The Azerbaijan State News Agency

CULTURE

Khinalig - Azerbaijan`s ancient village

Baku, September 24, AZERTAC

Khinalig is the ancient village in Azerbaijan. The village is located an hour drive along a new road from Guba city. Khinalig has developed its own culture and traditions, and even its own language. The village is over 5,000 years old. For centuries, this village was cut off from the rest of civilization by the tall mountains and dangerous rocky cliffs. Due to the isolation, the villagers were able to preserve their own unique language, which doesn’t belong to any other language family, as well as their traditions and customs, found nowhere else.

There are about 2,000 people living in the village, divided into 4 families. Each family has its own graveyard and its own patterns for carpets and clothing. The villagers of Khinalig build their houses one on top of the other. In general, they resemble a multi-story house, where the roof of one house is the courtyard for the one built above it. There are 360 stone houses in the village, each of which is about 200-300 years old.

The residents of Khinalig are very religious. There are a lot of holy places not far from the village, such as the graves of saints, caves, and unexplored archaeological sites. Some of them were built as early as the Middle Ages. Dedicated explorers can find the Khydyr Nabi Tomb, Sheikh Shalbuza Mosque, Abu Muslim Mosque (12th century) and the Pirdzhomyard Mosque (1388). The local culture is preserved in the Historical and Ethnographic Museum of Khinalig, where visitors can find items used in traditional life and small exhibits about the history and customs of the local villagers.

With the construction of a new paved road in 2006, local life changed a lot. Tourists started visiting, and locals got a chance to leave the village. They buy goods in Guba, and trade homespun items, food products, and host and feed tourists who want to get to know this unique village. Khinalig became a little less isolated, though it still retains its unique character. In 2007, Khinalig became a state historical, architectural and ethnographic reserve.

Share news on social media

Follow us on social network

Trial of criminal case against Ruben Vardanyan continues

Kenyan Youth Champion visits Azerbaijani Embassy

State Secretary: Slovenia is interested in deepening bilateral relations with Azerbaijan

AMADA strengthens international collaboration at key anti-doping meetings in Bonn

Polish musicians steal show at “Winter Fairy Tale” International Music Festival in Gabala

Azerbaijan’s Central Election Commission holds meeting

Alessandro Nesta returns to coach Monza after Serie A club fired him in December

Azerbaijan, Slovenia explore prospects for cooperation

Illegal workers held in raids on UK nail bars and takeaways

Azerbaijani military pilots conduct training flights

China's tit-for-tat tariffs on US take effect

Dongfeng Motor shares surge as restructuring plans prompt merger speculation

® Nar supports the development of a sign language application in Azerbaijan

‘Complex’ tax system costs businesses £15bn as HMRC spending surges

Speedboat sinks off Indonesia's North Kalimantan, leaving one missing

From Ibrahim Traoré, President of Burkina Faso

Azerbaijan, Iran discuss prospects for development of military cooperation

Reservists’ training session continues

Japan hosts concert honoring Gara Garayev’s musical legacy

Jeff Wallace: Azerbaijan’s entrepreneurial landscape is on a promising trajectory – INTERVIEW

Kyrgyzstan’s Osh airport temporarily restricts flights due to thick fog

® Good news for those who get insurance through Birbank!

Foreign Ministry: Russian State Duma member Nikolai Valuev’s threatening remarks against Azerbaijan are absolutely unacceptable

UAE to install 500 EV charging stations by end of 2025

Bulgarian ID card named best in Europe

South Korea spy agency says DeepSeek 'excessively' collects personal data

NASA explores Earth Science with new navigational system

Vessel carrying 65 passengers capsized near Libya, Pakistani nationals onboard

It is entirely unacceptable for PM Pashinyan to present issue of Western Azerbaijan as a military threat – STATEMENT

World Bank: Per capita income in Azerbaijan surged 60 times in 30 years

Azerbaijan's table tennis players bag bronze in Croatia

ASCO vessels resume cargo transportation after stormy weather

Fossils found in south China identified as duck-billed dinosaur

President Erdogan approves Azerbaijan-Türkiye migration cooperation agreement

Nurlana Mustafayeva: Need for specialists in the Balkan region is growing - INTERVIEW

More flood victims evacuated in Sabah, 36 return home in Sarawak

1 dead, 1 injured in explosion at oil storage tank in Ulsan

Turkish President Erdoğan embarks on three-nation Asia tour to boost ties

Azerbaijani freestyle wrestlers claim five more medals at Zagreb Open 2025 Ranking Series

