Nizami Ganjavi in ballet performances

Abstract

The epoch of the Oriental Renaissance (IX-XII centuries) gave birth to the greatest minds of mankind - scientists and poets, such as Firdausi, Rudaki, Saadi, Hafiz, Khagani, Jami, Navoi, Dehlevi and others. Among them the brilliant Azerbaijani poet and thinker Nizami Ganjavi occupies a special place.

After Azerbaijan withdrew the Arab Caliphate, Ganja was ruled by the Turkic dynasties of Sajids and Sallarids. Later from the middle of the XII century to the middle of the XIII century Ganja was the residency of the Atabek state or the Turkic dynasty of Ildeguizides. In the XII century, the city of Ganja, where the great poet was born and spent his life almost without leaving, was the intersection of the most important trade routes (the Silk Road, etc.) and became important economical and cultural center of the Middle East. The outstanding scientists –academicians E.E. Bertels, I.Y.Krachkovsky, A.E. Krimsky ( the author of article about Nizami in “Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary”), Azerbaijani scientists H. Arasli, J.Heyat, R.Aliyev and others, always emphasized the Turkic, namely Azerbaijani roots of Nizami Ganjavi creativity. So, Y.N. Marr (orientalist, son of academician N.Y.Marr) wrote: «the unvarying character of Turkic woman as poetic symbol of feminine beauty <...>, numerous aphoristical expressions, linguistic forms, peculiar for Turkic, Azerbaijani folklore, folk language (this feature is also often pointed out by specialists), many direct notices and inklings of poet himself–all these facts confirm that Nizami was namely Azerbaijani Poet and that hiscreativity has deep national roots. It’s no coincidence, that representatives of Persian intellectuals admit, that «Nizami wasn’t Persian poet. He lived and worked in Azerbaijani surrounding , so his poems are not understandable for Persians.¹ (р.266). Well-known Iranian scientist, Nizami scholar Vahid Dasgirdi wrote: « According traditions of Turks Nizami's body was buried in turbe».¹ (p.26).