Transmigration or deportation: the forced migration of Azerbaijanis (1948–1953) and the idea of creating a Greater Armenia

  

Dr. Vazeh ASGAROV
Doctor of the University of Strasbourg
Vice-Rector of the Azerbaijan State Petroleum and Industry University (ASOIU)
Email: vazeh.askarov@asoiu.edu.az

Keywords: deportation, migration,  émigration, identité nationale, Azerbaïdjan soviétique, résistance culturelle

 

Introduction

The events of the 20th century, such as the dissolution of the USSR, integration into Western culture, the rise of democratic pluralism, various political reforms and the transition to a market economy, led to the development of a new system of governance. These changes also opened opportunities to study many complex issues that had previously been inaccessible. While diaspora remained a relatively new topic, migration and resettlement have been ongoing for centuries. Despite the challenges faced during the Soviet era, interest in these subjects grew significantly since the late 1980s.

This study focuses on examining the historical event of the forced deportation of approximately 100,000 Azerbaijanis, often referred to as transmigration, from Armenia to Azerbaijan between 1948 and 1953.

Historically, deportation has involved the involuntary relocation of populations, frequently driven by political motives. During the Soviet period, Armenia pursued a policy of territorial expansion, often at the expense of Azerbaijani territories, employing systematic and deliberate methods.

Deportation in historical context

The term "deportation" originates from Latin, meaning the forcible displacement of individuals from one place to another. The concept first appeared in France in 1791, denoting the expulsion of suspects[1]. Initially, the term referred more specifically to revolutionaries who were exiled for life to uninhabited territories. According to the law enacted on March 23, 1872, France established specialized zones designated for deportation[2]. Similar methods of forced relocation were employed during the periods of the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union.

Deportation involves individuals who are deprived of their rights to reside within their original territory, those who have lost their nationality, or individuals residing illegally abroad. However, the deportation of one hundred thousand Azerbaijani workers between 1948 and 1953 deviates from traditional patterns, as these individuals were driven from their ancestral land, which they considered their homeland.

The armenian policy of territorial expansion

The Armenian policy aimed at creating a "Sea-to-Sea" (from the Black Sea to the Caspian Sea) Greater Armenia devoid of Turkish presence did not fully materialize; however, it succeeded in establishing an Armenian state. This project was predicated on the assertion that all lands historically inhabited by Armenians should belong to Armenia, based on the de facto presence or historical connection of Armenians to these lands.

During its 70-year governance under the Soviet Union, Armenia pursued a policy of territorial expansion labeled as "Armenia for the Armenians." This strategy involved enlarging Armenia's borders at the expense of Azerbaijani territories, employing various means to expel Azerbaijanis from their historical and ethnic lands. This systematic approach was carried out with methodical precision over the course of Soviet governance (Orbaki, Gandjali, 1991).

Demographic changes and return movements of Azerbaijanians and Armenians in soviet Armenia

Following the establishment of Soviet Union (USSR) governance in Armenia, a significant number of Azerbaijanis residing in Turkey, Iran, and Georgia succeeded in returning to their ancestral homeland (in Armenia), from which they had fled at the beginning of the 20th century due to ethnic conflicts. By 1922, despite numerous difficulties, approximately 100,000 individuals had managed to return to their native lands. According to statistics from 1926, the population of Armenia comprised approximately 743,573 Armenians and 840,717 Azerbaijanis (Arzumanli, Mustafa, 1998: 105-111).

Furthermore, the demographic growth of the Turkish (Azerbaijani) population, which accounted for 56.8% of the total population, increasingly concerned the Armenian authorities. During the years of repression in 1937 and 1939, thousands of Azerbaijanis living in regions near Turkey were accused of collaboration with the Turks and were subjected to deportation. It is estimated that over 50,000 individuals were deported during this period as part of these repressive policies (Arzumanli, Mustafa, 1998: 105-111).

Armenian Repatriation and Soviet Demographic Policies after World War II

Motivated by the desire to repatriate the Armenian community, the Armenian diaspora exploited the opportunity presented by the Tehran Conference in 1943 to engage with the USSR’s Minister of Foreign Affairs[3]. This initiative marked the beginning of the transmigration of Armenians residing in Iran and the USSR (Arzoumanli, Mustafa, 1998: 112-122). Joseph Stalin was receptive to this idea. In November 1945, G. Arutyunov, the First Secretary of the Armenian SSR, reiterated the issue of changing the status of Nagorno-Karabakh and reintegrating it into Armenia in a letter to Stalin. Conversely, the First Secretary of the Azerbaijani SSR, Mir Jafar Baghirov, responded delicately, asserting that Azerbaijan did not oppose the proposal on the condition that the border territories historically belonging to Azerbaijan, now situated within the Armenian SSR, the Georgian SSR, and the Daghestan SSR—where the majority of the population was Azerbaijani—be returned to Azerbaijan. The Soviet authorities were, however, not favorable to this idea (Arzoumanli, Mustafa, 1998: 112-122).

