Minkənd

 ghost town  Add category

Hak (arm. Հակ, azerb. Minkənd) is a village in the Transcaucasus. According to the administrative-territorial division of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, which actually controls the village, it is located in the Kashatag region of the NKR, according to the administrative-territorial division of the Republic of Azerbaijan - in the Lachin region of Azerbaijan.
While the village was in the Russian Empire, the village was part of the Zangezur district of the Elizabethpol province, and had a mixed population, Armenian and Kurdish. According to the 1897 census, 506 Armenians and 396 Kurds lived in the village. The village was badly damaged during the Armenian-Tatar massacre of 1905-1906, the first attack on the village occurred in March 1905, the second from June 5 to 6, when 50 Armenians were killed. The attacks continued in August 1905, a detachment of Cossacks was sent to defend the Armenians of Minkend, but the Zangezur police officer Melik-Aslanov convinced them that there was no danger for the Armenians. The Cossacks went to the defense of another village, as soon as the Cossacks left, the Azerbaijanis killed 140 and wounded 40 Armenians in front of the bailiff, who did not intervene in any way. According to the newspaper "Son of the Fatherland" in the issue of August 30, 1905: More than three hundred souls of all ages were cut out in the village of Minkend. The entrails of Armenian children were thrown for dogs to eat, the Zangezur bailiff Melik-Aslanov took the Cossacks with an officer from Minkend and then admired the massacre, which he did not even deign to report to his superiors.
According to the "Caucasian calendar" of 1912, 731 people lived in the village, mainly Kurds. But according to the "Caucasian calendar" for 1915, the village is again indicated as predominantly Armenian, with a population of 1,532 people.
In the Soviet period, the village became part of the Azerbaijan SSR, along with part of the Zangezur district. From 1923 to 1929 the village was part of the Kurdistan district. According to the 1926 census, 751 people lived in the village, of which 746 were Kurds and 5 were Armenians. In 1937, Kurds were deported from Azerbaijan to the republics of Central Asia and Kazakhstan. According to the 1989 census, 2,306 people lived in Minkend, all Azerbaijanis.
Since May 17, 1992 the village is under the control of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic. In December 1993, the village was included in the Kashatag region. According to the 2005 census, 102 people lived in the village, all Armenians.