During the Second World War and after, the Azerbaijan SSR, as a petroleum producer, was important in the energy policy of the Soviet Union. Following the politics of reforms called "glasnost", started by the leader of the Soviet Union Mikhail Gorbachev, riots and ethnic fighting grew in various regions of the Soviet Union, including Nagorno-Karabakh, a region of the Azerbaijan SSR. The disturbances in Azerbaijan, in response to the Soviet government's lack of response to the already tense conflict between the Azerbaijanis and Armenians, resulted in calls for independence and secession, which resulted in the massacre known as "Black January" in the capital Baku in January 1990. Azerbaijan eventually declared independence on October 18, 1991. The Soviet Union was ended on December 25, 1991.
When Azerbaijan became independent, the conflict with Armenia over Nagorno-Karabakh turned into the Nagorno-Karabakh War in 1991-1994.
The politician Heydar Aliyev became the President of Azerbaijan in 1993 and successfully stabilized the country and a ceasefire between Azerbaijan and Armenia was signed in 1994, which paused the war. However, 20 % of Azerbaijan remained occupied by the Armenian military and the two countries were in a state of war, until November, 2020. Nevertheless, representatives of the governments of Armenia and Azerbaijan have since been holding peace talks organized by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) "Minsk Group" to solve the conflict and restore the territory to Azerbaijan. When Heydar Aliyev died in 2003, his son Ilham Aliyev became the President of Azerbaijan and is continuing his father's policies today. As an important producer of petroleum and natural gas, Azerbaijan's economy is increasing very rapidly every year, and has become rich as a result.
Marilyn Chambers
Marilyn Ann Chambers (April 22, 1952 - April 12, 2009) was an American pornographic actress, exotic dancer and fashion model. She was born Marilyn Ann Briggs in Providence, Rhode Island. She was raised in Westport, Connecticut. She was notable for performing in many pornographic movies, including "Behind the Green Door" and mainstream movies, including "Rabid". Chambers died in Santa Clarita, California due to cerebral hemorrhage and aneurysm cause by heart disease.
Sistan
Sīstān () is a border region in eastern Iran (Sistan and Baluchestan Province) and southern Afghanistan (Nimroz, Kandahar and Zabul provinces).
Sistan was once the homeland of Sakas, a Scythian tribe of Iranic origin. The Saffarids, one of the early Iranian dynasties of the Islamic era, were first from Sistan.
Saffarid dynasty
The Saffarids or the Saffarid dynasty () was a Persian empire. They ruled in Sistan from 861–1002. Sistan was a historical region in southeastern Iran, southwestern Afghanistan and northwestern Pakistan. Their capital was Zaranj, located in present-day Afghanistan.
Bukhara
Bukhara (; ; ) is the capital of the Bukhara Province of Uzbekistan. It is the nation's fifth-largest city. It had about 263,400 people at the 2009 census. People have lived in the area for at least five millennia, and the city has existed for half that time. The city is on the Silk Road. That made it a center of trade, scholarship, culture, and religion. The historic center of Bukhara, which has many mosques and madrassas, is listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. There are many Uzbeks and Tajiks. The city has Jews and other ethnic minorities.
Bukhara was called "Bokhara" in 19th and early 20th century English publications and as "Buhe/Puhe"（捕喝） in Tang Chinese.
The M37 highway connects the city to most of the major cities in Turkmenistan including Ashgabat.
Many important people lived in Bukhara in the past. Most famous of them are:
Lashkar Gah
Lashkar Gah () (), also called Bost, is a city in southern Afghanistan and the capital of Helmand Province. It is located in Lashkar Gah district, and is between the Helmand and Arghandab rivers. The city has a population of 201,546 as of 2006.
Lashkar Gah is linked by major roads with Kandahar to the east, Zaranj to the west, and Herat to the north-west.
Football is the popular sport in Lashkar Gah. The Lashkar Gah Football Stadium was rebuilt in 2006. It can hold around 10,000 spectators. Currently, 13 registered cricket teams play at the new Karzai Stadium in Lashkar Gah.
Greater Khorasan
Greater Khorasan or Ancient Khorasan () (also written "Khurasan") is a historical region of Greater Iran. It also included parts of Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Pakistan, Uzbekistan and Tajikstan
Al-Farabi
Al-Farabi (persian: ابو نصر محمد بن محمد فارابي, / ;) known in the West as Alpharabius (c. 872 in Fārāb – between 14 December, 950 and 12 January, 951 in Damascus), was a persian scientist and philosopher of the Islamic world. He was also a cosmologist, logician, and musician.
Abū Rayḥān al-Bīrūnī
"Abū al-Rayḥān Muḥammad ibn Aḥmad al-Bīrūnī (born 5 September 973 in Kath, Khwarezm, died in the year 13 December 1048 in Ghazni), known as Alberonius in Latin and Al-Biruni"' in English, was a Persian-Chorasmian Muslim scholar and polymath of the 11th century.
Al-Biruni was one of the greatest scholars of the medieval Islamic era and was well versed in physics, mathematics, astronomy, and natural sciences. He did a lot of work as a historian, chronologist and linguist.
Timurid dynasty
The Timurid dynasty () or the Timurids, who called themselves "Gurkānī" (), were a Central Asian Sunni Muslim dynasty of Turco-Mongol lineage. Members of the dynasty were strongly influenced by the culture of Iran and had established two well-known empires in history, the Timurid Empire in Iran and Central Asia and the Mughal Empire in the Indian subcontinent. The Mughal dynasty was a branch of the Timurid dynasty.
Satrap
Satrap was the name given to the governors of the provinces of the ancient Median and Achaemenid (Persian) Empires.
Hotaki dynasty
The Hotaki dynasty was founded in 1709 by Mirwais Hotak at Kandahar, Afghanistan. It was made up of Pashtuns (ethnic Afghans) who belonged to the Hotak tribe of Pashtuns. They revolted and made their land independent from foreign ruler, but later they invaded Persia and defeated the great Persian Empire of the Shi'a Safavids.
Mahmud Hotaki, son of Mirwais, ruled Persia until he died in 1725 and then his cousin Ashraf ruled until 1729 when Nader Shah Afshar defeated him.
The last king was Hussain Hotaki in Kandahar until he was defeated by Nader Shah in 1738.
Notes
Himni i Flamurit
"Himni i Flamurit" (in English: 'Hymn to the Flag') is the national anthem of Albania. The words were written by the Albanian poet Asdreni ("Aleksandër Stavre Drenova"). The hymn was first published as a poem in "Liri e Shqipërisë" (in English: "Freedom of Albania"), an Albanian newspaper in Sofia, Bulgaria, on 21 April 1912. It was later printed in a volume of poems by Drenova titled "Ëndra e lotë" (in English: "Dreams and tears"), which was published in Bucharest. The music of the anthem was composed by the Romanian composer Ciprian Porumbescu. It's based on the song "Pe-al nostru steag e scris Unire".
The first part (stanza or verse) is always sung, the second part is sung on occasion, and the third part is never sung.
Albanian has historically been written in a number of different alphabets.
Telephone numbers in Albania
The country calling code for Albania is +355
For domestic calls (within Albania), 0 must be dialed before the area code. The prefix for international calls from Albania is 00 (for example for an United States number 00 1 ... should be dialed). Below is an explanation when dialing a Tirana number:
Albania has the lowest rate of telephone use in Europe. In 2008 there were about 10 lines per 100 people. Cellular phone use is very common throughout the country.
This is a list of area codes in Albania.
List of heads of state of Albania
This is a list of heads of state of Albania. The head of state is named President.