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Azerbaijan or '''Azarbaijan''' ( in northwestern Iran and borders Armenia and the Republic Of Azerbaijan . It is also historically known as '' Atropatene '' and '' Aturpatakan ''. The region is sometimes called ''South Azerbaijan'' or ''Southern Azerbaijan'' (. ETYMOLOGY AND USAGE See Also: History of the name Azerbaijan The name Azerbaijan itself is derived from '' although modern scholars have not yet reached an agreement on the location of his birth G. Gnoli, Zoroaster's time and homeland, Naples, 1980. GEOGRAPHY Iranian Azerbaijan is generally considered the northwest portion of Iran compromising the provinces of region, which includes Lake Urmia , is mountainous, with deep valleys and fertile lowlands. AGRICULTURE Grains, fruits, cotton, rice, nuts, and tobacco are the staple crops of the region. INDUSTRIES AND HANDICRAFTS Industries include machine tools, vehicle factories, oil refinery, petrochemical complex, food processing, cement, textiles, electric equipment, and sugar milling. Oil and gas pipelines run through the region. Wool, carpets, and metal ware are also produced. PEOPLE See Also: Iranian Azeris Demographics of Iran Azerbaijan, the main Turkic-speaking area and one of the richest and one of the most densely populated regions of Iran, presents a picture of ethnic distinctiveness and homogeneity that is perhaps misleading. Not only are there various linguistic, religious, and tribal minority groups, and Azerbaijanis themselves have settled widely outside the region. Encyclopaedia Iranica , page 243 = accessed January 09, 2007]. The Azeris are followers of Shi'a Islam. Azeris make up the majority of the population in the Iranian region of Azerbaijan and Almost all of the population of East Azerbaijan, Ardabil and Zanjan are Azerbaijanis. There is also a sizable number of Kurds to the west of the Urmia lake. Smaller groups of Armenians , Assyrians , Talysh s, Jew s, Georgians , and Persians also inhabit the region. PROVINCES AND CITIES Iranian Azerbaijan is divided into the provinces of (the capital of East Azarbaijan), Urmia (the capital of West Azerbaijan), Ardabil (the capital of Ardabil), Maragheh , Marand , Zanjan , and Khoy (Khvoy). The region is bounded in the north by Armenia and the Republic Of Azerbaijan and in the West by Lake Urmia and Kurdish-inhabited areas of Iran, and in the East by the Caspian Sea and Gilan . HISTORY Pre-Islamic period The oldest kingdom known in Iranian Azerbaijan is that of the Mannea who ruled a region southeast of Lake Urmia centered around modern Saqqez . The Manneans were a confederation of Iranian and non-Iranian groups. According to Professor Zadok: According to Encyclopedia Britannica, the Medes were an: under Tigranes The Great ]] By the 8th century BC, Azerbaijan, as well as Hamadan , Tehran , and Esfahan had been settled by Medes . Azerbaijan later formed the province of ''Media Minor'' in the Persian Empire . After Alexander The Great conquered Persia , he appointed (328 BC) as governor the Persian general Atropates , who eventually established an independent dynasty. The region, which came to be known as Atropatene or Media Atropatene (after Atropates), was much disputed. In the 2nd century BC, it was liberated from Seleucid domination by Mithradates I of Arsacid Dynasty , and was later made a province of the Sassanid Empire of Ardashir I . Under the Sassanids, Azerbaijan was ruled by a ''marzubān'', and, towards the end of the period, belonged to the family of Farrukh-Hormuzd . Heraclius , the Byzantine Emperor , briefly held the region in the 7th century until peace was made with the Sassanids. After the Islamic Conquest Of Iran , Arab invaders converted most of its people to Islam and made it part of the Caliphate . Islamic period After the revolt of Babak Khorramdin , the grip of the Abbasid caliphate on Azerbaijan weakened, allowing native dynasties to rise in Azerbaijan. Later on Azerbaijan was taken by the Daylamite Marzuban. The Daylamites were succeeded by the Kurdish Rawadids . After confrontations with the local Kurdish populations who had already established their own dynasties and emirates in vast areas of Azerbaijan, the Seljuks dominated the region in the 11th and early 12th centuries, at which point Turkification of the native