Culture

The Intriguing Postage Stamps of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic

Molla Nasreddin - the Man and the Magazine

Despite riding one of the most turbulent periods of Caucasian history, the Molla Nasreddin magazine remained relevant thanks to its bold sense of social conscience. It highlighted the hypocrisy of the Muslim clergy, the inequality of women, the imposed backwardness of the poor due to inadequate education and the unreasonable disdain of the Russified intelligentsia towards all things Azerbaijani.

The Azerbaijani Civic Nation: a Diaspora-based Language Education Initiative for Azerbaijani-Turks in Iran

Musicians Fleeing Russia Find a New Audience in Georgia

Omid the Lonely Love Bird

Holocaust Heroes of the Caspian Region

The Karabakh Nightingales

Legendary Georgian Vakhtang ‘Buba’ Kikabidze Dies at 84

Why Christmas Comes Later in Orthodox Countries

From Royalty to Republics through the Eyes of Ahmet Agaoglu

Ganja’s Burgeoning Café Scene

Sheki, Azerbaijan: The Remarkable Complexity of Modern Silk-making Unveiled

Imagination, Quality and Passion – Baku’s Dining Scene Continues to Develop

Tourism in the Caspian Region: What We Learned from WTM 2022

Basqal's Rebirth - How a Historical Azerbaijani Village is Getting its Groove Back

Gori’s Educational Seminary - The School that Changed the Caucasus

Georgia’s Shrinking Train Lines

Leila’s Violin

The Nobel Brothers and Azerbaijani Oil - A Pre-Soviet Tale

An Interview with Aria E. Torkanbouri: Azerbaijani-Turk Composer and Ethnomusicologist

The “Evil Eye” and Keeping Up with the Joneses in Azerbaijan

The Historical Background of Crimea’s Tatars

Georgia's Borjomi Fizzes Amid Water Production Dispute

A day after Georgia's government announced it had taken over a majority stake in the iconic Borjomi bottled-water brand, workers remain on strike and the precious liquid is running straight into the town's river.

Georgia’s “Stairway to Heaven,” the Katskhi Pillar

Starting a Virtual Book Club to Learn Her Own Language: an Interview with Nahid Jafari

Who Are the Tatars of Crimea?

Ali Javan, a Great Azerbaijani-American Physicist and Inventor

Azerbaijan’s Karabakh Horses Wow the Windsor Horse Show Again

Eurovision 2022

Stihia – Uzbekistan’s Middle-of-Nowhere Festival of Electronica

Ramazan in Azerbaijan – Not Only Religion, but Tradition

Sayat Nova - the 18th Century Caucasian Troubadour-poet Who Continues to Inspire

Garry Kasparov: the Chess Star’s Baku Years

What’s on your Table? Comparing the Region’s Nowruz/Novruz Traditions

The “Unexpected Gift” of March 8 - a Surprise for Ex-pats in Baku  

The Udi People of Nij, Azerbaijan

Bagh-e Sanghi – The Stone Garden

Khash: the Hangover Cure of the Caucasus

Fighting to Save the Art of Borchalo Carpet Weaving in Georgia

There are only a few dozen women who still weave the carpets, a unique art practised mostly by Georgia’s ethnic Azerbaijani community

Pir Shalyar – A Remarkable Festival in the Glorious Village of Howraman Takht

Street art in Georgia: Vandalism or self-expression?

Not so long ago Georgians would not hide their outrage at the ‘blemish’ of street art on the buildings and alleys of their capital. Now street art is widely accepted as one of the city’s cultural treasures — even as its legality remains murky.

Armenia’s Maléna wins Junior Eurovision 2021

Lasha “Limitless” Talakhadze Breaks His Own Weightlifting World Record… Again

History of the Caucasus: At the Crossroads of Empires – Book Review

Advocates Across North Caucasus Demand Reclassifications of Local Ethnic Groups

Saving Georgia’s Wooden Mosques

Kaspiysk’s Tourism Forum - the Latest Move in Dagestan’s Centenary Year Burst of Self-publicity

Iran’s Caspian Coast – Memories From a 1984 Journey

Mark Elliott remembers his first visit to the Caspian and ponders the apparent contradictions of seaside resorts where attractions include rain and the chance to swim fully dressed.

