Azerbaijan Country Overview
Where is Azerbaijan located? The landlocked country of Azerbaijan is located in Western Asia. There it lies between the Caucasus and the Caspian Sea. On the time zone map, the countries along the degrees of longitude are assigned to different world time zones. The classification provides information about how big the time difference between the respective country and the world time (also called UTC) is. Because of its relatively small area, Azerbaijan is in one time zone. The time there is UTC +4. This means that the clocks there are always 4 hours later than the world clock. In summer, daylight saving time is put forward one hour. Then the time difference is 5 hours.
Bordering Countries of Azerbaijan
According to abbreviationfinder, Azerbaijan is a landlocked country located in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia, bordered by several countries including Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west, and Iran to the south. The Caspian Sea lies east of Azerbaijan.
Russia is Azerbaijan’s closest neighbor to the north and has been an important trading partner for many years. The two countries have close ties that date back centuries when they were both part of the Russian Empire. This relationship has continued throughout the years as both countries have worked together on various issues such as economic growth, regional stability, and cultural exchange in their area.
Georgia is located northwest of Azerbaijan and shares an important historical connection due to their shared history under the Russian Empire. The two countries have maintained close diplomatic ties since then which has helped ensure peace between them even during times of political unrest or conflict in other parts of Europe.
Armenia is located west of Azerbaijan and has had a long-standing territorial dispute with Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh region since 1988. Despite this ongoing dispute, Armenia still maintains strong trade ties with Azerbaijan due to its proximity and shared border.
Iran is located south of Azerbaijan and shares a long history with the country due to its location along major trade routes between Europe and Asia. The two countries have maintained close diplomatic ties since then which has helped ensure peace between them even during times of political unrest or conflict in other parts of Europe. Iran also plays an important role in providing energy resources for both countries given its vast oil reserves.
Finally, there is the Caspian Sea which lies east of Azerbaijan and serves as an important source for fish resources for both Russia and Iran while also providing access to other regional ports such as Astrakhan (Russia) or Bandar Anzali (Iran).
Population Distribution
As of 2023, the latest population of Azerbaijan is 10,205,810, based on our calculation of the current data from UN (United Nations).
| Total population | 10,205,810 |
| Population growth rate | 0.77% |
| Birth rate | 15.80 births per 1,000 people |
| Life expectancy | |
| Overall life expectancy | 71.61 years |
| Men life expectancy | 68.65 years |
| Women life expectancy | 74.97 years |
| Age structure | |
| 0-14 years | 23.05% |
| 15-64 years | 70.14% |
| 65 years and above | 6.81% |
| Median age | 30.50 years |
| Gender ratio (Male to Female) | 0.98 |
| Population density | 117.85 residents per km² |
| Urbanization | 50.00% |
| Ethnicities | |
| 91% Azerbaijanis, 2% Lesgians, 2% Russians, 2% Armenians and other minorities | |
| Religions | |
| Muslim 93.4%, Russian Orthodox 2.5%, Armenian Catholic 2.3%, Others 1.8% (1995 est.) Note: religious affiliation is still nominal in Azerbaijan; percentages for actual practicing adherents are much lower | |
| Human Development Index (HDI) | 0.754 |
| HDI ranking | 87th out of 194 |
People in Azerbaijan
Around ten million people live in Azerbaijan. Two million of them live in the capital Baku. The next largest cities are Ganjah (Gəncə), Sumgait (Sumqayıt) and Mingetschaur (Mingəçevir). 56 percent of the population live in cities, 44 percent in rural areas. Women in Azerbaijan have an average of 1.9 children.
The vast majority of residents see themselves as Azerbaijanis (91 percent). But other peoples also live in the country. Lesgier, a people from the Caucasus, are among them with 2 percent. Around 1.3 percent each are Russians or Talyshans. The latter live in the border area with Iran and speak Iranian. Even smaller minorities are Avars, Deeds and Tatars, among others.
Armenians live in Nagorno-Karabakh, which has split off from Azerbaijan. The Azerbaijanis who had previously lived there fled to Azerbaijan.
Languages in Azerbaijan
Azerbaijani is the official language in the country. Until 1991, Russian was also the official language. Even today, many Azerbaijanis can speak Russian. In schools, too, it is often taught from the first grade.
Azerbaijani is a Turkic language. It is very similar to Turkish. Azerbaijani was written in Arabic characters until around 1918. Then, until 1992, it was written in Cyrillic (that is the script in which you also write Russian). Since then, however, Latin letters have been used (in which we also write), based on Turkish. In addition to the letters we know, there are a few more: ç for the sound ch, ә for the sound ä, ğ for a more breathy g and ş for sch. There is also an i without a period: ı. The i is pronounced differently, similar to the e in nose.
In addition to Azerbaijani, there are also some minority languages spoken in the country, such as Avar, Georgian or Tartish – by the people who speak these languages.
Religions in Azerbaijan
The predominant religion in Azerbaijan is Islam. 97 percent of the residents belong to it. The majority adheres to the Shiite faith. While religion was suppressed during the period of Soviet rule until 1991 and many Azerbaijanis did not practice their faith, many have since turned back to Islam. The remaining 3 percent of the population are mainly Christians, with a Russian Orthodox orientation.