BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 10. We consider the claims by Etchmiadzin and Armenia as a whole to the ancient Albanian heritage of Karabakh and adjacent territories to be unfounded, Artur Agadjanov, head of the Karabakh Christians Movement public association and co-chair of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Peace Civil Platform said.
He made this remark in a statement issued together with representatives of the movement.
"We are a group of Turkic Christians from Karabakh who currently live in different countries. For many years, we have sought to restore and preserve our ethnic and religious identity, which has been subjected to Armenization and persecution. Our movement has repeatedly appealed to the UN, UNESCO, European and other international organizations, asking them to help preserve our unique cultural and spiritual heritage. Unfortunately, over the years, we have not received the response we expected. Nevertheless, we remain hopeful and continue our work.
The recent visit by foreign diplomats to the Ganjasar and Khudavang monastic complexes in Karabakh, which are undoubtedly an integral part of the historical heritage of Caucasian Albania, has caused widespread resonance in Armenian society, within Armenian Church circles and among political figures. Discussions surrounding the visit are ongoing. Unfortunately, the Armenian side remains unwilling to acknowledge historical reality. Azerbaijan's restoration of control over Karabakh creates opportunities to study, preserve and revive its multifaceted cultural and historical heritage, including its Albanian Christian heritage.
We consider the claims by Etchmiadzin and Armenia as a whole to the ancient Albanian heritage of Karabakh and adjacent territories to be unfounded. The origins of the Autocephalous Albanian Church, one of the oldest in the Christian world, date back to early Christian preaching associated with Jerusalem and the apostles of Jesus. Christianity began spreading in Caucasian Albania in the first century AD. Under King Urnayr, the state of Caucasian Albania officially adopted Christianity in 313, making it an important unifying force for its population.
In the 18th and 19th centuries, the position of the Albanian ecclesiastical tradition underwent significant changes due to the Russian Empire's military and political expansion in the South Caucasus and its subsequent establishment of control over much of the region following two Russo-Persian wars, which ended with the signing of the Treaty of Gulistan in 1813 and the Treaty of Turkmenchay in 1828. Of particular importance was the Russian imperial authorities' decision in 1836 to abolish the Albanian Catholicosate and transfer its ecclesiastical structures to the jurisdiction of Etchmiadzin.
From that moment, the tragic process of de-ethnicization and Armenization of the Albanian people began. The Albanian population comprised representatives of various ethnic groups, including our Turkic Kipchak ancestors, who had lived in compact communities in southern Karabakh since ancient times.
In support of this, we draw attention to statements by renowned film director Karen Shakhnazarov, general director and chairman of the board of Mosfilm, who has publicly discussed his ancestors' origins in the family of Melik Shahnazar and their Turkic roots.
Our glorious ancestors, the Kipchaks, have always intermarried with the Udins and other peoples of Caucasian Albania, while avoiding closer ties with the Haykan (Armenian) people and church. Despite centuries of change, we seek to pass on the surviving elements of our ethnic and spiritual identity to future generations. We sincerely wish Azerbaijan success in rebuilding Karabakh, preserving its churches, including the ancient Albanian Church, and comprehensively studying the ancient Christian heritage of Caucasian Albania," the statement reads.
To note, the movement's members, who originate from Karabakh, have for many years advocated the restoration and preservation of their ethnic, cultural and religious identity, which they say has been subject to Armenization over the past two centuries.
Karabakh Albanian Christians, whose interests Agadjanov represents, identify themselves as Turkic Kipchaks who have historically practiced Albanian Christianity and later experienced church and cultural assimilation by the Armenian Church based in Etchmiadzin.
