Mahammad Fuzuli (1494-1556), known in Western oriental studies as the “Poet of the Heart”. Fuzuli is still one of the most popular poets not only in Azerbaijan, but also in a large geographical and ethnic area where the Turkish language, especially Oghuz Turkic, is understood. Shah Ismail Khatai (1487-1524) was the founder of a dynasty that played an exceptional role in the socio-political history of Azerbaijan. Shah Ismail Khatai played a major part in the development of Azerbaijani literature in the native language.

 

The 16th-17th centuries are also known in Azerbaijani literature as the period of the formation of medieval love and heroic epics. Fuzuli’s achievements in written poetry can also be seen in the works of representatives of oral folk literature – ashyg Gurbani, ashyg Abbas Tufarganly and ashyg Khasta Gasyim. Perfect love epics such as “Ashyg Garib”, “Abbas and Gulgaz”, “Asli and Kerem” and the heroic epic “Koroghlu”, a worthy successor of “The Book of Dada Gorgud”, were formed during this period and entered the repertoire of folk artists.

 

In the 17th-18th centuries, Azerbaijani literature, under the influence of folklore, mainly the works of ashygs, became closer to the life and language of the people. At the same time, the foundation of the transition period to realism is laid in Azerbaijani poetry. Although the Fuzuli traditions were still strong enough in poetry at that time, attempts to get out of this attraction were already reflected in the works of poets such as Saib Tabrizi and Govsi Tabrizi. We see that in the works of Shakir, Nishat and Mahjur, poets of the Shirvan literary environment of the 18th century, the specific painful challenges of the time were mostly discussed, and the artistic expression of concern for the hard life of the common people.

 

Poets such as Molla Vali Vidadi (1707-1808) and Molla Panah Vagif (1717-1797) in particular, brought poetry closer to the people with their works written in a simple, lively language. Vagif was a prominent political figure of his time and determined the foreign policy of the Garabagh Khanate for a long time.

 

 

In the first decades of the 19th century, national and realist-secular motives took the leading position in the literature. Under the direct influence of Molla Panah Vagif’s work, Gasim bey Zakir (1784-1857), a representative of critical-realist satire in the Garabagh literary environment, grew up and determined the direction of poetic development for a long time. The greatest representatives of this process were Seyid Abulgasim Nabati (1812-1873), Heyran khanym (1786-1838), Seyid Azim Shirvani (1835-1888), Khurshudbanu Natavan (1830-1897) and Fatma khanym Kamina (1840-1888). Abbasgulu agha Bakikhanov (1794-1847), Mirza Shafi Vazeh (1792-1852) and Ismayil bey Gutgashynly (1801-1861) can be mentioned among the prominent authors who became acquainted with Russian and Western orientalists and poets during this period and received advanced humanistic ideas from them.

 

Mirza Fatali Akhundzadeh’s (1812-1878) enlightenment-realist views played an exceptional role in the further development of Azerbaijani literature, and had a strong effect on the formation of the genres of modern Western literature - drama, novel, story, novella, narrative, poem, and so on in Azerbaijani literature. The direction of literary and aesthetic development defined by Mirza Fatali Akhundzadeh for the Azerbaijani culture in the second half of the 19th century influenced the formation of enlightened-realist artists such as Seyid Azim Shirvani (1835-1888), Najaf bey Vazirov (1854-1926) and Abdurrahim bey Hagverdiyev (1870-1933). This has led to the development of literary and cultural development not only for Azerbaijan, but also for its neighbouring nations. In particular, the multifaceted “Ekinchi” newspaper (1875-1877), published by Azerbaijani journalist, intellectual and naturalist Hasan bey Zardabi (1837-1907), gave impetus to the rapid development of literary and cultural life during this period.

 

In the 19th century, a branch of literature that was more inclined to the Eastern creative type was formed in the literary assemblies: “Gulustan”, “Enjumeni-shuara”, “Fovjul-fusaha”, “Beytus-Safa”, “Majmaush-shuara” and many more. As a whole, literature has laid a solid foundation for the transition to the literature of the 20th century, which is considered a new high level of Azerbaijani literature.

Prominent representatives of realist and romantic literature based on the example of Europe and Russia such as Jalil Mammadguluzadeh (1866-1932), Mirza Alakbar Sabir (1862-1911), Husein Javid (1884-1944), Mohammad Hadi (1880-1920), Abbas Sahhat (1874-1918), Abdulla Shaig (1881-1959), Nariman Narimanov (1870-1925) and Abdurrahim bey Hagverdiyev (1870-1933) raised Azerbaijani literature to the level of the best examples of world literary and cultural thought with their creative activities.

 

A significant event in the history of Azerbaijan in the early 20th century was the establishment of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic (1918-1920); this period was unique and literarily significant. At this period interesting works of young writers such as Jafar Jabbarly, Ahmad Javad and Ummugulsum appeared. Ahmad Javad (1892-1937), distinguished for his proactivity in this field, wrote the text of the national anthem of Azerbaijan. This work, composed by genius Uzeyir Hajibeyli, is still performed today as the anthem of the independent Republic of Azerbaijan.

 

 

The dramaturgy of the Soviet period is closely connected with the names of Husein Javid, Suleyman Sani Akhundov, Jafar Jabbarly, Mirza Ibrahimov, Samad Vurghun, Sabit Rahman, Anvar Mammadkhanly, Ilyas Efendiyev, Shikhali Gurbanov and others.

