Azerbaïdjanais survival kit

About this kit

Azerbaijani (Azərbaycan dili) is a Turkic language spoken by over 30 million people in Azerbaijan, north-western Iran and the diaspora. Since 1991, it has been written in the Latin alphabet, after abandoning the Soviet-era Cyrillic. With this kit, you have the bare essentials to find your way around Baku, the Absheron peninsula or the Caspian Sea.

Azerbaijani (Azərbaycan dili) is a Turkic language of the Oghuz subgroup, spoken by approximately 30 to 35 million speakers. It is the official language of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the mother tongue of a vast population in north-western Iran (Iranian Azerbaijan), Dagestan and the diaspora. It is very close to Turkish: both languages share much of their vocabulary and grammar and remain largely mutually intelligible.

The history of its writing reflects that of the country. In the early 20th century, Azerbaijani was written in Arabic script. In 1929, it switched to Latin under the influence of the Turkish reform. In 1939, the USSR imposed Cyrillic. After independence in 1991, the country returned to Latin script, with specific letters (ə, ı, ö, ü, ç, ş, ğ) that mark Azerbaijani phonetic specificity. Pronunciation follows the typical Turkic vowel harmony: the vowels in a word agree with each other.

Travelling in Azerbaijan means discovering a country at the crossroads of Europe and Asia, with Baku as its modern showcase and Icherisheher as its ancient memory. Tea culture, generous hospitality, Naftalan oil baths, mud volcanoes and the natural flames of Yanar Dag make this country a unique destination. This kit gathers the bare essentials to greet, find your way, order a meal and signal an emergency. You will also find cultural tips to respect hospitality codes, navigate sensitive topics like the Karabakh conflict and recognise the kinship with Turkish. Memorise these phrases before leaving and you will instantly win the sympathy of your hosts.