Following World War II, Soviet territorial ambitions toward Turkey, coupled with active Armenian support for this claim, led to tragic events for the Azerbaijani population. Stalin planned to facilitate the repatriation of approximately 360,000 to 400,000 Armenians, intending to proclaim to the world that Armenians had returned to their homeland, despite lacking sufficient territory for their settlement[4]. The Soviet Union, victorious in the war and confident of obtaining territories such as Kars and Ardahan, appointed A. Kochinyan as Secretary of the Regional Committee of the Communist Party of Armenia for the Kars region. Discussions regarding the territorial division of Turkey ensued, with an estimated 26,000 km² to be allocated—20,500 km² to Armenia and 5,500 km² to Georgia. However, Turkish policies thwarted Soviet plans. Furthermore, the USSR failed to repatriate the necessary number of Armenians living abroad, many of whom attempted to leave for other countries or even fled to Turkey (Qafarov, 2008).

 

On the resettlement of kolkhoz workers and other Azerbaijanis from the Armenian SSR to the Kura-Araks lowland of the Azerbaijan SSR

Vazeh Asgarov, 2022, p 148

 

In November 1945, the USSR Council of Ministers ordered the large-scale repatriation of Armenians living worldwide. A committee was established under the Armenian government to oversee this process, and diplomatic delegations were dispatched to countries from which repatriation was planned. By early 1946, approximately 130,000 requests for return had been registered. In 1946 alone, 50,900 Armenians returned to Armenia from Syria, Greece, Lebanon, Iran, Bulgaria, and Romania. This number decreased in 1947 to around 35,000 Armenians from Palestine, Syria, France, the United States, and Egypt (Qafarov, 2008). The Armenian authorities attributed this decline primarily to the insufficient availability of housing infrastructure to accommodate the returnees. Meanwhile, Moscow continued to receive daily lists of individuals expressing their desire to return to Armenia.

 

The process and implementation of Azerbaijani deportation (1947-1953)
The aftermath and political implications of the deportation

Under the pretext of sending labor to the cotton-growing regions of the Mil-Mugan- steppe of the Azerbaijan SSR, Azerbaijanis were forced to leave the Armenian SSR so that Armenians from abroad could settle in the liberated lands.

During Mr. Bagirov's meeting with Stalin on December 23, 1947, he expressed opposition to the law on the resettlement of kolkhoz workers and other Azerbaijanis from the Armenian SSR.

On December 23, 1947, the USSR Council of Ministers adopted Decision No. 4083 concerning the collective resettlement from 1948-1950 on a voluntary basis, 100,000 of kolkhozniks and other Azerbaijani residents from the Armenian SSR to the Koura-Araxe plain, located within the Azerbaijan SSR. The distribution of deportation should be as follows: in 1948 - 40,000 people; in 1949 - 60,000 people; in 1950 - 50,000 people. On March 10, 1948, the decision was complemented by its first decision No. 754, which outlined the measures to transfer Azerbaijanis.

The first part of the December 23, 1947 decision stated that between 1948 and 1950, "following the principle of voluntary departures," 100,000 kolkhoz workers and other Azerbaijani residents living in the Armenian SSR were to be resettled in the Koura-Araxe plain. In paragraph 11 of this law, it is stated: Authorize the Council of Ministers of the Armenian SSR to use the buildings and premises vacated in the context of the transfer of the Azerbaijani population for the settlement of Armenians coming from abroad." At that time, for the easy realization of deportation, Mir Djafar Baguirov was forced to take leave for health reasons. Starting from this date, all necessary measures were taken to implement the "expulsion" of Azerbaijanis from Armenia. In 1948, a total of 10,584 Azerbaijanis left Armenia to settle in various regions of Azerbaijan. Between 1948 and 1950, 34,383 people were expelled from Armenia. This large-scale population displacement continued until Stalin's death in 1953, after which the numbers began to decline (Vazeh Asgarov, 2022, p 148).

