Poles in Azerbaijan
Students and teachers of Polish School in Baku.
|
|
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| (2.000) | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Baku | |
| Languages | |
| Polish • Azerbaijani | |
| Religion | |
| Christian |
There is a long history of Poles in Azerbaijan (Polish: Polacy w Azerbejdżanie, Azerbaijani: Azərbaycan polyakları). Although the current Polish population of the Republic of Azerbaijan is lower than in former times, the number of people with Polish descent in the capital city Baku is around 2,000 and several thousand self-identified Poles live in Azerbaijan. Poles as an ethnic group have lived in Azerbaijan for centuries. The Russian Empire included Azerbaijan and parts of Poland during the 19th century, this was a significant cause of the Polish minority in Azerbaijan.
The Aq Qoyunlu Empire had established relations with Poland (later, the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth) for the first time already in the 15th century, then again at the end of the 16th and in the 17th century, although they didn't have a significant political impact. A substantial number of Poles can be seen among the missionaries who came to Azerbaijan at the end of the 16th century during the reign of Shah Abbas I in the Safavid Empire of Azerbaijan and Iran. The missionaries, often distinguished by knowledge of several languages, also tried to learn the local dialects. They wrote down observations of the living reality that surrounded them. In the 17th century, missionaries Paul Wroczyński, Jedrzej Zielonacki and Alexander Kulesza set up a mission in Ganja, in the 1680s. The activities of the missionaries were an important link in understanding and rapprochement of the values of East and West. Missionaries and their followers brought gifts to the court of Shah in the form of valuable paintings, illuminated manuscripts of the Bible, etc. They also raised the subject of positive associations with the Polish people.
The Poles began to appear in Azerbaijan from the 13th century on, mainly as abductees, captured by the Tatars, but also as those who came there voluntarily. Since the beginning of the 19th century, Azerbaijan was of interest to Polish travelers as well as romantic poets which can be seen through their work.
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Wikipedia