The Azerbaijani Turks are one member of the larger Turkic nations. The area currently called Azerbaijan has fertile land and a pleasant climate, making it a destination for many immigrant tribes for centuries. After the passage of the nomadic Medes from the north through the Caucasus Plateau, a smaller group of Medes established a local government in the southern part of Azerbaijan in 705 BC, naming it Media Minor. One hundred fifty years later, the government of another nomadic tribe that migrated from the northeastern Caspian region replaced Media Minor. This plateau would later be called Persia, and Cyrus the Great was the man who established the Persian Empire in 559 BC.
The Turkic tribes and nations are indigenous to Central Asia, as well as the northern, western, and southwestern regions of the Caspian Sea. One of the three languages used in the Elamite inscriptions has Aral-Altaic roots, indicating a Turkish presence and influence in the area for approximately six thousand years.
Although Alexander the Great invaded the Persian Empire, Azerbaijan resisted the rule of his heirs. One of his commanders, Aturpat, led this resistance. Some scholars believe that the name Azerbaijan is derived from the Arabic version of "Aturpatkan." During this period, other Turkic tribes were also migrating to Azerbaijan. In 642 AD, Muslims invaded Iran, and afterward, Central Asian Turks conquered Persia, establishing their own dynasties. The Seljuks were the first Turkish dynasty to expand Persia’s territories into the Eastern Roman Empire. They also moved a prominent Turkish tribe, the Oghuz/Oghur, to Azerbaijan.
There were two other significant waves of Turkish immigration to Iran, especially Azerbaijan. During these periods, Azerbaijan was the center of power, with two cities, Maragheh and Tabriz, serving as the capital cities of Iran at different times. Later, in the Qajar dynasty (1794-1925), Tabriz became the residence of crowned princes until Reza Shah overthrew the Qajar dynasty and established the Pahlavi regime.
The issue of Azerbaijan should be examined from two perspectives:
The Historic Issue: This includes the presence and rights of Azerbaijanis in their native, historic lands, as well as the rights of other Turkish minorities who migrated there from across the Eastern Plateau for political or cultural reasons.
The Current and Legal Issue: This encompasses the natural, humanitarian, and legal rights of Azerbaijanis as the present inhabitants of the area, regardless of historical background. Azerbaijanis are denied basic natural and God-given rights. In a region that comprises one-third of the country's land and population, Azerbaijanis are prohibited from receiving education in their native language. The same restrictive policies apply to the other ten million Turks residing in various parts of Iran, including six million in Tehran. Additionally, government-controlled media outlets exclude printing, publishing, or broadcasting in the Azerbaijani language. This absence of education and media presence in their native language means that the government’s chosen language is being imposed upon them, causing their children to gradually lose their language, history, culture, and customs. Innocent people face arrest, torture, whipping, imprisonment, and even death for practicing these fundamental human rights.
In the following presentation, I will focus on the current legal and human rights of South Azerbaijanis, rather than the historical question.
Legal Issues of South Azerbaijan
Azerbaijanis are treated as second-class citizens and are pressured into an unwanted and unjust absorption into the government-imposed culture.
For thousands of years, Iranians of various ethnicities coexisted harmoniously through the country's historical ups and downs. From the early years of the Persian Empire, Azerbaijan was among the most significant, populous, and desirable regions of this vast, multinational nation. Each territory maintained sovereignty over its social and governmental affairs. Due to this multiethnic and multinational makeup, Cyrus the Great called himself the “King of Kings.” Each territory was comprised of tribes sharing a common history, language, culture, and customs. These territories, which lived in harmony under the great kingdom, were called Satrapies.
After Islamic forces conquered the Persian Empire in 643 A.D., they maintained this multinational system, merely adding Islamic laws. This arrangement involved appointing local commanders, called Hokkam (the plural of Hakem, meaning ruler or commander), to each Satrapy for 300 years.
When the Turkish dynasties later came to power after the Muslims were expelled, they continued to allow territories to retain their languages, rights, and dignities. In 1828, after a prolonged conflict with Russia, Azerbaijan was divided, and the area north of the Araz River, now the Republic of Azerbaijan, was ceded to Russia.
Following World War I, this region of the Middle East became a center of constant struggle. Leaders of France, the Ottoman Empire, and Russia discussed and negotiated potential invasions of India, then a British colony. England, fearing such an act, remembered that two centuries earlier, Iran, under Nader Afshar (founder of the Afsharid dynasty), had invaded India. England’s goal was to make Iran a defensive barrier against the ambitions of those seeking to invade India. However, Ahmad Shah was seen as unqualified and unreliable for this task, and British policymakers lacked confidence in him.
Reza Shah emerged in response to this need. General Ironside of England met with Reza Shah, then a Kazakh commander, in Qazvin, and facilitated his rise to administrative power alongside four commanders. The brokers of this transition were Seyyed Zia Tabatabaie, a pro-English politician, and Mr. Riporter, an Indian citizen who, along with his family, later influenced both Reza Shah’s and Mohammad Reza Shah’s decisions. At this meeting, General Ironside made two requests of his new agent, Reza Shah: first, that the Qajar dynasty remain intact, with Reza acting as commander-in-chief and prime minister within the dynasty, and second, that Azerbaijan never be allowed to lead the country.
