Azerbaijanis consider the Qara Qoyunlu to be Azerbaijanis, but the reality is different

As a result of the fall of Mongol rule in the second half of the 14th century, Armenia and the neighboring countries faced devastating invasions by various Oghuz-Turkmen tribes. One of these Oghuz nomadic tribes, that arrived in the regions under the pressure of the Mongols, was known as the Qara Qoyunlu, literally "Black Sheep." The initial area of migration and spread of these tribes ranged from the vicinity of Van in Armenia to Upper Mesopotamia. After the death of Tamerlane, the Qara Qoyunlu managed to occupy a dominant position and establish control over a significant part of Iran, Iraq, Armenia, and other adjacent regions. Tabriz became the capital of their state.

The Qara-Qoyunlu quickly fell under the Iranian cultural influence, similar to the Seljuks and Mongols before them. All official record keeoping of the Qara Qoyunlu state—including orders, historiography, and poetry-were entirely in Persian, with rare instances in Arabic.

Since the Soviet period, Azerbaijan has attempted to appropriate the historical past and Islamic legacy of the Qara-Qoyunlu, presenting their Turkmen tribal union and the state they created as Azerbaijani. Fortunately, this policy of "appropriation" of the history and the state of the Qara-Qoyunlu Turkmen tribes by Azerbaijan has not been accepted by scholars. It has been repeatedly condemned by Russian and Western historiography.

By appropriating the historical and cultural heritage of the Qara-Qoyunlu, Azerbaijanis are caught in a flaw. Presenting the Qara-Qoyunlu as their ancestors or their state as Azerbaijani, they inadvertently overlook the fact that these were nomadic and non-indigenous tribes. Consequently, according to their own thesis, they unintentionally affirm the nomadic origin of Azerbaijanis themselves.

While acknowledging the presence of Oghuz and Turkmen elements in the region, it is impossible to agree with attributing them to Azerbaijani origin or considering them as ancestors of Azerbaijanis, as such a fact simply does not exist.

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