For Westerners, the modern state of Azerbaijan may be hard to pinpoint. This small, oil-rich country in the southern Caucasus, on the southwestern shore of the Caspian Sea, only made its way on to the contemporary world map after the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. As the world shrinks and competition for precious resources intensifies, the direction this strategically and economically important country takes will affect us all. The historically tolerant and pluralist Azeri people have an ancient history and a rich culture. Azerbaijan lay on the route of the Great Silk Road, the trade network that connected China with Europe, and its people have lived through centuries of conquests by different imperial powers. It was also situated in the heart of the Great Game, the struggle for control of Central Asia played out between Russia and the West at the turn on the nineteenth century, which seems to be going through a modern remake. Azerbaijan has been called "the quintessential borderland, many times over: between Europe and Asia, Islam and Christianity, Russia and the Middle East, Turks and Iranians, Shi'a and Sunni Islam." Azerbaijan was briefly independent after the First World War, when it was the first Muslim state to adopt progressive Western values. A democratic republic with full women's suffrage, it boasted the first women's high school, the first opera, and the first female opera composer, as well as the first ballet in the Muslim world. There followed seventy years of Soviet rule. After a bitter war in 1991-94, areas of Azerbaijan were occupied by neighboring Armenia, and the country has absorbed a huge number of refugees. At the same time, it is experiencing a new oil boom and the economy is growing. Among the people, there is a growing sense of national identity. Culture Smart! Azerbaijan looks at the many facets of this identity and explains the complex workings of Azerbaijani society. It will equip you with vital information and advice about the customs, practices, and sensibilities of a society poised on the brink of change.
Nikki Kazimova is a Baku-born cross-cultural trainer and freelance writer. Over the last ten years, she has been dividing her time between Azerbaijan and the United States, where she studied and worked in journalism and for media development organizations, including CNN International and the International Center for Journalists in Washington, DC. Nikki has worked for ExxonMobil in Azerbaijan, was a regional correspondent for Bloomberg News and the International Journalists Network, and was consultant to a number of non-profit organizations in Baku and Washington. She also managed the communication campaign of the Council of Europe's "All Different All Equal" program in Strasbourg, France. She was an adjunct lecturer at Khazar University in Baku, and conducted training courses for young journalists in partnership with international organizations. Nikki is an honors graduate from the Azerbaijan University of Culture and Arts, and has an MA in journalism from the University of Missouri-Columbia. She has also attended cross-cultural training, peace-building, and counseling courses at the American University in Washington, DC, the Catholic University of America, Argosy University, and the Interchange Institute.
