Today is the birthday of Hasan bey Zardabi, the founder of the Azerbaijani national press

Today is the birthday of the founder of the Azerbaijani national press, outstanding educator Hasan bey Zardabi.

Hasan bey Melikov (Zardabi) was born on June 28, 1837, in the village of Zardab in Goychay district.

He received his primary education in a village madrasah, where he studied Arabic and Persian languages. In 1852, his father took him to Shamakhy and placed him in a city school that had opened shortly before. After graduating, Zardabi continued his education at the first Tiflis gymnasium.

In 1861, he was sent to Moscow University at state expense. Zardabi was admitted without examination to the natural science department of the Faculty of Physics and Mathematics, which he graduated with honors in 1865.

Due to his successful studies, it was decided to keep him at the university for scientific work. However, the desire to serve his people prompted Zardabi to return to Azerbaijan, where he began teaching natural science at the Baku gymnasium.

This marks the beginning of a new period in his life - a stage of educating the people, fighting for literacy and education in the native language.

However, the difficulty was that Hasan bey Zardabi was the only Azerbaijani among the teachers of 10 gymnasiums operating in the Caucasus who had higher education. At that time, there were practically no Azerbaijanis among the students. Therefore, Zardabi sought to conduct propaganda among the population to attract Azerbaijani children to school.

In 1872, he founded the first Muslim charitable society Cəmiyyət-xeyriyyə in Baku. In the summer of the same year, Zardabi, together with his students Najaf bey Vezirov and Asker agha Adigozalov (Gorani), who were studying at the gymnasium, traveled through the cities and villages of Azerbaijan, registering new members of the charitable society.

Hasan bey Zardabi is one of the founders of the Azerbaijani professional theater. Under his leadership and with the active participation of playwrights Najaf bey Vezirov and Asker agha Adigozalov, Mirza Fatali Akhundov's comedies "Haji Gara" and "Vizier of the Lankaran Khanate" were staged in 1873.

He paid special attention to the education of Azerbaijani women. Zardabi provided great assistance in opening the first Muslim school for girls in Baku in 1901.

Hasan bey Zardabi went down in history as the editor of the first Azerbaijani newspaper. The rapid growth and development of Baku showed the need to create a national press. Understanding the importance of publishing a newspaper in the native language, Zardabi appealed to the authorities for help. Despite all the difficulties, on July 22, 1875, "Ekinchi" ("Plowman") - the first newspaper in the Azerbaijani language - was printed in the provincial printing house in Baku. It was published twice a month with a circulation of 300-400 copies. A total of 56 issues of the newspaper were published, with the last one on September 29, 1877.

Being the first swallow of the Azerbaijani national press, the newspaper, although it existed for a short time - only two years, nevertheless managed to play a major role in educating the people in a national and modern spirit.

In the last years of his life, Zardabi became paralyzed, but continued to work at the "Caspian" newspaper until his last days.

Hasan bey Zardabi died on November 28, 1907.