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Mirza Fatali Akhundov
Mirza Fatali Akhundov, also known as Mirza Fatali Akhundzade, or Mirza Fath-Ali Akhundzadeh (12 July 1812 – 9 March 1878), was a celebrated Iranian Azerbaijani author, playwright, atheist, philosopher, and literary critic who lived most of his life in the Russian Empire. He became famous mainly for his European-inspired plays written in Azerbaijani.
Akhundzade singlehandedly opened a new stage of development of Azerbaijani literature. Through Persian translation, his plays also played an important role in the birth of modern Iranian theater. He was also the founder of the materialist and atheist movement in the Republic of Azerbaijan and one of the forerunners of modern Iranian nationalism. He also advocated switching the Azerbaijani writing system from the Perso-Arabic script to the Latin alphabet.
According to the historian and political scientist Zaur Gasimov, the entirety of Akhundzadeh's intellectual landscape was "densely entangled with Persian thought". Akhundzadeh defined his kinsmen as Turki, but at the same time considered Iran his fatherland. Politically, he has been described as "a tsarist official of impeccable loyalty", and he viewed Russian rule as a force for modernisation in the Caucasus.
Belonging to a relatively wealthy family, Akhundov was born in 1812 in the town of Nukha (present-day Shaki), which served as the capital of the Shaki Khanate. A khanate was a type of administrative unit governed by a hereditary or appointed ruler subject to Iranian rule. During the Russo-Iranian war of 1804–1813, the Shaki Khanate was occupied by the Russian Empire, who had installed Jafar Qoli Khan Donboli as their deputy.
Akhundov's grandfather, Haji Ahmad, originally lived in Rasht in northern Iran before relocating to Tabriz in northwestern Iran. His father Mirza Mohammad-Taqi had previously served as the deputy of the nearby town Khamaneh, but was dismissed by the Qajar crown prince of Iran, Abbas Mirza. Mirza Mohammad-Taqi subsequently became a merchant and relocated to Nukha, where he married Akhundov's mother Na'na Khanum in the same year. Her uncle was Akhund Haji Ali Asghar, a Shia clergyman belonging to the Moqaddam family of Maragheh. Akhundov felt a connection to the contemporary Russian poet Alexander Pushkin, due to his mother's lineage, which included an African ancestor who had served under the Iranian shah (king) Nader Shah (r. 1736–1747).
In 1813, Iran and Russia agreed to the Treaty of Gulistan, which resulted in Shaki, along with other territories, coming under Russian rule. The following year, Jafar-Qoli Khan's death led many of the province's inhabitants—who had relied on his support—to migrate elsewhere. In 1814, Akhundov was taken by his parents to Khamaneh. However, Na'na Khanum eventually became dissatisfied with living among the family of Mirza Mohammad-Taqi's first wife, and in 1818, she decided leave Khamaneh, taking Akhundov with her. She went to Meshgin, where her uncle Haji Ali Asghar resided. This marked the last time Akhundov would see his father. Many years later, Akhundov attacked the idea of men having more than one wife as an evil and corrupting practice that not only oppressed women but also caused permanent animosity and friction between the wives and their children.
Akhundov was adopted by Haji Ali Asghar, thus becoming known as "Haji Ali Asgharoglu" or simply "Akhundzade". Haji Ali Asghar was in charge of Akhundov's early education, which included the memorization of the Quran, teaching of fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence) and Arabic and Persian literature. Akhundov first stayed in the village of Hurand with his mother and Haji Ali Asghar. When Akhundov became seven years old the following year, he was registered in a school. In 1825, Akhundov, his mother and Haji Ali Asghar briefly stayed at Nukha before moving to Ganja. Some months later, the Russo-Iranian War of 1826–1828 erupted.
Haji Ali Asghar and his family endured difficulties throughout the war, losing their possessions. Following the conclusion of the war and another Iranian defeat, Haji Ali Asghar and his family relocated to Nukha. There he continued teaching Akhundov Arabic and Persian literature. In 1832, Akhundov was sent to the Shah Abbas Mosque in Ganja to study logic and Islamic jurisprudence with the Shia theologian Akhund Molla Hossein. This was arranged by Haji Ali Asghar, who wanted Akhundov to become a Islamic clergyman.
