Zeynalabdin Shirvani
Encyclopedia
Zeynalabdin Shirvani (16 August 1780, Shamakhy—1838, near Jeddah
), also known as Tamkin, was an Azerbaijan
i geographer
, philosopher and poet
.
, now a city in Azerbaijan
). In 1785 the family moved to Karbala
(present-day Iraq
) where Zeynalabdin Shirvani was admitted to a religious school and studied mostly Islam
ic subjects as well as Persian
, Arabic
and Turkic languages
(Azeri
, Turkish
and Turkmen
). In 1796, he moved to Baghdad
where he spent a year studying geography, literature, philosophy, medicine, astronomy, and mathematics. At the age of 17, he went on his first journey. By the end of his life he will have travelled over 60,000 kilometres within 37 years.
and almost never visited Europe
. He was attached to his homeland and turned down many offers of local lords who were fascinated by his erudition and wanted him to settle on their lands (in Egypt, Turkey, etc.).
During his first journey, Shirvani visited what is now Azerbaijan
, Iraq
, Iran
, Turkmenistan
, Uzbekistan
, Tajikistan
, Afghanistan
, Pakistan
, India
, and Bangladesh
.
His second journey included Iran, Oman
, Yemen
, Ethiopia
, Sudan
(he is considered the last Eurasian to visit the independent Kingdom of Darfur
in 1820), Saudi Arabia
, Egypt
, the Levant
, and Turkey
.
Finally, on his third journey he travelled to Bulgaria
, Greece
, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Iran, and Iraq.
In between those journeys, Shirvani also went on several small trips within Iran and Azerbaijan. He wrote reflections on all of his travellings in four books (all of them in Persian
):
It is important to note that Shirvani accepted the possibility of making inaccurate statements, as he was often persecuted by Islamic feudals (who regarded his books as a "threat to the religion"), and a work on which he had worked for 25 years was stolen from him and burned by Muhammad Qasim of Gumsha. It took Shirvani a long time to partially restore the lost data.
in the early 1820s. He had two sons one of whom died early and the other, Husamaddin Ali, followed his fathers footsteps and also became a geographer.
In 1838, Shirvani planned a pilgrimage to Mecca
but died of an unknown disease on a ship near Jeddah
(present-day Saudi Arabia), where he was buried.
Jeddah
Jeddah, Jiddah, Jidda, or Jedda is a city located on the coast of the Red Sea and is the major urban center of western Saudi Arabia. It is the largest city in Makkah Province, the largest sea port on the Red Sea, and the second largest city in Saudi Arabia after the capital city, Riyadh. The...
), also known as Tamkin, was an Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan is the largest country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west, and Iran to...
i geographer
Geographer
A geographer is a scholar whose area of study is geography, the study of Earth's natural environment and human society.Although geographers are historically known as people who make maps, map making is actually the field of study of cartography, a subset of geography...
, philosopher and poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
.
Early life
Shirvani was born to a family of a Muslim cleric Isgandar Shirvani in Shamakhy (then the capital of the Shirvan KhanateShirvan Khanate
Shirvan Khanate was a self-governing khanate that existed in what is now Azerbaijan in 1748—1805.-History:In 1742 Shemakha was taken and destroyed by Nadir Shah of Persia, who relocated inhabitants into a new town under the same name about 16 miles to the west , at the foot of the main chain of...
, now a city in Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan is the largest country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west, and Iran to...
). In 1785 the family moved to Karbala
Karbala
Karbala is a city in Iraq, located about southwest of Baghdad. Karbala is the capital of Karbala Governorate, and has an estimated population of 572,300 people ....
(present-day Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
) where Zeynalabdin Shirvani was admitted to a religious school and studied mostly Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
ic subjects as well as Persian
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
, Arabic
Arabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
and Turkic languages
Turkic languages
The Turkic languages constitute a language family of at least thirty five languages, spoken by Turkic peoples across a vast area from Eastern Europe and the Mediterranean to Siberia and Western China, and are considered to be part of the proposed Altaic language family.Turkic languages are spoken...
(Azeri
Azerbaijani language
Azerbaijani or Azeri or Torki is a language belonging to the Turkic language family, spoken in southwestern Asia by the Azerbaijani people, primarily in Azerbaijan and northwestern Iran...
, Turkish
Turkish language
Turkish is a language spoken as a native language by over 83 million people worldwide, making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. Its speakers are located predominantly in Turkey and Northern Cyprus with smaller groups in Iraq, Greece, Bulgaria, the Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo,...
and Turkmen
Turkmen language
Turkmen is the national language of Turkmenistan...
