Religion as Maintenance of National Consciousness: Islam in Soviet Azerbaijan

National consciousness emerged among the intelligentsia in Azerbaijan, at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the XXth century. However, along with Soviet period this process was interrupted and could not spread among the community completely and therefore the “Muslim Identity” continued to survive like a fundamental identity connection for the Azeri society. Along with purge of the intelligentsia and abolition of nationalist symbols and the slogans that they used, Turkish nationalism disappeared as an ideology in Azerbaijan. Politico-ideological nationalism and its slogans were deprived of the chance of keeping the national consciousness alive. In this paper, I will argue that the main factor which sustained national consciousness in Soviet Azerbaijan was Islam and Muslim identity. Despite the fact that the communist regime succeeded in minimizing Islamic intellectual and ideological dimensions, it could not erode its elements that had become a cultural norm and life-style. To be a Muslim in Soviet Azerbaijan was perceived as to be a member of Azeri society and as a devotion to life-style of this society. As a matter of fact, the life-style to which the definition of “Muslim” refers to, was a main factor whereby Azeri society could distinguish itself from the surrounding – Russian, Armenian and Georgian – societies. In this sense, Islam, which refers to common lifestyle and cultural norms, had kept the national consciousness alive by firming the sameness sense of society in Soviet Azerbaijan. Summary This study focuses on the role of Islamic identity and Islamic lifestyle in maintaining national consciousness during the Soviet era. The main claim of the study is that Muslim identity and Islamic life style are effective in maintaining national consciousness. In order to prove the accuracy of this claim, analyses of political, social, demographic and cultural issues in a certain historical period are carried out. In this context, the occupation of Russia, the process of nationalization since the second quarter of the XIXthcentury and the subsequent Sovietization process are discussed in the context of Muslim identity and Islamic lifestyle. This period was discussed and commented on in the light of statistical sources, intelligence reports, propaganda books and academic research on the period. When the present Azerbaijan region, which was under the influence of Iran politically and culturally until the XIXthcentury, was occupied by the Russian Empire, the people of the region came under the rule of the Christian rulers for the first time. The