Zaqatala Закатала / Чlaр Гал | |
|---|---|
City & Municipality | |
 Nature of Zaqatala | |
  Zaqatala Location of Zagatala Show map of Azerbaijan Zaqatala Zaqatala (Shaki-Zagatala Economic Region) Show map of Shaki-Zagatala Economic Region | |
| Coordinates:41°38′1″N46°38′36″E / 41.63361°N 46.64333°E /41.63361; 46.64333 | |
| Country |  Azerbaijan |
| District | Zagatala |
| Elevation | 518 m (1,699 ft) |
| Population | |
• Total | 32,171 |
| Time zone | UTC+4 (AZT) |
| Website | zaqatala-ih |
Zaqatala (Azerbaijani:Zaqatala,Avar:Закатала / Чӏар,Tsakhur:Гал) is a city in northwesternAzerbaijan and the administrative center of theZagatala District. It has a municipal population of 31,300 inhabitants and is located on the Tala River. The municipality consists of the city of Zaqatala and the nearby village ofQazangül.[3]
The city is populated mostly by Azerbaijanis, but with significant minorities of the indigenousAvar,Lezgin,Tsakhur andIngiloy peoples.
The territory of modern Zaqatala was once a province of Caucasian Albania. After that, the region was a separate kingdom within Georgian cultural and political influence. During the medieval era what later became known as Saingilo was mostly controlled by the kingdom of Georgia and Shirvan.
In theMiddle Ages seven Georgian schools operated in Saingilo which included the courses of theology, philosophy, orthography, church history, and the history of Georgia and for the students. These schools played an essential cultural and educational role. They put a vital contribution in establishing cultural relations among the peoples of the Caucasus.
Zaqatala has several sites of historic significance, most of which are centred on its 19th-century town centre. The main square, formerly called Lenin Square, features a pair of 700-year-oldplane trees.
The city's most prominent feature is a ruined fortress (Russian:"Кала"),[4] built in the 1830s by occupyingRussian forces during theCaucasian War to defend the city from rebels (SeeDjaro-Belokani league). In the 1850s, the town was the site of battles between Russians and Dagestani leaderImam Shamil.[5] It was center ofZakatal Okrug ("district") of theTiflis Governorate between 1893 and 1905. It was part of theTranscaucasian Democratic Federative Republic briefly in 1918 before passing to theAzerbaijan Democratic Republic and later theAzerbaijan SSR.[6][7][8]In the 20th century the town and its fortress became more famous when the fortress was used as one of the prisons for the mutinous crew of thebattleshipPotëmkin, whose actions in the failed1905 Revolution were a precursor to the eventual 1917 revolution. At the end of the 1980s, however, the fortress was in a neglected and extremely dilapidated state and its area was used for cattlepasture in the summer.[4] The statue of one of the mutineers erected in theSoviet era still decoratesHeydar Aliyev park not far from the fortress.[9] Currently, the fortress still houses amilitary garrison as well as severalSoviet-style apartment buildings. Near the northern part of the ramparts and off of the main square is a beautiful, but abandoned, church.[10] The town now sports a sizable newmosque.[11]
It is served by the A315 road coming fromMingachevir and leading to the Georgian border atLagodekhi as well as by a small airfield. North of the town there is an important wildlife and nature preserve. TheCaucasus Mountains provide it with natural protection from the north winds. The wooded mountainsides, with frequent waterfalls, offer greathiking opportunities. Due to its climate, the town became a mountain health resort.[citation needed]
There are several hotels in both Zaqatala and surrounding villages includingAshaghi Tala andJar, both about 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) from Zaqatala.
The city has 2 professional football teams,Simurg andZagatala PFK.Zaqatala City Stadium located in Galaduzu area was inaugurated in 2008 within the Zagatala Olimpic Sports Complex. It has a capacity of 3,500 people.[12][13]
Majority of the city and the district are ethnicAzerbaijanis with significant minorities ofAvars,Lezgins,Tsakhurs andIngiloys. The majority of population are mainly Sunni Muslim, with Orthodox Christian (mostly Georgian) minorities.[14]
| Ethnic group | 1876[15] | 1897[16] | 1916[17] | 1926[18] | 1939[19] | 1959[20] | 1970[21] | 1979[22] | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number | % | Number | % | Number | % | Number | % | Number | % | Number | % | Number | % | Number | % | |
| Azerbaijanis | 23 | 2.01 | 299 | 9.94 | 1,092 | 24.24 | 1,284 | 38.86 | 2,577 | 29.99 | 5,362 | 52.31 | 7 877 | 58.88 | 9,678 | 63.69 |
| Avars | 589 | 19.57 | 10 | 0.30 | 480 | 5.59 | 299 | 2.92 | 1,133 | 8.47 | 1,446 | 9.52 | ||||
| Tsakhurs | 213 | 6.45 | 232 | 2.70 | 71 | 0.69 | 831 | 6.21 | 1,330 | 8.75 | ||||||
| Russians | 240 | 21.00 | 258 | 8.57 | 270 | 5.99 | 290 | 8.78 | 2,986 | 34.75 | 1,876 | 18.30 | 1,261 | 9.43 | 951 | 6.26 |
| Armenians | 400 | 35.00 | 1,400 | 46.53 | 2,165 | 48.06 | 1,181 | 35.74 | 1,414 | 16.45 | 1,215 | 11.85 | 982 | 7.34 | 836 | 5.50 |
| Lezgins | 455 | 39.81 | 22 | 0.73 | 117 | 3.54 | 222 | 2.58 | 824 | 8.04 | 478 | 3.57 | 351 | 2.31 | ||
| Georgians | 5 | 0.44 | 191 | 6.35 | 204 | 4.53 | 96 | 2.91 | 144 | 1.68 | 137 | 1.34 | 307 | 2.29 | 91 | 0.60 |
| Others | 20 | 1.75 | 250 | 8.31 | 774 | 17.18 | 113 | 3.42 | 539 | 6.27 | 466 | 4.55 | 508 | 3.80 | 512 | 3.37 |
| TOTAL | 1,143 | 100.00 | 3,009 | 100.00 | 4,505 | 100.00 | 3,304 | 100.00 | 8,594 | 100.00 | 10,250 | 100.00 | 13,377 | 100.00 | 15,195 | 100.00 |
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Zaqatala International Airport serves the city.[23][24] The airport is connected by bus to the city center. There are domestic flights toBaku, however currently it is unavailable.
