User:HistoryofIran/Falsification of history in Azerbaijan

Falsification of history in Azerbaijan

In relation to Armenia
In a book published in 2007 by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of the Republic of Azerbaijan and endorsed by the Academy, the country of Armenia is presented as "Western Azerbaijan." It depicts all monuments in Armenia as "Turkic", "Turkish" or "Armenian-Turkish", such as the Roman Temple of Garni being connected to the "ancient Gargar Turks", and the Etchmiadzin Cathedral as a "7th-century Armenian-Turkish Christian temple". According to the scholar and sociologist Hratch Tchilingirian, "this kind of re-writing of "history" is based solely on sources produced by Azerbaijani authors, notably prominent academician and national figure Ziya Buniyatov, whom President Heydar Aliyev described as "the constructor of our identity and self-consciousness". This constructed narrative is echoed in the political discourse of President Aliyev and is woven into state policies, diplomacy, public relations, identity construction and, critically, in the construction of extreme anti-Armenianism in Azerbaijan."

The belief that Azerbaijanis have been and continue to be victims of Iranians and Armenians is planted in children through state-sponsored propaganda and brainwashing in schools. Thus, to create a sense of national identity, particularly among the younger generations, Azerbaijani nationalism mixes their story of victimization with a depiction of the Armenian opponent. This is especially clear in the school textbooks that also assign deportations, killings, and "genocides" to the Armenians.

In relation to Iran
Under the Aliyevs, Azerbaijan is making large-scale attempts to eradicate any traces of Persian cultural influence. This includes removing Persian-written tiles from the Nizami Mausoleum, prohibiting the publication of Azerbaijani poets' works in their original Persian, and removing additional Persian inscriptions from historic structures. According to Mamedov; "Ironically, in creating a history and culture for Azerbaijan, its leaders have appropriated Iran’s historical and cultural heritage, while claiming for them a Turkic character."

The Iranian rebel Babak Khorramdin, who founded his own cult and fought the Arabs, has been claimed to have been a "Turk" by Azerbaijan. Zoroaster, the Iranian prophet, is also claimed to have been a "Turk". They also claim that the Iranian New Year, Nowruz, has Turkic roots. Additional instances of Iran's history being appropriated are the assertions that the game of polo and the the tar string instrument were solely invented by Azerbaijan.