As per official statistics, 53,000 Azerbaijanis were relocated to the Koura-Araxe region alone. However, this is not a complete list of all those expelled from Armenia or forced to leave the country. Most mountain dwellers from the Armenian highlands could not adapt to the environment of the Mougan-Mil steppe; some died, others were forced to relocate to different regions. Thousands of Azerbaijani families were even compelled to emigrate to other Soviet republics (Vəliyev, Muxtarov, Hüseynov, 1998).

According to F. I. Golikov, Marshal of the Soviet Army, the transmigration of Armenian community and period of mass deportation ended in the first half of 1946. In subsequent years, it significantly decreased. Based on statistics from June 1948, 106,835 people had returned to the USSR, including 86,346 Armenians, mostly former émigrés from Tsarist Russia and Soviet Russia. Comparing the repatriation figures of 1947 and 1948 shows an increase of over 100% (Zemskov, 2010).

However, on September 21, 1949, the Council of Ministers of the Azerbaijan SSR requested Moscow to reduce the deportation to 10,000 people for that year. In 1949, 54,373 people were still displaced, mainly settled in Zerdab, Ali-Bayramli, Kurdemir, Goygol, Mirbechir, Salyan, Imichli, Sabirabad, and Yevlakh regions. In 1951, some of the deported Azerbaijanis returned to the Armenian SSR. Conversely, Armenians coming from outside the USSR sought ways to leave the country. After Stalin’s death, transmigration was halted, and an inverse process began (Vəliyev, Muxtarov, Hüseynov, 1998).

One-third of the deported persons, unaccustomed to this new climate and lacking adequate living conditions, died due to famine and diseases. They were housed in barns—some empty, others occupied by animals. Throughout the deportation period of 1948-1953, no Azerbaijani was allowed to settle in Karabakh or in territories with more suitable climates to their place of origin. After these events, the territories abandoned by Azerbaijanis were not occupied by Armenians (Arzoumanli, Mustafa, 1998).

It can be concluded that the forced deportation of the Azerbaijani people from Armenia was neither intended for the settlement of Armenians from abroad nor for the development of cotton in Azerbaijan. The deportation process ended with Stalin’s death. The specific outcomes of such terror include that during Soviet period every year, several thousand Azerbaijani students finished Azerbaijani schools in Armenia; most of them had to leave for other republics, especially Azerbaijan, to continue their education. Many young specialists, after graduating from other universities, could not find work in their hometowns, marking a new phase of transmigration of Azerbaijanis from Armenia (Vəliyev, Muxtarov, Hüseynov, 1998).

  

Declaration of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe

Vazeh Asgarov 2022, p. 329

On the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the large-scale deportation of Azerbaijanis by Stalin, on January 28, 2009, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe issued Written Declaration No. 419 regarding the massive deportations of Azerbaijanis from Armenia (1948-1953 and 1988). The declaration aimed to pressure Armenia to recognize and uphold the fundamental rights of deported Azerbaijanis to return to their historical homeland, Armenia (Vazeh Asgarov, 2022, p. 329).

From 1960 onward, Azerbaijanis occupying high-responsibility positions were replaced by Armenians. The second and third secretaries of regional (departmental) committees were dismissed from their posts precisely because they were Azerbaijani. The D. Jabarli Drama Theater closed until 1966. Various Azerbaijani-language newspapers were shut down and banned in several regions (Sisyan, Kafan, Vedi, Zanguibasar Kalinin, etc.). A series of publishing houses of republican ministries and departments also published Azerbaijani-language literature (Vəliyev, Muxtarov, Hüseynov, 1998).

More than the term ‘transmigration’ used in the USSR, it would be accurate to describe it as a systematic policy of repression against the Azerbaijani minorities living in the Republic of Armenia.

 

Conclusion

Analyzing the Azerbaijani deportations within the broader context of Soviet political and territorial strategies reveals a pattern of systematic population transfer driven by ideological, geopolitical, and demographic objectives. These deportations, characterized by forced displacement, social marginalization, and cultural repression, had significant humanitarian consequences, including considerable human losses and long-term demographic changes.

The case of Azerbaijanis from Armenia illustrates a targeted policy of ethnic reorganization, closely linked to Soviet territorial ambitions, and this policy persisted for several decades until mass migrations ceased after Stalin's death. The legacy of these processes underscores the importance of understanding state-driven population movements not only as territorial adjustments but also as complex phenomena with profound social and cultural implications. This historical case contributes to a broader understanding of forced migration as a tool of systemic repression and highlights the enduring importance of these events in shaping ethnic relations and regional geopolitics.