Azerbaijan’s Mountain Jews A Model For Jewish-Muslim Coexistence

In the picturesque region of Quba - the Jerusalem of the Caucasus.

“Voices of Peace” – the UK’s Azerbaijani Diaspora Celebrate and Dream of Healing in the Caucasus

Towerhouses of the Caucasus

Clean Air and Great Photography Brings a Whole New Visual Backdrop to Azerbaijan’s Capital.

Azerbaijani Cinema in Iran

Contemporary Architecture in the Caspian Region: Where's this?

Zoroastrianism: The Legacy of Ancient Wisdom Through the Centuries

Contemporary Architecture in the Caspian Region: Ashgabat

Contemporary Architecture in the Caspian Region: Batumi

Contemporary Architecture in the Caspian Region: Nursultan (Astana)

The Eighth Life – The Greatest Georgian Epic Since Rustaveli?

Contemporary Architecture in the Caspian Region: Baku

Pianist Beisembayev 'On Cloud Nine' After Winning Leeds Competition

Azerbaijan Music Day Celebrated in Shusha for the First Time

The Singer of ‘Separation’ Dies of Covid-19

A Snapshot of Shusha in September 2021

“Street” Culture in the Caspian Region

Geological Poetry of the Khizi Mountains

The Art of the Kelaghayi – Azerbaijan’s Unesco-celebrated Silk Scarf

The Caspian Post visits the ancient village of Basqal to see master scarf makers at work in a simple workshop that has captured the national imagination with its traditional craft.

Azerbaijani Activists in Georgia Want Family Names ‘Liberated from Occupation’

Georgia's Tusheti Region Is One of Europe's Last Hidden Gems

Remote valleys, mountain villages with stone towers, ancient gods worshipped at shrines: Few places in Europe look quite as primal as Georgia's Tusheti region.

The Fascinating Graveyards of Shamakhi

Photographer Orxan Azim visits three very different cemeteries around the Azerbaijani city that was once a great regional capital.

Regarding a French Onion Soup – Celebrating the Magic of Eating Together

The Dagestani Writer Who Isn't Afraid to Tackle Russia's Social Ills

Alisa Ganieva's ability to unflinchingly examine the problems of Russian society in her novels has found a large audience. Whether it's a politician's unexplained death or stereotypes about Dagestanis, there are few topics the 35-year-old won't touch.

The ‘Spirit Wrestling’ Doukhobors – Tracing a Russian Religious Sect’s Journey through the Caucasus to Canada

Azerbaijani Georgians Seek Recognition of Their Culture

Azerbaijanis, the largest ethnic minority in Georgia, say that Tbilisi neglects their culture while Baku tries to co-opt it. Now they are claiming it for themselves.

In Search of the Little Black Fish

Remembering the short but inspiring life of Samad Behrangi

Sari Gelin - Who Does it Really Belong To?

Rediscovering the folk song whose melody bridges cultures in a divided region.

Why Georgia Reminds Me of Scarlett O'Hara

“Scary Azeri” on her first first trip to Georgia – is it really more beautiful than Azerbaijan?

Am I Too Azeri for the TikTok Dance Generation?

Standing like that, with no inhibitions, not at all intimidated or worried about looking ridiculous- which in fact, she for sure did – who can do this

A Day with the Sheepshearers of Khizi

The Origin of the Name "Shusha"

In folk etymology, Shusha comes from ‘Shisha,’ a word for “glass” in local languages. This is thought to symbolize the startling purity of the fresh local air. It’s a pleasing myth.

The Caspian’s Culinary Kaleidoscope

This is truly a region where home-grown culinary traditions remain paramount.

The Resilience and Revival of Azerbaijani Jazz

It was jazz infused with an oriental ornament, a sound unique to Azerbaijan, with its complex eastern melisma, contrasting rhythms, improvisational in nature, yet following a set of rules - it sounded unlike anything else in the world.