Стр. 10 - Azərbaycan xalçaları

10
At the beginning of the Common Era, Azerbaijan endured one of the most difficult trial periods of its history
when the country was invaded by the Sassanid Empire in the third century and by the Arab Caliphate. Persian
and Arab oppression continued for about 600 years, but it could not destroy the ancient statehood traditions of
Azerbaijan. The development of the Azerbaijani people went on even during these unbearable years of hostile
regime and persecution. During this period, one religious view, that of worshipping Tengri, the main Turkish
god, was spread in Azerbaijani lands. However, this religious view did not manage to abolish other religions
altogether. Zoroastrianism, fire worshipping, worshipping Sun, Moon, and Sky, the stars, soil, water, and other
shamanistic traditions lingered. In the northern part of the country, especially in some areas of Caucasian Alba-
nia, as well as in the western mountainous regions, Christianity spread. Numerous Turkic peoples, who became
a powerful and leading military-political force in this complex historical situation, were the main carrier of Azer-
baijan’s statehood. The Turkic ethos and Turkish language linked the entire territory when monotheistic religion
did not exist. The Turkic ethos had a significant role in the protection of Azerbaijan’s statehood and the country’s
traditions of independence.
Map 1
Azerbaijan (4th Century B.C. - 3 rd Century A.D.)
Source: Azərbaycan tarixi atlası.
Bakı, 2007, s.14
rian, Akkad, and Ashur governments located in the Dejle and Ferat valleys, as well as with the Hat government.
As time went by, Azerbaijan’s statehood developed further and new governments covering larger areas were
established.
Beginning in the first millennium B.C. and continuing through the beginning of the first millenniumA.D., pow-
erful governments like Manna, Scythia, Massaget, Atropatena, and Caucasian Albania (Map 1) were found in
Azerbaijan’s territory. These governments played a significant role in the improvement of state management in
Azerbaijan as well as in the economic, cultural, and ethno-political history of the country and in the formation of
a united nation.