Mardakert District (, ; ) was an administrative unit within the former

Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast The Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast (NKAO) was an Autonomous oblasts of the Soviet Union, autonomous oblast within the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic that was created on July 7, 1923. Its capital was the city of Stepanakert. The majori ...

(NKAO) of the

Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic The Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic, also referred to as the Azerbaijani Soviet Socialist Republic, Azerbaijan SSR, Azerbaijani SSR, AzSSR, Soviet Azerbaijan or simply Azerbaijan, was one of the Republics of the Soviet Union, constituent re ...

History

The district was formed on 8 August 1930, as the ''Jrabert district''. It was renamed to Mardakert district on 17 September 1939. The administrative centre of the district was Mardakert. 3 urban-type settlements existed in the region: Madagiz (gained urban status in 1943), Mardakert (since 1960), Leninavan (since 1966). The district was the largest one in NKAO in terms of area and population. The Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast was abolished on 26 November 1991 and the district was renamed Aghdara (). On 13 October 1992, the Aghdara district was also abolished and split between the three neighbouring districts, with the western part being incorporated into

Kalbajar District Kalbajar District () is one of the 66 Administrative divisions of Azerbaijan, districts of Azerbaijan. It is located in the west of the country and belongs to the East Zangezur Economic Region. The district borders the districts of Lachin Distric ...

, the northeastern part into the Tartar District and the southeastern part into the Ağdam District. Following the

First Nagorno-Karabakh war The First Nagorno-Karabakh War was an ethnic conflict, ethnic and territorial conflict that took place from February 1988 to May 1994, in the enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh in southwestern Azerbaijan, between the majority ethnic Armenians of Nag ...

, most of the former district came under the control of the

self-proclaimed Self-proclaimed describes a legal title that is recognized by the declaring person but not necessarily by any recognized legal authority. It can be the status of a noble title or the status of a nation. The term is used informally for anyone declar ...

Republic of Artsakh Artsakh ( ), officially the Republic of Artsakh or the Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh ( ), was a breakaway state in the South Caucasus whose territory was internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan. Between 1991 and 2023, Artsakh cont ...

and was incorporated into its

Martakert Province Martakert Province () was a de facto province of the Republic of Artsakh, when it was ''de jure'' part of the Republic of Azerbaijan. The population was mainly Armenian. The province had 43 communities of which one was considered urban and 42 a ...

, while

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 ...

retained control of part of the eastern part of the district, including the urban settlement of

Maragha Maragheh () is a city in the Central District of Maragheh County, East Azerbaijan province, Iran, serving as capital of both the county and the district. Maragheh is on the bank of the river Sufi Chay. It is from Tabriz, the largest city ...

(later renamed to Shikharkh). During the Madagiz offensive of the

2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war The Second Nagorno-Karabakh War was an armed conflict in 2020 that took place in the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding occupied territories. It was a major escalation of an unresolved conflict over the region, involvi ...

, Azerbaijan recaptured north-eastern part of the former district, including the villages of Talish and Madagiz (later renamed to Sugovushan).

Demographics

References

{{coord, 40, 12, 55, N, 46, 48, 46, E, display=title Subdivisions of the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast States and territories established in 1930 States and territories disestablished in 1992