Tsakuri Ծակուռի | |
|---|---|
| Hünərli | |
 View of Tsakuri | |
  Tsakuri  Tsakuri | |
| Coordinates:39°34′11″N46°59′01″E / 39.56972°N 46.98361°E /39.56972; 46.98361 | |
| Country |  Azerbaijan Republic of Artsakh (claimed) |
| District | Khojavend |
| Population (2015)[1] | |
• Total | 109 |
| Time zone | UTC+4 (AZT) |
Tsakuri (Armenian:Ծակուռի) orHunarli (Azerbaijani:Hünərli,[2] previouslyZakirli[3]) is a village in theKhojavend District ofAzerbaijan, in thedisputed region ofNagorno-Karabakh. The village had an ethnicArmenian-majority population prior to the2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war, and also had an Armenian majority in 1989.[4]
The village is located 13 km from the town ofHadrut and a 57 km drive over the north-south highway from the regional capital ofStepanakert. Hikers reach Tsakuri in theTogh (Tugh) section of the markedJanapar trail.
During theSoviet period, Tsakuri was part of theHadrut District of theNagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast. After theFirst Nagorno-Karabakh War, the village was administrated as part of theHadrut Province of the breakawayRepublic of Artsakh. The village came under the control of Azerbaijan on 7 October 2020, during the2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war.[5][6][7]
Historical heritage sites in and around Tsakuri include the monastery complex ofTsaghkavank (Armenian:Ծաղկավանք), of which only the Holy Mother of God Church has been preserved, the Ptkatagh Monastery (Armenian:Պտկաթաղի վանք,romanized: Ptkatagh Vank) built in 1670, a cemetery from between the 17th and 19th centuries, a 17th-centurykhachkar, and a 19th-centuryspring monument.[1]
The Holy Mother of God Church (Armenian:Սուրբ Աստվածածին եկեղեցի,romanized: Surb Astvatsatsin Yekeghetsi, also known as St. Mary's Church and Tsaghkavank Church) was founded in the 12th century and contains a khachkar from 1198, with the current church dating from 1682. The church is the only remaining structure of the Tsaghkavank monastery complex in Tsakuri.[8][9][1]
Efforts to rehabilitate the church were initiated by a group of international benefactors, and preparation work and fundraising started in the 2010s. In July 2013, the Primate of theDiocese of Artsakh of theArmenian Apostolic Church, ArchbishopPargev Martirosyan, gave his blessing to the project and construction work started in May 2019. The second phase of the project for the renovation of the church's interior was planned to be partly funded by an internationalcrowdfunding campaign.[citation needed]After the2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war, Azerbaijani presidentIlham Aliyev visited the Holy Mother of God Church in Tsakuri,denying the church's Armenian identity, and describing the church's inscriptions inArmenian as "fake".[10][11][9]
The area of the Tsakuri community is lowland with a total area of 307.4 hectares, of which 241.68 hectares are of agricultural importance and 32.9 hectares consists of forested land.[1] The area has an especially mild micro-climate thanks to its apple, pear, mulberry and walnut trees. Deposits ofIcelandic spar can be found in and around the village.
In 2015, the population was mainly engaged inagriculture andanimal husbandry, and the village had a municipal building, a house of culture, the Tsakuri branch ofMariamadzor Secondary School, and a medical centre. The village had access to electricity, TV and radio, mobile and wireless telephony and internet services. The water supply is provided to the village through a gravity system fed from the two springs ofAknen (Armenian:Ակնեն) andNerses (Armenian:Ներսես).[1]
The village had 100 inhabitants in 2005,[12] and 109 inhabitants in 2015, in approximately 28 households.[1]
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