Khurshidbanu Natavan

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Khurshidbanu Natavan
Mehdigulu Khan Javanshir

Khurshidbanu Natavan (

ghazals
.

Natavan was the daughter of

Mehdigulu Khan, the last ruler of the Karabakh Khanate
(1748–1822).

Life

Khurshidbanu Natavan with her children from first marriage

Natavan was born on 5 August 1832 in

Karabakh khan, known to the general public as the "daughter of the khan" (Azerbaijani: Xan qızı). Her name Khurshid Banu (Persian: خورشیدبانو) is from Persian and means "Lady Sun". Her pen name Natavan (ناتوان) is also from Persian and means powerless.[3] She was named after her grandmother - Khurshud Begüm, daughter of Javad Khan
.

After her father's death, she inherited vast amounts of land from her father including 1,315 households, 41 nomadic territories and seven villages, aged 14. She was put in the care of her aunt Gawhar agha who taught her music, poetry and painting.[4] She probably married Kumyk noble Khasay Utsmiev in 1847. She inherited an additional nine villages from her mother Badir Jahan Begüm in 1861 after her death.[5] She founded and sponsored the first literary societies in Shusha and in the whole of Azerbaijan. One of them called Majlis-i Uns ("Society of Friends")[2] founded in 1864 became especially popular and concentrated major poetic-intellectual forces of Karabakh of that time.[6]

Natavan was closely engaged in philanthropy, promoting the social and cultural development of Karabakh. Among her famous deeds was a

water main that was first laid down in Shusha in 1872, thus solving the water problem of the townsfolk. The local Russian "Kavkaz" newspaper wrote at the time: "Khurshud Banu-Begum left an eternal mark in the memories of the Shushavians and her glory will pass on from generation to generation".[7] The aqueduct built by Natavan from famous Shusha white stones were called by the townsfolks "Natavan springs" and were also considered historical monuments under protection.[citation needed
]

Natavan also did a lot for the development and popularization of the famous breed of Karabakh horses.[citation needed] Natavan's Karabakh horses took part in the Exposition Universelle (1867), agricultural exhibition in Moscow (1869), in Tbilisi (1882) and were awarded golden medals and certificates of honour. Karabakh horses were also awarded at the Second All-Russian Exhibition in 1869: Meymun - silver medal, Tokmak - bronze medal. At the Exposition Universelle (1867) in Paris, Khan got a silver medal.[8]

Humanism, kindness, friendship and love were the main themes of Natavan's

folk songs nowadays.[citation needed
]

Khurshidbanu Natavans Tomb

Natavan died in Shusha on 2 October 1897. She was buried in

2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war, French-Iranian Azerbaijani photojournalist Reza Deghati during his visit to Aghdam reported that the cemetery was destroyed and claimed that the tomb of Khurshidbanu Natavan was looted and her bones are missing.[9][10][11][12]

Monument in Shusha

According to the Azerbaijani government, a Soviet-era

Polad Bulbuloghlu, then the Minister of Culture of Azerbaijan bought the bronze busts from a Georgian scrap metal yard and transported them to Baku.[14]

Thomas de Waal who saw the monuments in Baku, wrote:

"I saw the three bronze heads, forlorn and pocked with bullets, lying in the courtyard of the headquarters of the

Red Cross in the center of Baku: the poet Natevan, an earnest girl in a head scarf reading a book, missing a thumb; the composer Hajibekov, a bullet-ridden gentleman in double-breasted suit and broken spectacles; and Bul Bul, a famous singer with a serious domed bronze forehead".[15]

The monuments were kept in the yard of the Azerbaijani Museum of Arts in Baku for many years,[16][17] with Natavan's bust returning to Shusha on 16 January 2021 after the city's recapture by Azerbaijan.[18]

Family

She probably married Kumyk nobleman, Khasay Utsmiev, in 1847 and had two children with him:

She later married a commoner named Seyyid Huseyn Agamirov (1833–1891) in 1866 with whom she had five children:

  • Mir Abbas Agha (1868–1885)
  • Mir Hasan Agha (1870–1903)
  • Mir Jabbar Agha (?–1914)
  • Sara Begum
  • Hajar Bike (1869–?)

See also

References

  1. .
  2. ^ .
  3. , p.84
  4. National Academy of Sciences of Azerbaijan
    . 1983. pp. 163–164.
  5. ^ Ismayilov, Eldar (2014). "The Khans of Karabakh: The Elder Line by Generations". The Caucasus & Globalization. 8 (3–4): 149–150.
  6. ^ Abasova, L. V. et al. (eds.) (1992) Istoria azerbaijanskoi muziki Maarif, Baku, p. 116
  7. ^ "Khurshud Banu-Begum" (PDF). "Kavkaz" newspaper. 29 August 1873. p. 100.
  8. ^ Yelena Volkova - Karabakh Horses (in Russian)
  9. ^ "Dünyaca məşhur fotoqraf ermənilərin Natəvanın Ağdamdakı qəbrini təhqir etməsindən yazdı – Foto" [World-famous photographer writes about Armenians insulting Natava's grave in Agdam – Photo]. Oxu.az (in Azerbaijani). 26 January 2021. Archived from the original on 27 January 2021. Retrieved 27 January 2021.
  10. ^ "Armenians vandalize Azerbaijani poetess' grave in Aghdam [PHOTO/VIDEO]". AzerNews.az. 2021-01-28. Retrieved 2021-03-12.
  11. ^ "Famous photojournalist Reza Deghati shared Instagram post on Armenian vandalism against grave of Azerbaijani poetess Khurshid Banu Natavan in Aghdam". azertag.az. Retrieved 2021-03-12.
  12. ^ "Məşhur fotoqraf Rza Diqqəti Ağdamda Natəvanın məqbərəsində törədilən vandalizmlə bağlı paylaşım edib - Xəbərlər". Azərbaycan Respublikası Mədəniyyət Nazirliyi. 2021-01-27. Retrieved 2021-03-12.
  13. ^ Natavan bust then and today Archived 2007-10-08 at the Wayback Machine
  14. ^ "Public Association for the "Protection of Right of Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons in Azerbaijan"". Archived from the original on 2021-10-09. Retrieved 2007-09-10.
  15. ^ de Waal, Thomas (2003). Black Garden: Armenia and Azerbaijan through Peace and War. p. 190.
  16. .
  17. ^ "Глава 12. Шуша. Последняя цитадель". BBC News. 12 July 2005.
  18. ^ "Rusiya Təhlükəsizlik Şurasında Qarabağ üzrə danışıqlar müzakirə edilib, Prezident İlham Əliyev və Mehriban Əliyeva Şuşada tarixi yerləri gəziblər" [The talks on Karabakh were discussed at the Russian Security Council, and President Ilham Aliyev and Mehriban Aliyeva visited historical sites in Shusha]. BBC Azerbaijani Service (in Azerbaijani). 15 January 2021. Archived from the original on 21 January 2021. Retrieved 15 January 2021.

External links

Media related to Khurshidbanu Natavan at Wikimedia Commons