Reviving Carpet-Weaving Traditions in Azerbaijan Roya Taghiyeva The Azerbaijani Carpet Makers Union The Azerbaijani Carpet Makers Union (ACMU), founded in January 2010, is a voluntary self-governmental public association of citizens rallied to support Azerbaijani carpet weaving. The ACMU seeks to promote a revival of the powerful spiritual heritage of carpets, the national traditions of the Azerbaijani people, a consolidation of the creative potential of seen figures of society and culture, support for talented children and youth, and creative carpet dynasties. The purpose of the ACMU is also to convey objective information about the unique national culture, rich historical heritage, and diversity of the carpet art of Azerbaijan to the international community. In 2012, the ACMU was accredited as a non-governmental organization to provide advisory services to the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of UNESCO. ▲ Carpet weaver, Modern Potential for the Development of Carpet Making in Karabakh Project The surveys and results obtained during the projects, the interest of the population, and the creation of new jobs can create conditions for the assessment of carpet development potential. The monitoring is an important part of projects to survey the economic situation in the regions and to enable carpet making to be regarded as a traditional economic sector aimed at the non-oil sector of economic development. ▲ Educational program: “Wedding Ceremony” zerbaijan is one of the unique carpet-pro- as well as by rural and urban artisans. In many ducing regions in the world. As a cultural regions of Azerbaijan, this production was a source manifestation of the Azerbaijani people, of substantial income for a large part of the popu- Athe carpet is the bearer of information about not lation. Carpet weaving was the most important only the present days of the people but also their industry of the country, which produced carpets ancient roots and cultural values over the past for both domestic and foreign markets. hundreds of years. Carpet weaving was closely connected with Traditionally, local carpets met both aesthetic the daily lives and customs of the communities and utilitarian requirements. The patterns repre- involved, and the role of carpets was reflected in sented the folk beliefs, religious outlooks, and the symbols, the designs, and their applications. cosmological conceptions that were handed down The carpet was widely used as home furniture or from generation to generation. On the other hand, decoration, and special carpets were woven for the carpet, as an object of household purpose, was wedding ceremonies, medical treatments, births used to decorate dwellings, create a comfortable of children, and mourning rituals or prayers. living environment, and protect people against the For example, carpets with a red background cold. As an Azerbaijani proverb says, “My home is played a huge role in wedding ceremonies. The red wherever my carpet is spread.” color symbolizes a life-giving beginning, birth, But the carpets were not only handicraft prod- wedding, or protection against evil. The red carpet ucts with utilitarian and household purposes; they was an indispensable part of the bride’s dowry. were also an important detail of the lifestyle of the During wedding ceremonies, the red flat-woven people. kilim rug was used as a curtain for protecting Traditionally, carpets were woven by nomads, a bride against the evil eye and for setting up a 13 wedding tent for the newlyweds. The red color, special customs of congratulations and feast days. combined with motifs of the moon and stars on Two to three people are needed to wind and stretch the carpet, was connected with notions of fertility the warp around the loom, because this work is a and abundance. During the spring New Year basic stage for preparing the future carpet. The holiday, Novruz, unmarried girls seated on red process is supervised by a skilled master. When the shadda rugs, called beht khalchasi (luck-bringing work is finished, a gift is given to the master, and carpet), told their fortunes and sang traditional on this day a feast is celebrated. After the initial songs. Then, the girls, saying, “Let it see the sky, border and half of the carpet are woven, feasts are the moon, and the stars,” spread the rugs in an also arranged to finish the carpet successfully. The open field for a week so that their wishes would cutting of a finished carpet from the loom is an come true. Clothes made of the fine red shadda unusually solemn celebration. This day is consid- were also used as a cure in traditional medicine. ered lucky, and on this day people make wishes. Carpet making includes such traditional skills, Since ancient centuries, local carpet makers