2. Azerbaijan has no official religion, restricts religious freedoms, and maintains state control of worship
Azerbaijan’s State Committee for Work with Religious Associations gained direct control over imam appointments in March 2022, removing this power from the Caucasus Muslim Board. The government required all religious communities to register for legal operation.
Government authorities raided 20 Muslim home worship gatherings in 2022, confiscating religious literature and issuing fines. Officials detained multiple members of the Muslim Unity Movement, with 19 religious activists remaining imprisoned at year’s end.
The state refused alternative civilian service to conscientious objectors despite constitutional provisions.
Azerbaijan’s government controls 96% of its population’s religious activities in 2024, overseeing 65% Shia Muslims, 35% Sunni Muslims and 4% other faiths including Christians, Jews and Baha’is. USCIRF recommended placing Azerbaijan on its Special Watch List for severe religious freedom violations.
3. Natural gas flames burn continuously on Azerbaijan’s Abşeron Peninsula
Yanar Dag is a natural gas fire which blazes continuously on a hillside on the Absheron Peninsula on the Caspian Sea near Baku. The name translates to “burning mountain.” Natural gas seeps created eternal flames across Azerbaijan’s Abşeron Peninsula for millennia.
These natural flames influenced the development of the Zoroastrianism religion 2,000 years ago. The ancient faith centered its ceremonies around sacred fires in temples across the region. India currently has the highest number of Zoroastrians.
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Yanar Dag burns continuously. (Grandmaster, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons)
4. Azerbaijan produced 51% of the world’s oil supply in 1901 and the vast majority of the crude oil to the Soviet Union in the Second World War
Azerbaijan’s oil production reached 11.5 million tons in 1901, representing 51% of global oil industry. The nation accounted for 70% of the oil produced in the Soviet Union during World War II from 1941 to 1945.
5. Baku holds world’s largest collection of 2mm-sized books
The Museum of Miniature Books in Baku’s Old City, Azerbaijan opened in 2002 as Earth’s first private museum dedicated to miniature books. The collection contains 6,500 tiny books from 64 countries, earning the 2018 Guinness World Record for largest private collection.
The museum’s books measure 2mm to 10mm in size, including complete novels and religious texts in miniature form. Each book maintains full readability despite its tiny dimensions.
Visitor Information:
- Address: Baku, AZ1004, Icheri Sheher, 1-st Castle Lane, 67
- Opening Hours: 11:00a.m. – 5:00p.m., Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Closed on Monday and Thursday.
- Entrance: Free
![A miniature book at the Museum of Miniature Books. Learn more fun facts about Azerbaijan.]()
A miniature book at the Museum of Miniature Books.
6. Azerbaijan imports 12,000 tons of black tea annually for its 10 million people
Azerbaijan is known for its strong tea culture. The beverage is served in the traditional pear-shaped armudu glasses across the country.
Doesn’t that seem appropriate for the land of fire?
7. Azerbaijan gave women the right to vote before the United States did
In 1918, the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic granted suffrage to its 2.9 million citizens, becoming the first country in the Muslim world to give women voting rights. This beat the United States by 2 years and Great Britain by 10 years.
The Azerbaijan Republic’s national assembly included one female representative before Soviet tanks ended independence in 1920.
In 2024, 23% of Azerbaijan’s parliament consists of women representatives versus 29% of the United States House of Representatives (Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers).
8. More than half the world’s mud volcanoes erupt in Azerbaijan’s Gobustan region
The Gobustan region in eastern Azerbaijan has 350 mud volcanoes. Tectonic activity 20 million years ago created these geological formations along Azerbaijan’s Caspian Sea coast.
Toragay volcano rises 400 meters above sea level, making it Azerbaijan’s largest mud volcano.
Gobustan is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site, Gobustan Rock Art Cultural Landscape.
Mud volcanoes can be found in various nations around the world, including in Italy.
![Mud Volcano in Azerbaijan.]()
Mud Volcano in Azerbaijan
9. Baku’s capital district is 28 meters under the sea
Baku is the capital city of Azerbaijan. The city is located 28 meters below sea level on the western coast of the Caspian Sea, making it the world’s lowest-lying capital city.
As Azerbaijan’s largest city, Baku has a population of 2.3 million people, passing Amsterdam, Netherlands, to become the most populous below-sea-level urban center.
10. Azerbaijan’s Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic is the world’s largest landlocked exclave
The Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic is a landlocked exclave of Azerbaijan, covering 5,500 square kilometers between Armenia, Iran, and Turkey. It is separated from mainland Azerbaijan by approximately 50 kilometers of Armenian territory.
Nakhchivan’s residents live alongside Turkey to the west, Iran to the south, and Armenia to the north and east.
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The Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic is the world’s largest landlocked exclave. (Karte: NordNordWest, Lizenz: Creative Commons by-sa-3.0 de, CC BY-SA 3.0 DE, via Wikimedia Commons)
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