Statue of Nizami Ganjavi unveiled in Slovenia
By Laman Ismayilova
A statue of prominent Azerbaijani poet Nizami Ganjavi has been unveiled in Ljubljana, Slovenia.
The ceremony was attended by Azerbaijani MPs, head of Ganja Executive Authority Elmar Valiyev, Azerbaijani Ambassador to Austria, Slovenia and Slovakia Galib Israfilov, embassy staff, Speaker of the Slovenian National Council Mitja Bervar, First Deputy Mayor of Ljubljana Ales Cerin, as well as members of local general public, Azertac reports.
Deputy Mayor Ales Cerin thanked the Azerbaijani side for assistance in erecting the statue. He said he was honored that a statue of great Azerbaijani thinker and poet Nizami Ganjavi was unveiled in the Slovenian capital.
Elmar Valiyev, for his part, thanked the Slovenian side on behalf of the Azerbaijani people and Ganja residents. He stressed that the statue stands in Ljubljana would deepen the friendly relations between the two countries’ people.
Azerbaijani businessman Artur Abdinov said he was proud as Nizami Ganjavi was immortalized in another European city.
An Azerbaijani carpet with motifs of Nizami Ganjavi’s works was presented to Ljubljana Municipality.
The statue was made by Ukrainian sculptor and architect Seyfeddin Gurbanov.
Nizami Ganjavi is one of the greatest representatives of literary heritage of the Eastern Renaissance.
The poet, who began by writing lyrics in short forms – gasida, gazal, rubai, gained popularity not only in the Near and Middle East, but also on distant shores.
His five poems, known collectively as the Khamsa (Quintet) are considered the treasury of Azerbaijani poetry. In his work, the poets revealed the living pages of history.
The attack of the Russians on Barda city, a fairy tale of the Russian Princess, the beautiful Shirin amazons, battles, described in various poems of Nizami - all this is historically and geographically related to medieval Azerbaijan and the Caucasus.
The description of a man's inner world, his feelings, and thoughts along with the dynamic development of the main hero's characters underlies the basic aim and content of the Nizami literary school.
The works of Nizami Ganjavi have been translated into many languages. The rare manuscript copies of his works are kept and preserved like precious pearls in famous libraries, museums and literary foundations in cities such as Moscow, St. Petersburg, Baku, Tashkent, Tabriz, Tehran, Cairo, Istanbul, Delhi, London, Paris and others.
Nizami Ganjavi passed away in 1209 in his native city of Ganja. A grandiose tomb has now been raised over his grave.
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Laman Ismayilova is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Lam_Ismayilova
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