There are two bus stations in Zaqatala. One is in the centre, near the Farmer's Market. This bus station serves only the villages of Zaqatala. The second bus station is out of the centre, and this station serves the other cities and capital. Customers can buy the tickets directly at the bus station. Reaching this Bus station passengers can either take public transports or taxi. There is a railway station to Zaqatala and it connects Baku (the capital) to Zaqatala with a 12-hour ride.
Zaqatala has ahumid subtropical climate (Cfa) according to theKöppen climate classification.
| Climate data for Zaqatala (1971–1990, extremes 1952–1994) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 20.0 (68.0) | 23.9 (75.0) | 28.9 (84.0) | 31.1 (88.0) | 36.1 (97.0) | 36.1 (97.0) | 38.9 (102.0) | 38.9 (102.0) | 37.2 (99.0) | 32.8 (91.0) | 25.0 (77.0) | 22.8 (73.0) | 38.9 (102.0) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 5.3 (41.5) | 6.3 (43.3) | 11.2 (52.2) | 18.8 (65.8) | 22.2 (72.0) | 26.8 (80.2) | 30.5 (86.9) | 29.3 (84.7) | 25.7 (78.3) | 18.8 (65.8) | 12.5 (54.5) | 7.9 (46.2) | 17.9 (64.2) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 1.1 (34.0) | 2.3 (36.1) | 5.8 (42.4) | 12.7 (54.9) | 17.0 (62.6) | 20.9 (69.6) | 24.6 (76.3) | 23.7 (74.7) | 19.8 (67.6) | 13.5 (56.3) | 7.9 (46.2) | 3.2 (37.8) | 12.7 (54.9) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | −1.9 (28.6) | −1.1 (30.0) | 2.7 (36.9) | 8.0 (46.4) | 12.0 (53.6) | 16.1 (61.0) | 19.4 (66.9) | 18.6 (65.5) | 15.0 (59.0) | 9.4 (48.9) | 4.6 (40.3) | 0.4 (32.7) | 8.6 (47.5) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −22.8 (−9.0) | −13.9 (7.0) | −12.2 (10.0) | −3.9 (25.0) | 1.1 (34.0) | 6.1 (43.0) | 8.9 (48.0) | 7.8 (46.0) | 2.2 (36.0) | −5.0 (23.0) | −7.8 (18.0) | −18.9 (−2.0) | −22.8 (−9.0) |
| Averageprecipitation mm (inches) | 35 (1.4) | 52 (2.0) | 67 (2.6) | 78 (3.1) | 115 (4.5) | 129 (5.1) | 64 (2.5) | 75 (3.0) | 65 (2.6) | 106 (4.2) | 72 (2.8) | 33 (1.3) | 891 (35.1) |
| Average precipitation days | 7 | 8 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 10 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 106 |
| Average snowy days | 4.36 | 4.72 | 2.52 | 0.52 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.04 | 0.76 | 2.28 | 15.2 |
| Mean monthlysunshine hours | 114.3 | 103.8 | 130.0 | 176.7 | 215.6 | 261.0 | 274.8 | 255.3 | 220.2 | 157.8 | 130.5 | 110.2 | 2,150.2 |
| Source 1: NOAA[25] | |||||||||||||
| Source 2: Sistema de Clasificación Bioclimática Mundial,[26] Meteomanz(snow days 2000-2024)[27] | |||||||||||||
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By autumn of 1918 the Zakatala district was officially a part of the Republic of Azerbaijan. Having the support of Turkey and the convenience of a shared Islamic religion, the Azerbaijani state heavily enforced anti-Georgian propaganda in the region. With the help of local mullahs, the Muslim-Georgian population easily came under Azerbaijani influence, which in turn created the illusion that Zakatala was fully incorporated into Azerbaijan.
Simultaneously, Georgia and Azerbaijan have tried to include Zakatala District ... Georgia's attempts were unsuccessful, because the Georgians were less than 20% of the population of the district, and the stake was only on them. Azerbaijan … [was] more successful in their attempts, because the idea appealed to Islamic unity.
There were sizeable Muslim populations in Kutaisi and Tbilisi provinces, which remained in Georgia, and a minority of Christians in Zakatala okrug, in Azerbaijan.
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41°38′01″N46°38′36″E / 41.63361°N 46.64333°E /41.63361; 46.64333