 

Ahmad Javad (1892-1937) and Mikail Mushfig (1908-1938), as well as Samad Vurghun, are also considered the main prominent fellow poets of the 20th century Azerbaijani poetry. Suleyman Rustam (1906-1989), Aliagha Vahid (1895-1965) and Rasul Rza (1910-1981) are poets who made important contributions to the development of lyric poetry.

 

The role of writers such as Mammad Said Ordubadi, Yusif Vazir Chamanzaminli, Ali Valiyev, Mir Jalal, Suleyman Rahimov, Mehdi Husein, Husein Ibrahimov, Husein Abbaszade, Jamil Alibeyov, Vidadi Babanly, Manaf Suleymanov, Alaviya Babayeva, Suleyman Valiyev, Aziza Jafarzadeh, Afgan Asgarov, Gulhusein Huseinoghlu, Alibala Hajizade, Salam Gadirzadeh, Chingiz Huseinov and Anvar Mammadkhanly in the enrichment of Azerbaijani prose is undeniable.

 

 

Beginning from the 1960s, as a result of the warming of the global socio-political atmosphere and the weakening of the ideological shackles in the USSR, young talents in the field of literary creativity began to write works criticizing the political system of that time. Among them are prose writers and poets such as Isa Mughanna, Mammad Araz, Sabir Ahmadov, Anar, Elchin, Sabir Rustamkhanly, Alakbar Salahzadeh, Farman Karimzadeh, Magsud Ibrahimbayov, Movlud Suleymanly, Yusif Samadoghlu and Isi Malikzadeh. 

In the poetry and dramaturgy of authors such as Bakhtiyar Vahabzadeh (1925), Nabi Khazri (1924) and Nariman Hasanzadeh (1931), instructive pages of the people’s history and lyrical-psychological experiences also prevail. Many works of these poets, as well as those of Gabil, Anvar Alibeyli, Islam Safarly, Adil Babayev, Husein Arif, Gasym Gasymzadeh and Aliagha Kurchaily are valuable examples of our literature. In the literature of that period, we see a continuation of the ancient tradition of creating a national culture in another language, in the creative activities of Imran Gasymov, Magsud Ibrahimbayov, Chingiz Abdullayev, Chingiz Huseinov, Vladimir Gafarov, Vahid Mammadli, Natig Rasulzadeh, Alla Akhundova and other writers.
 

Ali Karim (1931-1969), Khalil Rza (1932-1994), Jabir Novruz (1933-2002), Fikret Sadig (1930), Mammad Araz (1933-2004), Famil Mehdi (1934-2002), Tofig Bayram (1934-1991), Ilyas Tapdiq (1934), Fikret Goja (1935), Musa Yagub (1937), Mammad Ismayil (1939), Vagif Samedoghlu (1939), Arif Abdullazadeh (1940-2002), Alakbar Salahzadeh (1941), Isa Ismayilzadeh (1941), Chingiz Alioghlu (1944), Nusrat Kasamanli (1946-2001), Ramiz Rovshan (1946), Sabir Rustamkhanly (1946), Hamlet Isakhanly (1948), Vagif Bayatly Oder (1949), Zalimkhan Yagub (1950 - 2016) and other poets are distinguished among those who prepared the creative basis for the new period of Azerbaijani literature and took an active part in this process.
 

After the independence of Azerbaijan, the glorification of universal ideas such as patriotism, humanity and social justice, among others, has a central place in modern literature. Although the main trends in the development of Azerbaijani literature today are based on the glorification and celebration of the Azerbaijani ideology, modernist and postmodernist tendencies are also manifesting themselves. The works by Orkhan Fikretoghlu (stories “Ögey” - “Foreign native”, “Çevrilmə” - “Transformation”, and a narrative “Üçüncü günün adamı” - “The Man of the Third Day”), Magsad Nur (stories “Küləkli şəhər” - “Windy City”, “Ero-gigiyenik” - “Ero-hygienic”, “Katastofiklər” - “Katastofiks” and “Rütubət sevgiləri” - “Dampness Love”, a novel “Şəhər meri” - “City Mayor”), Sadig Eljan (a novel “Zülmət” - “Darkness”), Mubariz Jafarly (narratives “Bərpaçı” - “Restorer”, “Şahid Qatar” - “A witness train”, “Uydurma” - “Falsehood” and “Bənna” - “Builder”) are samples of modernism, while the works by Kamal Abdulla (novels “Yarımçıq əlyazma” - “Incomplete Manuscript”, “Sehrbazlar dərəsi” - “Valley of Wizards”, a narrative “Tarixsiz gündəlik” - “Diary without date”), can be considered a clear example of postmodernism.

The works by Sharif Aghayar, Agshin Yenisey, Salim Babullaoghlu and Murad Kohnagala are appreciated by readers today.
 

Among the young poets and writers of our time, Ramil Ahmad, Mirmehdi Aghaoghlu, Gismet, Farid Husein, Ravan Javid, Javid Zeynally, Gunel Shamilgyzy, Saida Subhi, Agshin Evren and Mina Rashid can be distinguished.
 

Today, well-known authors of children’s literature include, among others, Sevinj Nurugyzy, Reyhan Yusifgyzy and Solmaz Amanova.