Dentist Nureddin Garavi, originally from South Azerbaijan and working in Germany, spoke about how he first encountered Azerbaijan's tricolor flag in the 1950s.
Modern.az reports that Nureddin Garavi revealed interesting information in an interview with TRT Avaz on the eve of November 9th State Flag Day, which is celebrated with great enthusiasm in Azerbaijan
The tricolor flag was first raised in 1918 by the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic (ADR) and began to wave again in 1991 after our country gained independence.
Nureddin Garavi, originally from South Azerbaijan, shared the flag's story, which is unknown to many.
Rasulzade's Legacy and the Story of the Badge
68-year-old Nureddin Garavi stated that he first encountered the tricolor flag in the 1950s.
He described the gift brought to Tabriz in 1952 by his elder brother, Mohammad Hasan, who was studying medicine in Istanbul, as follows:
“In the 1950s, my brother was studying medicine in Istanbul, Turkey. I was a child then and attending school in my hometown, Tabriz. One day, my brother came from Istanbul to Tabriz and brought me a gift: a blue, red, and green metal badge that he wore on his jacket lapel. This was the tricolor flag of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic. At that time, Mohammad Amin Rasulzade, the founder of the first republic in the Muslim, Eastern, and Turkic world, lived in Ankara and was engaged in social, political, and literary activities. Through him, these tricolor flag badges were passed from hand to hand. On February 1, 1949, Rasulzade founded the Azerbaijan Culture Association in the capital, Ankara. In 1952, Rasulzade presented this badge to my brother at one of the association's meetings in Istanbul.”
“They were surprised in Baku”
“Fate also led me to Turkey for education one day. After graduating from the Faculty of Dentistry at Istanbul University (1970-1976), I moved to Germany. I started working as a research assistant at the University of Bonn and obtained my specialization degrees there. Later, I opened my own dental clinic and continue to serve patients as a doctor today.
During the Soviet era, I traveled from Germany to Baku. During my conversations with the national poet Suleyman Rustam and many Azerbaijani intellectuals from the Writers' Union, I showed them the badge depicting the tricolor Azerbaijani flag. I also shared my brother's memories related to Rasulzade. They were all surprised and asked: “Did we ever have such a flag?”
Nureddin Garavi stated that the people of Soviet Azerbaijan were unaware of the Democratic Republic and its flag at that time.
“In 1988, during Azerbaijan's turbulent times, I went to Baku again. I also met and conversed with statesman Abulfaz Elchibey. I had appearances on radio, television, and in newspapers,” he said.
Diaspora Activities
Nureddin Garavi, who continued his dental career in Germany, also engaged in diaspora activities as a national patriot. He founded the Azerbaijan Cultural Center in Bonn and, over 24 years (1984-2008), published 288 issues of the “Anadil” (Mother Tongue) newspaper, distributing them to South and North Azerbaijan, Turkey, Canada, the USA, and many European countries.
N. Garavi also put forward important proposals regarding modern Azerbaijan:
“It would be wonderful if our homeland Azerbaijan, especially Karabakh University, could benefit from dental clinics in Germany and attract German, British, American, and Turkish specialists. This would be beneficial both politically and scientifically. I hope that Azerbaijanis living abroad, both from South and North Azerbaijan, will also show interest in Karabakh University. I believe that this university will one day become one of the world's largest scientific centers.”
Expressing his feelings on the occasion of November 9th Azerbaijan Flag Day, Nureddin Garavi concluded his speech with the wish: "Long live the state of Azerbaijan and its 50 million inhabitants! May the Azerbaijani flag always wave in the skies! May the independence of Turks be eternal and immortal!"
