Martakert / Aghdara Մարտակերտ / Ağdərə | |
|---|---|
 Martakert in 2002 | |
  Martakert / Aghdara  Martakert / Aghdara | |
| Coordinates:40°12′55″N46°48′46″E / 40.21528°N 46.81278°E /40.21528; 46.81278 | |
| Country |  Azerbaijan |
| • District | Aghdara |
| Elevation | 415 m (1,362 ft) |
| Population (2015)[1] | |
• Total | 4,600 |
| Time zone | UTC+4 (AZT) |
Martakert (Armenian:Մարտակերտ,Russian:Мардакерт, alsoMardakert,Մարդակերտ) orAghdara (Azerbaijani:Ağdərə(listen)ⓘ) is a town in theAghdara District ofAzerbaijan,[2] in the region ofNagorno-Karabakh. Until 2023 it was controlled by the breakawayRepublic of Artsakh, as the centre of itsMartakert Province. The village had an ethnicArmenian-majority population[3] until theexpulsion of the Armenian population of Nagorno-Karabakh by Azerbaijan following the2023 Azerbaijani offensive in Nagorno-Karabakh.[4] The town underwent heavy destruction by Azerbaijani forces while under their control during theFirst Nagorno-Karabakh War.[5]
Traditionally, the Armenian name of the town is interpreted as consisting of the elementsmard ('man, person,' or in this context 'brave') and-kert ('built by'), supposedly referring to the inhabitants' reputation for bravery.[6] Other explanations link the name with the wordmatur’ ('chapel').[6] The Azerbaijani name for the settlement, Aghdara, translates to 'white river'.
The site of the settlement was historically a part of the Melikdom of Jraberd, one of theMelikdoms of Karabakh.[7]
In 1918, a battle took place near the town betweenOttoman and Armenian forces where the latter emerged victorious.[6]
During theSoviet period, Martakert was the administrative centre of theMartakert District of theNagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast. It received the status of anurban-type settlement in 1960.
During theFirst Nagorno-Karabakh War (1991–94), Martakert and the surrounding district saw heavy fighting, especially during the AzerbaijaniOperation Goranboy and theMardakert and Martuni Offensives in 1992.[7] The town was captured by Azerbaijani forces on 4 July 1992, forcing Martakert's Armenian population to flee the town.[8] Martakert was heavily damaged during the First Nagorno-Karabakh War and many of its buildings remain ruined and uninhabited.[8] According to Thomas Goltz, who was in Martakert in September 1992, the town became a "a pile of rubble", noting "more intimate detritus of destroyed private lives: pots and pans, suitcases leaking sullied clothes, crushed baby strollers and even family portraits, still in shattered frames".[9] HRW later noted that harsh actions taken by Karabakh Armenian forces during and after the offensive againstAghdam were seen as a revenge for the Azeri destruction of Martakert, in the context of the tit-for-tat nature of the conflict.[10] Martakert was recaptured by Armenian forces on 27 June 1993.[8] The area around the town has been controlled by Artsakh since the end of the war. Some of Martakert's natives gradually returned over the years, but many remained inArmenia,Russia, and elsewhere.[8]
The2008 Mardakert clashes began on 4 March after the2008 Armenian election protests. It involved the heaviest fighting betweenethnic Armenian[11] andAzerbaijani forces[12] over the disputed region ofNagorno-Karabakh[12][13] since the1994 ceasefire after theFirst Nagorno-Karabakh War.
Armenian sources accused Azerbaijan of trying to take advantage of ongoing unrest in Armenia.[14] Azerbaijani sources blamed Armenia, claiming that the Armenian government was trying to divert attention from internal tensions in Armenia.[14]
In2020, some clashes along the ceasefire lines took place near Martakert.
During theSecond Nagorno-Karabakh war, the town was bombed by Azerbaijani forces more than once, resulting in civilian deaths.[15][16]
The town came under Azerbaijani control on 24 September 2023, following the2023 Nagorno-Karabakh offensive.[17]
The town is located on the right bank of theTartar River, between two mountains.[6]
The population mainly works in different state institutions as well as withagriculture. As of 2015, Martakert has a municipal building, a house of culture, two schools, two kindergartens, a youth centre, 88 commercial enterprises, two factories and a regional hospital.[18] The enlarged municipal community of Martakert includes the villages ofHaykajur,Jraberd,Maralyan Sarov, andLevonarkh.[8]
Historical heritage sites in and around the town include tombs from the 2nd–1st millennia BCE, the pre-ChristianKr’apasht Cemetery, the medieval village ofT’aza Khach’, cemeteries from between the 17th and 19th centuries,St. John the Baptist Church (Surb Hovhannu Karapet Yekeghets’i) built in 1883 (possibly originating from as early as the 13th century), and a bridge across the Kusapat River from the early 20th century.[18][7]
| Year | Armenians | Azerbaijanis | Russians | Ukrainians | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1907[6][19] | Mostly Armenian | 4,676 | |||||||
| 1970[20] | 5,472 | 96.3% | 135 | 2.4% | 44 | 0.8% | 9 | 0.2% | 5,683 |
| 1979[21] | 6,264 | 93.6% | 349 | 5.2% | 41 | 0.6% | 5 | 0.1% | 6,690 |
| 2005[22] | 4,262 | 100% | 4,262 | ||||||
| 2015[1] | 4,600 | 100% | 4,600 | ||||||
The climate in Martakert is classified asHumid subtropical climate (Cfa) by theKöppen climate classification.[23]
| Climate data for Mardakert, Nagorno-Karabakh Republic | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 5.8 (42.4) | 6.6 (43.9) | 10.8 (51.4) | 18.3 (64.9) | 22.4 (72.3) | 27.0 (80.6) | 30.7 (87.3) | 29.2 (84.6) | 25.3 (77.5) | 18.4 (65.1) | 12.5 (54.5) | 8.1 (46.6) | 17.9 (64.3) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | −1.7 (28.9) | −1.0 (30.2) | 2.3 (36.1) | 8.1 (46.6) | 12.5 (54.5) | 16.7 (62.1) | 20.0 (68.0) | 19.0 (66.2) | 15.4 (59.7) | 9.7 (49.5) | 4.8 (40.6) | 0.6 (33.1) | 8.9 (48.0) |
| Averageprecipitation mm (inches) | 15 (0.6) | 23 (0.9) | 34 (1.3) | 45 (1.8) | 71 (2.8) | 64 (2.5) | 31 (1.2) | 26 (1.0) | 27 (1.1) | 45 (1.8) | 28 (1.1) | 17 (0.7) | 426 (16.8) |
| Source:http://en.climate-data.org/location/21905/ | |||||||||||||
Vagarshapat,Armenia (2010–2023).[24]Partnership agreement:
Bourj Hammoud,Lebanon. In May 2018, representatives of the Artsakh city of Martakert and the Lebanese town of Bourj Hammoud signed a Memorandum of Cooperation. The memorandum states that aiming at the establishment of social, economic, tourism, and cultural relations between the two towns as well as realizing that cooperation between the towns can contribute to the strengthening of regional stability and peace.[25]
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