). In 1796, he moved to Baghdad
Baghdad
Baghdad is the capital of Iraq, as well as the coterminous Baghdad Governorate. The population of Baghdad in 2011 is approximately 7,216,040...
where he spent a year studying geography, literature, philosophy, medicine, astronomy, and mathematics. At the age of 17, he went on his first journey. By the end of his life he will have travelled over 60,000 kilometres within 37 years.
Travellings
Zeynalabdin Shirvani had keen interest in exploring AsiaAsia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
and almost never visited Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. He was attached to his homeland and turned down many offers of local lords who were fascinated by his erudition and wanted him to settle on their lands (in Egypt, Turkey, etc.).
During his first journey, Shirvani visited what is now Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan is the largest country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west, and Iran to...
, Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
, Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
, Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan , formerly also known as Turkmenia is one of the Turkic states in Central Asia. Until 1991, it was a constituent republic of the Soviet Union, the Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic . Turkmenistan is one of the six independent Turkic states...
, Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan , officially the Republic of Uzbekistan is a doubly landlocked country in Central Asia and one of the six independent Turkic states. It shares borders with Kazakhstan to the west and to the north, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to the east, and Afghanistan and Turkmenistan to the south....
, Tajikistan
Tajikistan
Tajikistan , officially the Republic of Tajikistan , is a mountainous landlocked country in Central Asia. Afghanistan borders it to the south, Uzbekistan to the west, Kyrgyzstan to the north, and China to the east....
, Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
, Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, and Bangladesh
Bangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
.
His second journey included Iran, Oman
Oman
Oman , officially called the Sultanate of Oman , is an Arab state in southwest Asia on the southeast coast of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by the United Arab Emirates to the northwest, Saudi Arabia to the west, and Yemen to the southwest. The coast is formed by the Arabian Sea on the...
, Yemen
Yemen
The Republic of Yemen , commonly known as Yemen , is a country located in the Middle East, occupying the southwestern to southern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the north, the Red Sea to the west, and Oman to the east....
, Ethiopia
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
, Sudan
Sudan
Sudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
(he is considered the last Eurasian to visit the independent Kingdom of Darfur
Darfur
Darfur is a region in western Sudan. An independent sultanate for several hundred years, it was incorporated into Sudan by Anglo-Egyptian forces in 1916. The region is divided into three federal states: West Darfur, South Darfur, and North Darfur...
in 1820), Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
, Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, the Levant
Levant
The Levant or ) is the geographic region and culture zone of the "eastern Mediterranean littoral between Anatolia and Egypt" . The Levant includes most of modern Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Israel, the Palestinian territories, and sometimes parts of Turkey and Iraq, and corresponds roughly to the...
, and Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
.
Finally, on his third journey he travelled to Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
, Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Iran, and Iraq.
In between those journeys, Shirvani also went on several small trips within Iran and Azerbaijan. He wrote reflections on all of his travellings in four books (all of them in Persian
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
):
- Riyadh as-Sayahat (The Flower Garden of Journeys). It consists of two volumes written in 1822 and 1827 respectively. Parts of the book are now kept at the British MuseumBritish MuseumThe British Museum is a museum of human history and culture in London. Its collections, which number more than seven million objects, are amongst the largest and most comprehensive in the world and originate from all continents, illustrating and documenting the story of human culture from its...
and the St Petersburg branch of the Russian Academy of SciencesRussian Academy of SciencesThe Russian Academy of Sciences consists of the national academy of Russia and a network of scientific research institutes from across the Russian Federation as well as auxiliary scientific and social units like libraries, publishers and hospitals....
. Volume I contains brief historical overview of Iran (including a complete list of ancient and medieval royal dynasties, and biographies of MazdakMazdakMazdak was a proto-socialist Persian reformer and religious activist who gained influence under the reign of the Sassanian Shahanshah Kavadh I...
, BabakBabakBabak may refer to:* Babak Khorramdin , the leader of Khurramites movement who fought against the Abbasid Caliphate.*Babak *Babak Castle*Shahr-e-Babak in Kerman Province*Babek , Azerbaijan*Babek Rayon, Azerbaijan...
and of over 60 poets), as well as detailed georgraphic material on Iranian Azerbaijan, ArmeniaArmeniaArmenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
, ShirvanShirvanShirvan , also spelled as Shirwan, Shervan, Sherwan and Šervān, is a historical region in the eastern Caucasus, known by this name in both Islamic and modern times...
