Sumqayit
Sumgayit (
Azerbaijani:
Sumqayıt;
Russian:
Сумгаит; also,
Sumgait and
Sumqayyt) is one of the largest cities in
Azerbaijan, located near the
Caspian Sea, about 31 kilometres away from the capital,
Baku. The city has a population of 308,700 (2009 census), making it the third-largest
city in
Azerbaijan after the capital
Baku and
Ganja. The city has a territory of 83 km². It was founded on November 22, 1949.
[1] Two settlements are within the city administration:
Jorat and
Haji Zeynalabdin, a settlement named after oil businessman and philanthropist
Haji Zeynalabdin Taghiyev. It is home to
Sumqayit State University.
History
Sumqayit is located about 31 kilometers (approximiately 20 miles) northwest of Azerbaijan's capital Baku, near the Caspian Sea.
According to historians,
Medean tribes
lived in the area. During the construction boom, when the foundation of
the executive power building was being excavated, remains of an ancient
caravanserai along with personal items and kitchenware was found at the site. A popular legend about the city states that a
caravan
was passing by the area. A male by the name Sum and a female named
Jeyran, who were in love with each other, were among the travellers. Due
to a lack of water supply, Jeyran became thirsty and Sum went on to
look for water. Sensing trouble of losing Sum, Jeyran screamed
Sum qayıt, Sum qayıt
(Sum, come back). The city name is believed to have originated from
this legend. The first reports of settlements at the present site of
Sumgayit were in 1580, when English traveller H. Barrow mentioned
Sumgayit in his writings and in 1858, when
Alexander Dumas wrote about the area in his memoirs
Trip to Caucasus, although nothing substantial was created on the site until the
Soviet Union gained control over the area in the 1920s.
[2]
[edit] Contemporary period
Sumgayit Contemprorary Period Timeline [3][show]
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In 1935, the Soviet government decided to develop heavy industry in
Absheron Peninsula, and the future location of Sumgayit was chosen from its proximity to
Baku and its key position on existing railroad lines.
Between 1938-1941, a
thermal power station was constructed to power Baku's growing
petroleum industry. This was soon followed by more heavy industries. Due to
World War II the construction of the area stopped and resume in 1944, when
metallurgical and
chemical plants were constructed and put into operation. The first production of
Sumgayit Chemical Plant
led to a rapid growth and construction boom, creating a new job market,
and a need for a resident population. In 1949, Sumgayit gained official
city status according to resolution of the
Supreme Soviet of Azerbaijan SSR.
In 1952, a tube-rolling plant delivered its first produce thus
developing black metallurgy production in Azerbaijan. The same year,
another new
Synthetic Rubber Production Plant started its operations producing
ethylene obtained from
oil. Operations at
Sumgayit Steel Processing Plant and
Sumgayit Aluminium Plant
were commenced in 1953 and 1955, respectively. In 1957-1955, a number
of scientific research facilities and cultural centers were built,
leading to further development of the city infrastructure. In 1960,
authorities started building the Petroleum Chemical Factory, the largest
in
Europe at the time. From 1961 through 1968, a
brick producing factory, a
polymer construction materials industrial complex, a
phospohor production plant were built. In 1970-1980s,
light industry
and mechanical engineering facilities were added to the industrial base
of the city. By the end of 1980s, Sumgayit was already the center of
chemical industry of USSR.
[2]
[edit] Sumgait Pogrom
Main article:
Sumgait Pogrom
Also known as the
Sumgait Massacre,
the event was a pogrom that targeted the Armenian population of the
seaside town of Sumgait in Soviet Azerbaijan during February 1988. On
February 27, 1988, mobs made up largely of ethnic Azeris formed into
groups that went on to attack and kill Armenians both on the streets and
in their apartments. On 25 January 1988 the first wave of Azeri
refugees from Armenia settled in the city of Sumqait.
[3][4] On February 29, 1988, violence erupted against the ethnic
Armenian
population living in Sumqayit, setting off a series of killings
involving Azeris and Armenians. Approximately 26 Armenians and 6
Azerbaijanis died, with over 2000 injuries in 3 days of ethnic rioting.
As a result, the whole Armenian population was forced from Sumqayit. The
Sumqayit riots marked the beginning of the long-term stand-off between
Armenians and Azeris, culminating in the later
Nagorno-Karabakh War and continuing into the present. Later the city has become home to a number of
refugees mainly hailing from
Qubadli and
Zengilan regions from the war.
[edit] Environment
As a result of the Soviet planning of the industrial boom era, the
city became heavily polluted. Soon after Azerbaijan's independence, the
industrial sectors went into decline. The Absheron Peninsula (which
consists of Sumqayit,
Baku and the
Abşeron
rayon) was considered by scientists to be the most ecologically
devastated part of Azerbaijan. The city was known for its children's
cemetery, known as the "Baby Cemetery" which contains many graves of
infants born with deformities and mental retardation that were further
complicated by the lack of adequate medical care for the poor.
[5] Sumgayit was named as most polluted place on earth by the US based environmental group the
Blacksmith Institute in 2006 and placed on their list of
The World's Most Polluted Places by
Time magazine in 2007.
[6]
The report noted the former Soviet industrial base was polluting the
local environment with industrial chemicals like chlorine and heavy
metals. The report also mentioned
cancer
rates in Sumgayit were as much as 51% higher than the national average
and that genetic mutations and birth defects were commonplace.
[7]
The city administration prepared an environmental protection plan for
2003-2010 which has been steadily decreasing the levels of pollution to
minimal. The program oversees 118 activities targeting to minimize the
pollution on all possible levels of economic production. The program was
prepared with participation of all industrial enterprises in the city
and its enforcement is being regulated by the executive power of the
city. For instance, the amount of waste water from industrial production
went down from 600 thousand m
3 during 1990's to 76.3 thousand m
3 in 2005. Solid waste went down from 300 thousand to 3,868 tons a year.
World Bank has issued a loan to Azerbaijani government for construction of a burial range for
mercury waste.
[8]
[edit] Demographics
[edit] Economics
- Gross domestic product (million AZM): 614,800 (1 AZM = 1.25 USD[9])
- Gross domestic product per capita (AZM): 2,079.8
- Import (million AZM): 28,860
- Export (million AZM): 32,380[1]
[edit] Cultural establishments
During the Soviet rule of Azerbaijan, Sumgayit was believed to have the longest and cleanest sea side park in the republic. The
Culture and Leisure Park was laid on 23 ha of Sumgayit coastline in 1967. On August 17, 1978 the park was given the name of a distinguished
Azerbaijani poet
Imadaddin Nasimi.
Highway to seaside resorts in Sumgayit
The same year, the city administration raised the
Peace Dove
monument in the middle of the park assigning the city a symbol of
peace. The flora of the park includes 39 types of trees. Events of
1990's such as the
Black January tragedy and
Nagorno-Karabakh War, led to establishment of
Stars (Ulduzlar) and
20 January Monument monuments in the park. In the eastern section of the park,
Shehidler Khiyabani similar to
Martyrs' Lane
in Baku was established as burial ground for thousands of soldiers from
Sumgayit who died during the war. According to the Decree No. 132 of
the
Cabinet of Ministers of Azerbaijan dated August 2, 2001 the park was given the status of national historical importance. Its current size is 80
ha.
In addition to Nasimi Culture and Leisure Park, the city administration built
Ludwigshafen Park in 1997 in celebration of the 20th anniversary of
twin-city relations between
Ludwigshafen and Sumgayit. In 1999,
Heydar Aliyev Park and
Luna Park were built in the rapidly growing city.
[10]
Azerbaijan
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