populations began. In 1136, Azerbaijan fell to the lot of the Atabakan-e-Azerbaijan and Atabakan-e-Maragheh. It was invaded by the Khwarizm Shah Jalal ad-din until the advent of the Mongol invasions. The Mongols under Hulagu Khan established their capital at Maragheh . After being conquered by Timur in the 14th century, Tabriz became an important provincial capital of the Timurid Empire . Later, Tabriz becamse the capital of the Qara Qoyunlu empire. It was out of Ardabil (ancient Artavilla) that the Safavid Dynasty arose to renew the state of Persia and establish Shi'ism as the official religion of Iran. After 1502, Azarbaijan became the chief bulwark and military based of the Safavids. In the meantime, between 1514 and 1603, the Ottomans frequently occupied Tabriz and other parts of the province. The Safavid control was restored by Shah Abbas but during the Afghan invasion (1722-8) the Ottomans recaptured Azerbaijan and other western provinces of Iran, until Nadir Shah expelled them. In the beginning of the reign of Karim Khan Zand, the Afghan Azad Khan revolted in Azerbaijan and later the Dumbuli Kurds of Khoy and other tribal chiefs ruled various parts of the territory. With the advent of the Qajars, Azerbaijan became the traditional residence of the heirs-apparent. At this time, the final northern frontier of Iran with Russia (along the Araxes) was established in 1828 ( Turkmanchay Treaty ). After 1905 the representatives of Azerbaijan were very active in the Iranian Constitutional Revolution . The Russian (Tsarist) army occupied Iranian Azerbaijan in 1909, and again in 1912-1915 period,the Bolshevik forces occupied Iranian Azerbaijan and other parts of Iran in 1920-1921, Younes Parsa Benab, "The Gilan Soviet Republic and Azadistan in Iranian Azerbaijan (1917-1921)", accessed April 2, 2007 , and the Soviet forces occupied Iranian Azerbaijan in 1941 , createing a very short-lived autonomous, Soviet-supported state in May 1946 , which was dissolved after reunification of Iranian Azerbaijan with Iran in November of the same year. Cold War International History Project Virtual Archive 2.0 Collection : 1945-46 Iranian Crisis . Azerbaijani provinces have played a major in the cultural and economic life of Iran in both the Pahlavi era as well as the Islamic revolution. CULTURE 2006 ) as well as their religion which is Shi'a Islam. This may be the most important characteristic of the Azeris setting them apart from other Turkic speakers (who are mostly Sunni Muslims ). Azeris celebrate Nouruz for the turn of the new Iranian year, the arrival of spring. Azerbaijan has a distinct Music in Iran. Many local dances and folk music continue to survive among the various peoples of the provinces. Although Azerbaijani language is not an official language it is widely used, mostly in an oral tradition, among the Azeris In Iran . Many poets that came from Azerbaijan wrote poetry in both Persian and Azerbaijani . Renowned poets in Azerbaijani Language are Nasimi , Shah Ismail I (who was known with the pen-name Khatai ), Fuzuli , and Mohammad Hossein Shahriar . Fuzuli and Nasimi were probably born outside what is now Iranian Azerbaijan. Azerbaijani was the dominant language of the ruling dynasties of the Turkic rulers of the area such as the Ak Koyunlu and later it was used in the Safavid courts for a short time, until Persian was adopted, however, Turkic was used especially among the Kizilbash warriors. As a longstanding province of Iran ( Persia ), Azerbaijan is mentioned favorably on many occasions in Persian Literature by Iran's Greatest Authors And Poets . Examples: king, Bahram Gur is a great favourite in Persian tradition and poetry. Depction of Nezami's "Bahram and the Indian Princess in the Black Pavilion" ''Khamse'' ("Quintet"), mid-16th century Safavid era.]] گزیده هر چه در ایران بزرگان زآذربایگان و ری و گرگان All the nobles and greats of Iran, Choose from Azerbaijan, Ray , and Gorgan . —'' Vis O Ramin '' از آنجا بتدبیر آزادگان بیامد سوی آذرآبادگان From there the wise and the free, set off to Azerbaijan —'' Nizami '' به یک ماه در آذرآبادگان ببودند شاهان و آزادگان For a month's time, The Kings and The Free, Would choose in Azerbaijan to be —'' Ferdowsi '' COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES
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