Azerbaijanis
The Azerbaijanis are a unique group in the Muslim world: they are mostly Shiʿite Muslims, although ethnically and linguistically they are Turks (Oghuz Turks). The Azerbaijanis (also known as Azeris or Azerbaijani Turks) number 30 to 35 million and live primarily in present-day Iran (20 million), the Republic of Azerbaijan (7.5 million; the nation's independence was reestablished after the fall of the Soviet Union), today's Turkey (1 to 2 million), and Russia (1 million). Under Seljuk (1038–1157) rule, major waves of immigration of Oghuz Turks into Azerbaijan created a clear Turkic majority. Historians debate the ethnic-linguistic composition of the areas north and south of the Araks River and the historical borders of Azerbaijan before the major waves of Turkic immigration there. More Turks came during Mongol Ilkhanid rule from the thirteenth through the fourteenth centuries and during the Qara Qoyunlu and Aq Qoyunlu Turkmen dynasties in the fifteenth century. In the northern part of Azerbaijan, a native Shirvanshah dynasty ruled through the sixteenth century.
Azerbaijani Religions
The Islamization of Azerbaijan took place during the Arab conquest at a date given variably between 639 and 643. Prior to the Islamic conquest, Zoroastrianism was prominent in Azerbaijan and it remains a significant cultural influence among the Azerbaijanis.
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