transferred through practice and oral methods, have produced magnificent specimens, starting as wool processing, natural dye collecting, yarn from simple flat weavings up to a vast variety of making and dyeing, and, lastly, carpet weaving pile carpets. Azerbaijani carpets are classified into and knotting. Large sectors of the society are seven regional groups regarding the province of engaged in carpet making: shepherds, masters of their production: Kuba, Shirvan, Baku, Ganja, wool shearing and wool processing, yarn spinners, Kazakh, Karabakh, and Tabriz. Additionally, dyers, loom and weaving tool makers, designers, Azerbaijani carpets are woven in various tech- weavers, and masters of carpet restoration. niques. Basically, they are divided into pile carpets Carpet making is, first of all, a family business, and flat-woven textiles. Distinctive features of in which children take an active role. In spring Azerbaijani carpets demonstrate highly stylized and autumn, fathers and sons shepherd sheep and plant, animal, anthropomorphic, and geometrical shear them. In the spring, summer, and autumn, motifs, along with bright colors. women and girls are occupied in collecting dyes Azerbaijani pile carpets are distinguished by and in spinning and dyeing yarn. In winter, after a vast variety of ornamental compositions that finishing agricultural tasks, looms start working number over one hundred designs. Some of the in most rural houses: the daughter weaves original designs were woven only in specific villages together with her mother and grandmother, and or towns, with the names of localities preserved in the daughter-in-law with her mother-in-law, as a the labelling of the carpets. Frequently, the designs single family unit. were handed down as valuable heritage from Relatives and neighbors also help make carpets. generation to generation. This collective work is calledimadgi . All of the Flat-woven textiles, most popular among rural process of carpet making is connected with the people, are divided into rugs (palas, jejim, kilim, 14 1. Reviving Carpet-Weaving Traditions in Azerbaijan shadda, ladi, varni, zili, and sumakh) and various and types of flat-woven bags and coverlets also inten- − investing more creativity in the interpretation of sively used in the household: mafrash (woven designs. trunk), khurjun and heyba (saddlebags), chuval It is important for Azerbaijan to stimulate the (sack), chul (horse cloth), yahar ustu (saddle rug), carpet production in areas where the traditions etc. are disappearing and to protect the quality of However, today there is a need for reviving the the Azerbaijani carpet internationally. This, in national carpet-weaving and carpet traditions, turn, will encourage young people to focus their as well as for safeguarding carpet patterns, tech- attention on cultural heritage and to respect it, to nology, and diversity and the transmission of these develop the creative potential of weaving societies, to future generations. and to support the further development of carpet In the age of globalization and the free market, weaving in Azerbaijan. the safeguarding of the technological know-how In this regard, the Azerbaijani Carpet Makers of traditional carpet weaving is of particular Union (ACMU) pays much attention to the devel- importance. Today, Azerbaijani traditional carpets opment of local carpet weaving. cannot compete with cheaper carpet products that The ACMU, located in Baku, Azerbaijan, was are made in some foreign countries for the mass established in January 2010. It is a non-govern- market. This comes, in turn, because of different mental association of people wishing to support social and economic problems that accumulated Azerbaijani carpet weaving. The ACMU was in the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries in accredited as a non-governmental organization to Azerbaijan. They are, for example, provide advisory services to the Intergovernmental − using artificial yarns and low-quality dyes, Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible − losing a variety of flat-woven techniques, Cultural Heritage of UNESCO in 2012. The union − merging regional characteristics of pile carpets, promotes the revival of the carpet-weaving heri- − forgetting the prime meaning of motifs, and tage of Azerbaijan and the national traditions of − losing creativity to interpret old designs in the right the Azerbaijani people, consolidates the creative way. potential of prominent figures of society and In order to change the situation, the first step is culture, and supports talented children and youth to revive traditions of carpet weaving, such as the and weavers’ dynasties. following: At the moment, the ACMU has 65 members. They − applying natural yarns and dyes, are specialists