, TalyshTalyshTalysh may refer to:*Talysh people*Talysh language*Talysh Khanate*Talysh-Mughan Autonomous Republic - a self-declared autonomy, which existed briefly in the south of Azerbaijan in 1993*Talysh Mountains*Talış, Agsu, Azerbaijan*Talış, Hajigabul, Azerbaijan...
, Mughan, KhorasanGreater KhorasanGreater Khorasan or Ancient Khorasan is a historical region of Greater Iran mentioned in sources from Sassanid and Islamic eras which "frequently" had a denotation wider than current three provinces of Khorasan in Iran...
, AfghanistanAfghanistanAfghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
, IraqIraqIraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
, Gilan, Kurdistan, and Fars. Volume II (thought to have been lost but rediscovered in mid-20th century) contains similar information on Central AsiaCentral AsiaCentral Asia is a core region of the Asian continent from the Caspian Sea in the west, China in the east, Afghanistan in the south, and Russia in the north...
, Turkey, Arabia and India. - Hadaiq as-Sayahat (The Gardens of Journeys) is an alphabetised list of geographic localities (including states, cities and rivers) in the Middle EastMiddle EastThe Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
, and their detailed description. Shirvani worked on this book for 30 years. The copies of Hadaiq as-Sayahat are kept at the British Museum, the Bibliothèque nationale de FranceBibliothèque nationale de FranceThe is the National Library of France, located in Paris. It is intended to be the repository of all that is published in France. The current president of the library is Bruno Racine.-History:...
and a private library in Iran. - Bustan as-Sayahat (The Flower Bed of Journeys). This book was written in 1832 but was first published 65 years later. In the first three chapters of the book, the author talks about prominent Middle Eastern scholars, literati and clergy. The fourth chapter contains geographic, cultural and ethnographic information on virtually all regions visited by Shirvani. In Bustan as-Sayahat, he also mentioned countries he did not visit (mainly RussiaRussiaRussia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, FranceFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, AustriaAustriaAustria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
and the United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
) but has done research based on written sources of the time, as well as on his discussions with the scholars. At the end of the book, Shirvani introduces an educational program aimed at encouraging wealthy classes to sponsor education for talented youths who came from poor families, and proposed ways of facilitating living conditions for lower classes. The copies of this book are kept in the United KingdomUnited KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, Russia, GeorgiaGeorgia (country)Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
, and Iran. - Kashf ul-Maarif (The Discovery of Enlightenment) represents a rather philosophical piece of writing. It consists of Shirvani's biography in the preface, his meetings with famous scholars, and their beliefs and theories. The only copy of the book was discovered by Azerbaijani historian Agamir Guliyev in KabulKabulKabul , spelt Caubul in some classic literatures, is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. It is also the capital of the Kabul Province, located in the eastern section of Afghanistan...
in 1973. The book was never published and the manuscript remained at Guliyev's private library.
It is important to note that Shirvani accepted the possibility of making inaccurate statements, as he was often persecuted by Islamic feudals (who regarded his books as a "threat to the religion"), and a work on which he had worked for 25 years was stolen from him and burned by Muhammad Qasim of Gumsha. It took Shirvani a long time to partially restore the lost data.
Family
Shirvani got married in ShirazShiraz
Shiraz may refer to:* Shiraz, Iran, a city in Iran* Shiraz County, an administrative subdivision of Iran* Vosketap, Armenia, formerly called ShirazPeople:* Hovhannes Shiraz, Armenian poet* Ara Shiraz, Armenian sculptor...
in the early 1820s. He had two sons one of whom died early and the other, Husamaddin Ali, followed his fathers footsteps and also became a geographer.
In 1838, Shirvani planned a pilgrimage to Mecca
Hajj
The Hajj is the pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia. It is one of the largest pilgrimages in the world, and is the fifth pillar of Islam, a religious duty that must be carried out at least once in their lifetime by every able-bodied Muslim who can afford to do so...
but died of an unknown disease on a ship near Jeddah
Jeddah
Jeddah, Jiddah, Jidda, or Jedda is a city located on the coast of the Red Sea and is the major urban center of western Saudi Arabia. It is the largest city in Makkah Province, the largest sea port on the Red Sea, and the second largest city in Saudi Arabia after the capital city, Riyadh. The...
(present-day Saudi Arabia), where he was buried.