Architecture, and renaissance in literature go hand in hand through the excellent literary school of Nizami Ganjavi and Muhammad bin Suleyman Fuzuli. 

According to Academician Teymur Karimli, director of the Institute of Manuscripts named after Muhammad Fuzuli of ANAS, “Nizami Ganjavi and Muhammad Fuzuli are two peaks of Azerbaijani romance” and thanks to this magnificent cultural heritage and backdrop, Azerbaijan has successfully preserved intercultural heritage from Oghuz to Gabala, a northern city of Azerbaijan also known as Qabala, and from Ismayilli to Shusha (Şuşa).  

Oghuz is a majestic destination for cultural and religious tourism, a peaceful, picturesque town at the foot of the Greater Caucasus Mountains in north-west Azerbaijan. Visitors can appreciate a museum of local folklore housed in a charming Caucasian Albanian church; similarly, cherish the stunning views of surrounding forested mountains.

Oghuz, known as a place where Muslims and Jews have always lived in peace. The Jewish population reached its highest numbers in 1930-1933, with over 2,500 members. In the late 1930s, the city fell victim to a typhus infection and 200-250 Jews died and buried in the Jewish cemetery.  Genuine intercultural coexistence and inter-religious tolerance were constantly found as I traveled in December 2024, across many historic towns of Azerbaijan.  

The cultural mosaic of Azerbaijan is impressive and equally remarkable. While reading hundreds of pages of reports and historic chronicles, you understand more in depth how an emblematic cultural and religious tolerance took shape in the Republic of Azerbaijan, across the centuries, since the days of Ganjavi and Fuzuli all the way to the present. 

The historic and cultural heritage of Azerbaijan and indeed of any country is considered as the apex of a nation’s identity and its architectural wealth reflected in religious monuments, structures, is equally valuable and transcendental for future generations. 

In recent years, the preservation of Azerbaijani cultural heritage in Armenia has become a vital issue in the broader context of Armenian – Azerbaijani reconciliation. Cultural heritage sites, religious landmarks, cemeteries, monuments, and historical artifacts serve as powerful symbols of a shared regional history and community identity. 

Protecting, preserving, and restoring Azerbaijani heritage in Armenia could help to build trust and foster a lasting peace between the two nations, serving as both a gesture of goodwill and a step towards healing historical wounds. 

How should we regard the Role of Cultural Heritage in Peacebuilding? 

Cultural heritage sites are deeply meaningful symbols for communities. When such sites are destroyed or neglected, it can cause cultural erasure, deepening grievances and preventing reconciliation. Conversely, acknowledging and protecting these sites can foster respect and understanding, strengthening the foundation for lasting peace. For Azerbaijan, seeing their cultural heritage protected in Armenia would represent respect for their history and presence in the region, a step toward........

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