Martuni Province (, ) was a

province A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

of the breakaway

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 ...

, ''de facto'' and ''de jure'' part of the

Republic of Azerbaijan Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a 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 the Caspian Sea to the east, Russi ...

History

The territory was formed from the Soviet-era

raion A raion (also spelt rayon) is a type of administrative unit of several post-Soviet states. The term is used for both a type of subnational entity and a division of a city. The word is from the French (meaning 'honeycomb, department'), and is c ...

of Martuni District 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 ...

. The eastern part of that district is under the control of the

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 ...

. Martuni Province consists of the branch of the former Oblast which juts out farthest to the east, almost reaches

Stepanakert Stepanakert officially Khankendi is a city in the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan. It was the capital city of the breakaway Republic of Artsakh prior to the 2023 Azerbaijani offensive in Nagorno-Karabakh, 2023 Azerbaijani offensive in ...

on the west, and goes a little past

Karmir Shuka Karmir Shuka () or Girmizi Bazar () is a village in the Khojavend District of Azerbaijan, in the region of Nagorno-Karabakh. Until 2023 it was controlled by the breakaway Republic of Artsakh. The village had an ethnic Armenian-majority populatio ...

on the south. The western half has many hills and small mountains, full of small villages, while the eastern half is very flat, with fewer villages, and the larger regional center of Martuni. Historically, this area was also known as ''Myus Haband'' and ''Varand''. The Martuni Province has 35 rural communities and one urban community. In 1991, the

Azerbaijani parliament The National Assembly (), also transliterated as Milli Mejlis, is the legislative branch of government in Azerbaijan. The unicameral National Assembly has 125 deputies: previously 100 members were elected for five-year terms in single-seat co ...

, with the

Law on Abolishment of Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast The Law on Abolishment of Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast (or the resolution No. 279-XII) was a motion passed by the Supreme Soviet of the Azerbaijan Republic and signed into law by the President of Azerbaijan Ayaz Mutalibov on November 26, 19 ...

, abolished the Martuni District and forcibly consolidated its territory into the neighboring

Khojavend District Khojavend District () is one of the 66 Administrative divisions of Azerbaijan, districts of Azerbaijan. It is located in the west of the country in the Karabakh Economic Region. The district borders the districts of Lachin District, Lachin, Shush ...

. Following the 2023 Nagorno-Karabakh offensive, Martuni came under control of Azerbaijani forces on 26 September 2023.

Sites of interest

Amaras Monastery Amaras Monastery () is an Armenian monastery near the village of Sos, in the region of Nagorno-Karabakh, Azerbaijan. It was a prominent religious and educational center in medieval Armenia. Azerbaijan denies the monastery's Armenian Apostolic ...

, one of the oldest monasteries in the former Kingdom of Armenia.

Gallery

Dağ qaya.jpg,

References

{{coord, 39.7953, N, 47.1131, E, source:wikidata, display=title Subdivisions of the Republic of Artsakh Martuni Province 2023 disestablishments in Azerbaijan