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Mirza Fatali Akhundov
Mirza Fatali Akhundov, also known as Mirza Fatali Akhundzade, or Mirza Fath-Ali Akhundzadeh (12 July 1812 – 9 March 1878), was a celebrated Iranian Azerbaijani author, playwright, atheist, philosopher, and literary critic who lived most of his life in the Russian Empire. He became famous mainly for his European-inspired plays written in Azerbaijani.
Akhundzade singlehandedly opened a new stage of development of Azerbaijani literature. Through Persian translation, his plays also played an important role in the birth of modern Iranian theater. He was also the founder of the materialist and atheist movement in the Republic of Azerbaijan and one of the forerunners of modern Iranian nationalism. He also advocated switching the Azerbaijani writing system from the Perso-Arabic script to the Latin alphabet.
According to the historian and political scientist Zaur Gasimov, the entirety of Akhundzadeh's intellectual landscape was "densely entangled with Persian thought". Akhundzadeh defined his kinsmen as Turki, but at the same time considered Iran his fatherland. Politically, he has been described as "a tsarist official of impeccable loyalty", and he viewed Russian rule as a force for modernisation in the Caucasus.
Belonging to a relatively wealthy family, Akhundov was born in 1812 in the town of Nukha (present-day Shaki), which served as the capital of the Shaki Khanate. A khanate was a type of administrative unit governed by a hereditary or appointed ruler subject to Iranian rule. During the Russo-Iranian war of 1804–1813, the Shaki Khanate was occupied by the Russian Empire, who had installed Jafar Qoli Khan Donboli as their deputy.
Akhundov's grandfather, Haji Ahmad, originally lived in Rasht in northern Iran before relocating to Tabriz in northwestern Iran. His father Mirza Mohammad-Taqi had previously served as the deputy of the nearby town Khamaneh, but was dismissed by the Qajar crown prince of Iran, Abbas Mirza. Mirza Mohammad-Taqi subsequently became a merchant and relocated to Nukha, where he married Akhundov's mother Na'na Khanum in the same year. Her uncle was Akhund Haji Ali Asghar, a Shia clergyman belonging to the Moqaddam family of Maragheh. Akhundov felt a connection to the contemporary Russian poet Alexander Pushkin, due to his mother's lineage, which included an African ancestor who had served under the Iranian shah (king) Nader Shah (r. 1736–1747).
In 1813, Iran and Russia agreed to the Treaty of Gulistan, which resulted in Shaki, along with other territories, coming under Russian rule. The following year, Jafar-Qoli Khan's death led many of the province's inhabitants—who had relied on his support—to migrate elsewhere. In 1814, Akhundov was taken by his parents to Khamaneh. However, Na'na Khanum eventually became dissatisfied with living among the family of Mirza Mohammad-Taqi's first wife, and in 1818, she decided leave Khamaneh, taking Akhundov with her. She went to Meshgin, where her uncle Haji Ali Asghar resided. This marked the last time Akhundov would see his father. Many years later, Akhundov attacked the idea of men having more than one wife as an evil and corrupting practice that not only oppressed women but also caused permanent animosity and friction between the wives and their children.
Akhundov was adopted by Haji Ali Asghar, thus becoming known as "Haji Ali Asgharoglu" or simply "Akhundzade". Haji Ali Asghar was in charge of Akhundov's early education, which included the memorization of the Quran, teaching of fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence) and Arabic and Persian literature. Akhundov first stayed in the village of Hurand with his mother and Haji Ali Asghar. When Akhundov became seven years old the following year, he was registered in a school. In 1825, Akhundov, his mother and Haji Ali Asghar briefly stayed at Nukha before moving to Ganja. Some months later, the Russo-Iranian War of 1826–1828 erupted.
Haji Ali Asghar and his family endured difficulties throughout the war, losing their possessions. Following the conclusion of the war and another Iranian defeat, Haji Ali Asghar and his family relocated to Nukha. There he continued teaching Akhundov Arabic and Persian literature. In 1832, Akhundov was sent to the Shah Abbas Mosque in Ganja to study logic and Islamic jurisprudence with the Shia theologian Akhund Molla Hossein. This was arranged by Haji Ali Asghar, who wanted Akhundov to become a Islamic clergyman.