During the British colonial period, or its intended colonial era, Azerbaijan had been the principal force of national resistance. Notable instances include resisting England's attempts to secure railroad and tobacco rights, dividing the country into two or three zones (1917 and 1919), and leading the movement to enforce the constitution around 1908. Azerbaijanis, particularly those in Tabriz, spearheaded this constitutional movement with a strong passion for freedom. The impact of this movement was so profound that Mr. Baskerville, an American instructor in Tabriz and a true supporter of freedom, joined the Azerbaijanis against the Tehran government and ultimately lost his life fighting for their cause. His name remains a symbol of freedom and a reminder of American values to Azerbaijani Turks.
Reza Shah only partially fulfilled General Ironside’s requests. Shortly after the coup, he was tempted by power and overthrew the king, crowning himself as the new ruler under the Pahlavi dynasty. He adopted the name "Pahlavi" to connect himself to the pre-Islamic Sassanid Empire, targeting Azerbaijanis and other Turks within Iran. He committed himself to eradicating Islamic customs from society, and Iranians paid a steep price for his extreme anti-Turk, anti-Islam policies.
Using people’s desire for peace and security, Reza Shah centralized all authority, renaming the country “Iran” (land of the Aryans). Seeking scapegoats for national issues, he targeted Islam and Turks, fostering prejudice and discrimination against Azerbaijani and other Turkic communities. His policies spurred propaganda that promoted ancient Persian pride and positioned the "Aryan" race as superior, unjustly blaming non-Aryans for social and economic problems.
For millennia, this multiethnic country’s diverse communities had lived peacefully, respecting each other’s cultures and identities. After Iranians adopted Islam, three main languages coexisted in the country: Arabic (religion and science), Persian (administration and arts), and Turkish (imperial courts and military). When the constitution was drafted in the late 19th century, Persian was declared the "common" language, and the preservation of other languages was encouraged. However, Reza Shah changed "common" to "official," stripping the rights of non-Persian speakers, who made up 65% of the population. His policies incited ethnic strife, disregarding cultural diversity.
Reza Shah held a particular animosity toward Turks, as the previous Qajar dynasty was Turkic, and prominent politicians, such as Dr. Mossadegh, were from the Qajar dynasty. Uneducated and politically inexperienced, Reza Shah naturally felt threatened by them.
Influenced by Hitler, Reza Shah imitated his style and, though unable to match Nazi destruction, pursued linguistic and cultural suppression. He aimed to eliminate Azerbaijan’s economy and cultural identity, knowing that restricting language and education would gradually lead to forced assimilation. Reza Shah’s admiration for Hitler’s ideals eventually prompted the Allied invasion of Iran during World War II, leading to his exile and the appointment of his son, Mohammad Reza, as king.
Mohammad Reza struggled and was ultimately overthrown by the nationalist leader Dr. Mossadegh, a Qajar prince. The infamous coup, coordinated by Kermit Roosevelt with British and American support, restored Mohammad Reza to power. Following the so-called “White Revolution,” dictated by the White House and the United Nations, and influenced by American Cold War policies, Mohammad Reza received U.S. support, which he squandered on excessive displays of wealth. He crowned himself “King of Kings” and assumed the title Aryamehr ("Light of the Aryan Nation"), effectively authorizing his government to continue marginalizing Azerbaijanis and other Turks.
When Mohammad Reza took power, Tabriz was Iran’s second most important city economically. However, by the time of the Islamic Revolution, it had fallen to seventeenth place. Any effort by Azerbaijanis to preserve their identity, language, and culture was branded as pro-communist, and people were imprisoned or killed under accusations of Soviet espionage. History, however, proved the opposite.
Conclusion
The historical and contemporary struggles of the Azerbaijani Turks reflect their ongoing fight for cultural identity, political representation, and basic human rights. These struggles arise from the modern socio-historical context and the early 20th-century formation of the modern nation-state in Iran, which is rooted in Aryanist and Persian-centric ideology. Despite their long-standing presence in the region, Turks have faced systemic oppression and cultural suppression, particularly under regimes that have prioritized a singular national narrative over the rich diversity of Iran's ethnic landscape. The denial of language rights, education, and media representation has led to the gradual erosion of not only their cultural and linguistic heritage but also their political and economic power and engagement. This situation underscores the urgent need for renewed advocacy and recognition of their rights as a distinct community, along with the creation of conditions that allow them to fully participate as a collective in democratic decision-making processes regarding issues that affect them and their region. Acknowledging and addressing these issues is vital for creating an inclusive society where all ethnicities can thrive and contribute to the rich cultural mosaic of Iran. The resilience and determination of the Azerbaijani people serve as a testament to their enduring quest for justice, equality, and recognition in the face of adversity.