Suraxanı raion
Coordinates: 40°25′13″N 50°00′17″E / 40.42028°N 50.00472°E
| Suraxanı | |
|---|---|
| Raion | |
  Suraxanı | |
| Coordinates: 40°25′13″N 50°00′17″E / 40.42028°N 50.00472°E | |
| Country |
 Azerbaijan |
| City | Baku |
| Population (2010)[citation needed] | |
| • Total | 196,700 |
| Time zone | AZT (UTC+4) |
| • Summer (DST) | AZT (UTC+5) |
Suraxanı (also, Surakhany, Ssurachany and Surakhani) is a settlement and raion of Baku, Azerbaijan. It has a population of 196,700.
The raion is best known for the Fire Temple of Baku, a castle-like temple and monastery complex known locally as the Ateşgah or Ateshgyakh. It was a Hindu temple. The complex was built on a pocket of natural gas that once produced a flame from natural gas seepage.
The local Tat name of the raion is said to related to "the Persian words 'Surakh' (hole) or Surkh/ Sorkh (red) and 'khani' (source or fountain). According to historical sources, before the construction of the Indian Temple Of Fire (Atashgah) in Surakhani at the end of the 18th [century], the local people also worshipped at this site because of the 'seven holes with burning flame'. And thus the name 'Surakhani' - holes with burning fountains."[1]
The township itself is poor and surrounded by the decaying petrochemical industry facilities that are endemic to the Abşeron Peninsula and the lasting legacy of the Soviet era.
References
- ↑ Alakbarov, Farid (<!––Summer,––>2003). "Azerbaijan - Land of Fire". azeri.org.
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