Gobustan District () is one of the 66

districts A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions ...

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...

. It is located in the east of the country, in the Mountainous Shirvan Economic Region. The district borders the districts of Shamakhi,

Khizi Khizi (, ) is the capital of the Khizi District of Azerbaijan. As of 2020, it has a population of 1,600. The city of Khizi is located on the southern slope of the Greater Caucasus mountain range. However, the mountains located in the city are not ...

, Absheron, and Hajigabul. Its capital and largest city is Gobustan. As of 2020, the district had a population of 47,400.

History

The name "Gobustan" originated from the word "Gobu", which means "beam" in Azerbaijani. The district's administrative centre, Gobustan was known as Maraza until 2009. The territory of the district belonged to the neighbouring Shamakhi District from 1930 until 1943 and later again from 1960 until 1990 when it was re-established. The ancient dwellings used to be in the area of present Gobustan which date back to the

Stone Age The Stone Age was a broad prehistory, prehistoric period during which Rock (geology), stone was widely used to make stone tools with an edge, a point, or a percussion surface. The period lasted for roughly 3.4 million years and ended b ...

Infrastructure

There are six kindergartens in the region, and 30 general education schools. There are 23 cultural centers, 3 hospitals and medical enterprises, and 6 big and middle enterprises.

Population

According to official statistics the district of Gobustan had a population of 46,100 inhabitants at the beginning of 2018; 36,700 of whom were living in rural areas.

Geography

Landscape

The territory of Gobustan ranges from the shores of the

Caspian Sea The Caspian Sea is the world's largest inland body of water, described as the List of lakes by area, world's largest lake and usually referred to as a full-fledged sea. An endorheic basin, it lies between Europe and Asia: east of the Caucasus, ...

to Mount Gijaki, the highest point in the eastern part of the Greater Caucasus. Peculiarities of Gobustan landscape are the rocks of lime and

sandstone Sandstone is a Clastic rock#Sedimentary clastic rocks, clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of grain size, sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate mineral, silicate grains, Cementation (geology), cemented together by another mineral. Sand ...

in the middle territory of the district, and

mud volcano A mud volcano or mud dome is a landform created by the eruption of mud or Slurry, slurries, water and gases. Several geological processes may cause the formation of mud volcanoes. Mud volcanoes are not true Igneous rock, igneous volcanoes as th ...

es, which are located in the east part of Gobustan.Schmidt, Sebastian (2009). ''Potential Analysis for Further Nature Conservation in Azerbaijan: A Spatial and Political Investment Strategy''. Greifswald: Geozon Science Media. .

Climate

Gobustan has a semi-arid climate, with mild winters and hot summers. There are rain seasons in early spring and late autumn. The annual precipitation is 250 mm. The western part of Gobustan is more precipitated in autumn and spring than the eastern part of Gobustan since Kura lowlands cover the western part. The highest mean temperature is observed in July (32 C) and the lowest mean temperature occurs in January (-1.6 C).

Flora

Gobustan has a rich flora with 470 different plant species; in all of Azerbaijan there are 4000 different plant species. The vegetation of Gobustan has desert and semi-desert characteristics. Wild rose, Hibernian honeysuckle, wild pear, wild pomegranate, wild fig, and juniper can be found in Gobustan.

Fauna

There are approximately 110 wild bird species in the Gobustan region. 53 of them are included in special European conversation concern, 9 of them are included in the Azerbaijan Red Data Book, and 9 of them are listed by the International Union for Conversation of Nature ( IUNC). There are 28 different

mammal A mammal () is a vertebrate animal of the Class (biology), class Mammalia (). Mammals are characterised by the presence of milk-producing mammary glands for feeding their young, a broad neocortex region of the brain, fur or hair, and three ...

species in Gobustan. Two of them are included in the Azerbaijan Red Book, and one species is listed in the IUCN. There are two different types of

amphibian Amphibians are ectothermic, anamniote, anamniotic, tetrapod, four-limbed vertebrate animals that constitute the class (biology), class Amphibia. In its broadest sense, it is a paraphyletic group encompassing all Tetrapod, tetrapods, but excl ...

s and 20 different species of reptiles. ''Testudo greaca'' is included in the Red Book Data of Azerbaijan and IUCN.

Economy

Agriculture

Agriculture Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created ...

is the core of the Gobustan economy. The most important agricultural product in the region is

grain A grain is a small, hard, dry fruit (caryopsis) – with or without an attached husk, hull layer – harvested for human or animal consumption. A grain crop is a grain-producing plant. The two main types of commercial grain crops are cereals and ...

. The annual production of grain is approximately 1 ton per person. Other major agricultural products are

potato The potato () is a starchy tuberous vegetable native to the Americas that is consumed as a staple food in many parts of the world. Potatoes are underground stem tubers of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'', a perennial in the nightshade famil ...

cabbage Cabbage, comprising several cultivars of '' Brassica oleracea'', is a leafy green, red (purple), or white (pale green) biennial plant grown as an annual vegetable crop for its dense-leaved heads. It is descended from the wild cabbage ( ''B.& ...

tomato The tomato (, ), ''Solanum lycopersicum'', is a plant whose fruit is an edible Berry (botany), berry that is eaten as a vegetable. The tomato is a member of the nightshade family that includes tobacco, potato, and chili peppers. It originate ...

grape A grape is a fruit, botanically a berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus ''Vitis''. Grapes are a non- climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters. The cultivation of grapes began approximately 8,0 ...

, pea,

sunflower The common sunflower (''Helianthus annuus'') is a species of large annual forb of the daisy family Asteraceae. The common sunflower is harvested for its edible oily seeds, which are often eaten as a snack food. They are also used in the pr ...

, and melon.

Court

Gobustan District Court was established in 1990; it is called Gobustan District People's Court and is subordinate to the Ministry of Justice of Azerbaijan SSR.

References

External links

Official District Website
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