The Talysh
The people of the Talysh Mountains: language, folklore, traditions and ancient heritage.
The Talysh of Lerik
Most of Lerik's inhabitants are Talysh — the indigenous people of southern Azerbaijan and the Talysh Mountains. In the district they form the overwhelming majority and keep their Talysh language, their customs and the mountain way of life shaped over centuries.
Talysh culture is folk songs and dances, a distinctive cuisine, traditions of hospitality and a close bond with the mountains. Folklore ensembles still live here, passing the melodies and costumes of their ancestors from generation to generation.
Songs, dances and costumes
The folk ensembles of Lerik are the keepers of Talysh folklore. Bright traditional costumes, the frame drum and old chants sound at festivals and in the mountain villages. In these songs lie the memory of the people, their joys, sorrows and bond with their native land.
Castles and mausoleums
Lerik keeps dozens of ancient monuments. Among them are the old Boy and Girl castles, linked to the Caucasian Albanian era, the mausoleums of Khalifa Zechariah, of Jabir (12th–14th centuries) and the Babagil mausoleum of the Safavid period. And the Buzeyir cave is considered one of the oldest settlements in all of Azerbaijan.
A living tradition
Despite its mountain remoteness, Lerik lives a full life: schools, libraries, cultural centres and museums work here. The Talysh tradition has not frozen in the past — it continues in the new generations, who remain faithful to their native mountains.