Vietnam’s digital economy expands rapidly, leading Southeast Asia

Oil prices surge in global markets

Eating just one egg a week could be enough to lower your risk of dying from heart disease

Unprecedented glacial flood unleashes 3,000 billion liters of water in East Greenland

Preliminary results show Ecuador to hold presidential runoff

Five BHOS students win Red Hearts Educational Scholarship

Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari meets Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Istanbul

Ten-man Leipzig holds off St. Pauli in Bundesliga

10-man Barca win to close gap on leaders Real Madrid

Azerbaijani beach volleyball players win silver in Latvia

Azerbaijani karatekas return from European Karate Championship with three medals

Hamburg reaches deal with logistics magnate to build new opera house

Azerbaijan Community: This is a direct provocation against Azerbaijan’s religious and cultural dignity

Azerbaijani boxers win six medals in Serbia

Common sleep medication may prevent brain from clearing 'waste'

The link between headache disorders and suicide—a 25-year Danish cohort study

Dozens killed in bus crash in southern Mexico

Concert of Azerbaijani composers' music held in Paris

Heydar Aliyev Foundation receives Hamdan-ICESCO Prize for Voluntary Development of Educational Facilities in Islamic world

"Diwani Lughat al-Turk" international exhibition opens in Kazakhstan

About 200 people relocated after fatal landslide in SW China's Sichuan

Astana hosts concert of Turkic peoples' music "Tamyr"

Hamas releases 3 more Israeli captives amid Gaza ceasefire deal

Pakistani GovInsider: Azerbaijan’s journey towards proactive e-services to citizens

Azerbaijan Army’s marines participate in AMAN-25 Exercise and AMAN Dialogue

Bayern Munich 3-0 Werder Bremen: Kane and Sane stretch Bundesliga leaders' advantage

“Winter Fairy Tale” International Music Festival kicks off with grand opening ceremony in Gabala

Azerbaijani delegation attends quadrilateral meeting on green energy cooperation in Türkiye

Pakistani teenage girl appointed UNICEF's Youth Advocate for Climate Action

Heydar Aliyev International Airport: Flight safety is fully ensured and all flights operate on schedule

Azerbaijan, Caribbean Community discuss cooperation

Italy does not sign against US sanctions on ICC

Missing commuter plane found crashed on Alaska sea ice and all 10 aboard are dead, authorities say

Italy’s Aeolian island residents spooked by quake

Gothenburg to host 2027 MTB Euro Championships

Trial continues for individuals of Armenian origin accused of committing crimes against peace and humanity, war and other grave crimes

Azerbaijan, Armenia exchange views on clarifying fate of missing persons

Nizami Ganjavi International Center hosts official reception on 12th Global Baku Forum

Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry outlines main priorities for 2025

President Ilham Aliyev attended inauguration of new park near “Ganjlik” metro station in Baku VIDEO

® Baku hosts conference on innovative digitalization solutions

Astana hosts 2nd meeting of Council of Turkic Culture and Heritage Foundation

SBI Markets: Azerbaijan's investment climate is positive - INTERVIEW

Tesla sales crash in Germany as CEO Musk continues political activism

Azerbaijani MPs to attend Sixth World Conference of Speakers of Parliament in New York

January 2025 transfer window breaks multiple records in both men’s and women’s football

Online sales of Azerbaijani products launch in Turkmenistan

Azerbaijan's figure skater grabs bronze in Italian tournament

Real Madrid legend Sergio Ramos signs for Liga MX's Monterrey

'Ionic wind' vortex ring launchers extinguish fires cleanly and safely

Azerbaijani freestyle wrestlers claim two more medals in Zagreb Open 2025 Ranking Series

Bank Respublika starts cooperation with Baku Higher Oil School

FIFA suspends Congolese Football Association and Pakistan Football Federation

6.0-magnitude quake hits south of Fiji Islands

Head of Presidential Administration Samir Nuriyev introduces new Minister of Finance to staff

Trump signs order imposing sanctions on International Criminal Court over investigations of Israel

The Order of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan
On appointing A.R.Aliyev as Minister of Labour and Social Protection of Population of the Republic of Azerbaijan

Two dead after plane crashes into vehicles on busy road in Sao Paulo

Azerbaijani Para taekwondo fighters aim for 'medal rush' in Turkish tournament

Somali Council of Ministers approves cooperation agreements with Azerbaijan

Severe weather disrupts air traffic in South Korea