Azerbaijanis present Babak as an Azerbaijani hero, but the reality is different

2024-08-07

Soviet Azerbaijani historiography, presenting Iranian Atropatene as the "historical homeland of Azerbaijanis," attempted to portray well-known military figures in the history of the region's indigenous peoples as "Azerbaijani." One such military and political figure was Babek, the leader of the Khurramite movement, who was active mainly in Atropatene in the first half of the 9th century.

Starting from the 1940s, Soviet Azerbaijani historians have presented Babak’s movement as the national liberation struggle of the Azerbaijani people against Arab rule, and the image of Babak was introduced as a "national hero." The leader of the Khurramites of Iranian origin was considered in Azerbaijani historiography as a "symbol of the freedom of the Azerbaijani people," a "great Azerbaijani commander," and a "people's hero."

The leader of the Khurramites, who had Iranian origins, was a military figure who had absolutely no connection with the the Azerbaijani community and the state called Azerbaijan, which was created in 1918.

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