Akhundzade Mirza Ismail Qasir: A New Outlook on His Descent, Dates of Birth and Death

If at the beginning of the XIX century there was a period of stagnation in Lankaran but beginning from the middle of the same century here took place a step in a new stage of development. At that time in cultural development of Lankaran side by side with local intelligentsia took part also the representatives of science and culture who arrived from other regions. One of them was Akhundzade Mirza Ismail Qasir. Mirza Ismail Qasir who took a worthy place in the pleiad of resplendent poets, pedagogs and enlighteners of Azerbaijan of the XIX century passed a rich parth of life and spent a most of life till his death in Lankaran. Here, he along with the creation of the poetic circle “Furvjul-fusaha” (Assemble of brilliant speakers) opened the school “Usuli-jadid” (a new method), was busy with pedagogical activity. Qasir had achieved the mastering of subjects using specific methods of teaching and compiled special textbooks. The poetic circle which he created constantly corresponded with poets and similar circles of Azerbaijan and neighboring Iran. At present at the Institute of Manuscripts of Azerbaijan National Academy of Seiences is kept a rich poetic heritage of Mirza Ismail Qasir which he left behind. At the same time there is no consensus in outlooks on his descent, the place and times of birth and death. At present in some degree conventionally his date of birth is considered took place in 1805, the place of birth is the settlement Liaki of modern Agdash region and the time of death is 1900. And except that, in the majority of his publications his surname is mentioned not as Akhundzade, but as Akhundov. Though his surname fixed by the poet is pronounced as Akhundzade. This situation creates contradictions in the research of the poet’s life, literary and pedagogical activity. Taking into consideration all the above mentioned we decided to touch upon these questions one more. The main source of our research was the manuscript of “The unknown” author which was written on the basis of material heard from Mirza Ismail kept in the Manuscrips Fund of Azerbaijan National Akademy of Sciences. In the result of our investigations, we came to the conclusion that Mirza Ismail Qasir descended from the kin of elat population of Mughan which was close to Shirvan tribe Khanchobany. He was born in Iran (South Azerbaijan) in the settlement Khuran of Akharsity in 1826 and died in September 14/15, 1903 at the age of 77 in Lankaran. Keywords: Lankaran, Iran, Mughan, Ahar, Haji Salim, Sabi.