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Revision as of 14:26, 2 June 2004 by 198.81.26.80 (talk)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)AZERBAIJANIS (Azerbaycanlilar)
Azerbaijanis are commonly associated with the ancient land of Azerbaijan. They are the descendants of Turks (primaraly the Oghuz Turks) who speak the Azerbaijani language (often called Azerbaijani Turkish or Azeri) that belongs to a Turkic branch of the Altaic languages. Azerbaijani is very close to Turkish (the language of Turkey) and Turkmen (the language of Turkmenistan) which are also languages which have emerged from the Oghuz Turks.
The modern language and the nationhood of the Azerbaijanis developed from from the 10th to the 13th centuries, in a timespan that is called Azerbaijan's national, cultural and linguistic "golden age." The Azerbaijanis are also rich inheritants of several ancient civilizations such as that of Sumer, Elam, Urartu, Mannai, Media and Caucasian Albania.
Historic and national figures of Azerbaijan include Babek, Dede Gorgud, Muhammad Fizuli, Imadedin Nesimi, Koroglu, Shah Ismayil, Nizami Genjevi, Uzun Hesen, Sattar Khan, Memed-Emin Resulzada, Sheykh Muhammad Khiabani, Jafar Pishevari, and Ebulfezl Elchibey.
Important Azerbaijani dynasties throughout history include the Seljuk Atabeks, Shirvanshahs, Aq Qoyonlus, Qara Qoyonlus, Safavis, Afshars and Qajars.
Besides the newly-independent Republic of Azerbaijan which has a population of around 8 million, the Azerbaijani people number a significant amount in Iran (in a region some reffer to as South Azerbaijan.) They also inhabit in the Dagestan republic of the Russian Federation, where they number around 80,000 people. There are 307,000 Azerbaijanis in Georgia 500,000 in Turkey and have sizeable communities in Iraq and the United States.
More than 90% of Azerbaijanis are Shia Muslims. They are believed to number approximately 40 million or so worldwide(the majority living in Iran) although estimates vary. Most are farmers and urban-dwellers, while a small percentage are tribal and rural.