 

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2.     Arzumanliı Vaqif (2001) Azerbaycan Diasporu, Bakı, Qartal.

3. İbrahimli Xaləddin (1996), Azərbaycanın siyasi mühaciratı (1918 - 1991), Bakı, Elm. Qafarov T. (2008), Bakı, Elm.

4.      Orbakı Ramiz, Gandjali Aydin (1991), Garabagh entre le passé et le future III, Paris.

5.      Rizvan Nazim (2002), Azərbaycan diaspor tarixi, Bakı, Borçalı HPM.

6.     Tahirli Abid (2001), Azərbaycan mühaciratı, Bakı, Tural-Ə.

7.     Tahirli Abid (2007), Azərbaycan mühacir ədəbiyyatı (1921-1991), Bakı, Çinar Çap.

8.     Vəliyev Y., Muxtarov K., Hüseynov F. (1998), Deportasiya, Azıərbaycanlıların Ermənistan ərazisindəki tarixi-etnik torpaqlarından deportasiyası, Bakı, Azərbaycan Ensiklopediyası

9.     Vəlixanlı Nailə (2007), Azərbaycan tarixi II cild, Bakı, Elm.

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XÜLASƏ

Transmiqrasiya və ya deportasiya: azərbaycanlıların məcburi köçü (1948-1953) və Böyük Ermənistan yaratmaq ideyası

    XX əsr Dünyada gedən proseslər – sovetlər birliyinin dağılması, qərb ölkələrinin mədəniyyətlərinə inteqrasiya, demokratik ruhlu siyasi sistemin və pluralizmin yaradılması eləcə də bazar iqtisadiyyatına keçid yeni bir idarəetmənin formalaşmasına gətirib çıxartdı. Uzun müddət əlçatmaz qalan mövzular məhz bu dövrdən etibarən tədqiq olunmağa başlandı. Azərbaycanda diaspora mövzusu yeni olsa da mühacirət və əhalinin köçü əsrlər boyu davam edir. Buna baxmayaraq sovet dövründə bu mövzu uzun müddət əlçatmaz qalmış və yalnız 1980-ci illərin sonları tədqiqatçıları maraqlandırmağa və öyrənilməyə başlanılmışdır.        

 РЕЗЮМЕ

Переселение или депортация: насильственная миграция азербайджанцев (1948–1953) и идея создания Великой Армении

      Процессы, происходящие в мире в двадцатом веке - распад Советского Союза, интеграция в западную культуру, установление демократического плюрализма и политические реформы, а также перехода к рыночной экономике привели к формированию новой системы правления. Многие проблемы, которые в течение длительного периода оставались недосягаемыми, стали предметом исследования. Несмотря на то, что тема диаспоры является относительно новой, процесс иммиграции и переселение народов длился на протяжении веков. Хотя, эта тема оставалась труднодоступной в советскую эпоху, но с конца 1980-х годов стала объектом внимания и изучения исследователей.

 

 ABSTRACT

Transmigration or deportation: the forced migration of Azerbaijanis (1948–1953) and the idea of creating a Greater Armenia

The processes taking place in the XX century, namely, dissociation of USSR, integration into the West culture, establishment of democratic pluralism and political reforms, and transition to the market economy had given a way to the formation of new system of governing. A lot of problems that were unattainable till this period began to be investigated. In spite of the fact that the theme of diaspora was sufficiently new, the process of immigration and resettlement of people has been enduring for centuries. lthough this issue was arduous in Soviet period, from the end of 1980-es it turned into the object of investigations and studies.

 

 

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[1] Between September 25 and October 6, 1791, the first French Penal Code was adopted. Deportation was incorporated into French law with the same code. It was definitively abolished from French law under Charles de Gaulle in June 1960.

[2] Under Napoleon III, the law of March 23, 1872, replaced the Ducos Peninsula with the Vaitahau Valley for deportation within a fortified enclosure, and replaced the Île des Pins and Maré with Nuka-Hiva for simple deportation.

[3] he Tehran Conference, held from November 28 to December 1, 1943, marked the first meeting between Winston Churchill, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Joseph Stalin. During this conference, two significant military decisions were made: the planning of the Normandy landings on June 6, 1944, and the rejection by Stalin and Roosevelt of the British proposal for an offensive through the Mediterranean and the Balkans. Additionally, the conference addressed Soviet-Iranian relations.

[4] In 1947, the number of Armenians repatriated to Soviet Armenia from various countries was only 60,000 (Arzoumanli, Mustafa, 1998).