Zarnigar Derbentli

Zarnigar Derbentli was born in the second half of the 18th century and died in 1840. It is believed that she was the daughter of Haji Yaqub Bey, one of the nobles of Derbent. She received an excellent education for her time, engaged in horse riding and fencing.

Zarnigar started writing poems from an early age and took part in the deyishme (poetry competition) that are characteristics of Azerbaijani ashiq art. One of her famous deyishme was with Ashiq Loghman Khudatli. Later, she participated in a debate with Ashiq Valeh and was defeated. After this competition, Zarnigar and Valeh fell in love and got married. Zarnigar moved to Karabakh after her marriage.^[4]

Ashiq Zarnigar Derbentli died in 1840 in Abdal Gulabli village of modern Aghdam region. After her death, Ashiq Zarnigar was buried in the ancient cemetery in the village where she lived, next to her husband's grave. This poem is written on her headstone:^[5]

Ashiq Zarnigar's qoshmas, geraylis, tajnis, mukhammas, qoshayarpaqqoshma, varsagi, etc., written in the form of ashiq poetry as a syllabic verse, have been preserved until today.

The work of Ashiq Zarnigar was reflected in the research work "Azerbaijani literature" published in German in Wiesbaden, by the Azerbaijani scholar Ahmet Caferoğlu [az] in 1964.^[1]

The list of famous works of Zarnigar Haji Yagub gizi, who stands out among Azerbaijani poets from Derbent, includes "Gəl (Come)", "Valeh and Zarnigar" epic, "Taleh və Həqiqət (Fate and Truth)" and "Deyişmələr (poetic competition between Zarnigar and Valeh)" works.^[6]

The folk epic "Valeh and Zarnigar", one of the most famous examples of Azerbaijani oral folk art, was dedicated to the love of Valeh and Zarnigar. It is often performed not only at ashiq events, but also at weddings, especially in rural areas.^[7][8]

• Cəfərzadə, Əzizə, ed. (2005). Azərbaycan qadın şairləri antologiyası. Baku: Avrasiya press.^{[permanent dead link]}
• Nəsirli, Əfqan; Məmmədəliyeva, Samirə, eds. (2010). Aşıq qadınların antologiyası [Anthology of women in love] (in Azerbaijani). Baku: MBM.
• Гаджиева, С. Ш., ed. (1999). Дагестанские азербайджанцы. XIX — начало XX в.: Историко-этнографическое исследование. Baku: «Восточная литература» РАН.^{[permanent dead link]}