Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences

Corresponding member of the Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences Arif Akim oglu Abbasov was born on December 22, 1937 in Nakhchivan city. In 1956, A. Abbasov, a member of the History Department of the Azerbaijan State University (now Baku State University), began to work at History Institute of the Academy of Sciences in 1961 and devoted his life to the science.

A. Abbasov was sent to Moscow for an internship at the Institute of Ethnography and Anthropology of the USSR Academy of Sciences, and returning he continued scientific researches and investigated ethnography in new ethnosociological and ethnocultural processes in Azerbaijan.

A. Abbasov defended his thesis in 1974 in Tbilisi on "Modern household and culture of mining industry workers of Azerbaijan". After working for the Scientific Secretary on Science History of the Presidium of the Azerbaijan Academy of Sciences for a while, he returned to the History Institute in 1978 and began to work here as Deputy Director of Scientific Affairs.

According to the decision of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Azerbaijan SSR dated May 25, 1982, the Department of Ethnosociological Research under the Archeology and Ethnography Sector of the History Institute was established and the head of the department was entrusted to A.Abbasov. In 1993, he became the Institute of Archeology and Ethnography, and A. Abbasov was the first director of that institute.

In 1995 A.Abbasov defended his doctoral dissertation on the theme "The lifestyle of the new cities of Azerbaijan (ethnosociological research)" and received a scientific degree of Doctor of Historical Sciences. In 2001, he was elected as a corresponding member of the Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences.

A.Abbasov had great contribution to the development of modern Azerbaijani ethnography. Thus, for the first time a number of topical issues of Azerbaijani ethnography, including ethnosociological, ethnocultural, ethno-demographic and ethnostatic processes, are directly related to A.Abbasov's name. Under his leadership, the institute has organized a number of international scientific conferences and has established scientific cooperation with different foreign countries. In addition, A.Abbasov has been a great contributor to the Archeology and Ethnography Institute's close involvement in UNESCO's “Great Silk Road” and INTAS-2000 programs.

A.Abbasov has implemented a large-scale program of research on the archeological monuments of the territory of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan main export oil pipeline, which was realized as a result of the far-sighted policy of our national leader Heydar Aliyev. He has repeatedly visited France, Turkey, Italy, Romania, Poland, Germany, USA and others.

A. Abbasov is the author of several monographs and more than 100 scientific articles about the culture of Azerbaijani people. In 1998 A.Abbasov was the editor-in-chief of the generalizing fundamental monograph entitled "Azerbaijanis", which was published with the direct participation of the Institute of Archeology and Ethnography.

Corresponding member of ANAS Arif Abbasov died in Baku in 2005.