At the beginning of the 20th century, Baku was one of the largest industrial centres of Russia, but at the same time was among the cities lagging behind in the development of public education and culture. Unlike Russian centres, the national colonial policy pursued in Baku had a negative impact on the development of public education and culture. In the early 20th century, the development of Baku’s oil industry required a large number of educated specialists. However, there was no institution where they could get proper education. The policy of statehood pursued by absolutism constantly violated the rights of minorities. And the consistently pursued policy of Russification demanded a just solution to the national question. On the eve of the revolution, strikes were held in Baku one after another. In addition to economic demands, these strikes raised political and cultural reforms that frightened the tsarist government. In order to educate the workers and involve them in the development of culture, to fulfil the demands put forward during the workers’ strikes held in Baku on the eve of the First Russian Revolution, the Council of the Congress of Baku Oil Producers was forced to carry out a number of activities in the field of culture. Since the early twentieth century, the Council started to open schools and cultural-educational institutions. It was decided to allocate funds for the establishment of institutions and gradually increase the amount.

In the 20s, scientific research institutions and societies were established and began to develop in Azerbaijan. This, in turn, necessitated the creation of a single scientific research centre, which would be able to unite and give the necessary direction to all these scientific forces. Thus, at the beginning of 1923, a group of scientists applied to the board of the People’s Commissariat of Education with a request to establish the Society of investigation and study of Azerbaijan. In 1923, the charter of the Society was approved, drawn up by D. Urusov, A.R. Zifeld and H. Jabiyev. On 2 November 1923, the first constituent meeting of the society was held with participation of about 40 scientists and specialists. Abdurrahim bey Haqverdiyev was elected Chairman of the Society. Nariman Narimanov and Samed Agha Aghamalioglu were elected honorary chairmen of the society. The Society was established on the initiative of a group of intellectuals and attracted influential scientists of the time to its work. Such famous scientists as academician V.A. Gordlevsky, academicians I.I. Meshchaninov, V.V. Bartold, A.E. Krymsky, N.Y. Marr, professors A.N. Samoilov, R.K. Juze, Ismail Hikmet, Mehmet Fuat Kopruluzadeh, V.M. Zummer, V.M. Sysoyev arrived in Azerbaijan for a certain period of time at the invitation of the society. They conducted interesting studies on the language, history, literature and culture of our people. Among the invited prominent scientists was Professor A. V. Bagriy (1891-1949). The scientist, who came to Baku at the age of 32, devoted the remaining 26 years of his life to scientific and pedagogical activity in Baku. Creation of information collection “Azerbaijan bibliography” is one of the valuable works of this society. This bibliography has a rich source of information. The material prepared using 134 different bibliographic indicators was published in 1924 (issue I and II) and 1925 (issue III). In the bibliography A. V. Bagriy collected materials about Azerbaijan published in periodicals in 1820-1923. The society spent 2 years (1923-1924) to prepare these materials. The collection contains rich bibliographic indicators related to the folklore of the Azerbaijani people. The publication, consisting of three issues, was systematic. In the first issue, the author collected the main bibliographic sources, materials related to geography and travelling. The second issue presented literature related to Azerbaijani ethnography, philology, education, history and archaeology, and the third issue contains materials related to the national economy of Azerbaijan. The work done by the scholar is of great importance for both the past and present era.

From the first days of its establishment, the society carried out important work on the research of Azerbaijani history, literature, folklore, language, ethnography, local history, development of economic and natural sciences. One of the most important historical services of the Society was holding of the I Turkological Congress in 1926. In the third year of its activity the society began to publish “Izvestiya”, the first issue of which was published in Russian in 1925. In the preface to the edition S. Aghamalioglu called this issue the first swallow. The first issue of “Izvestiya” in the Azerbaijani language was published in 1928. Prominent literary scholars and ethnographers H. Zeynalli, Y. H. Zeynalli, Y. V. Chemenzeminli, R. Efendiyev, V. Khuluflu, A. V. Bagriy, A. Abid and others took direct part in the work of “Izvestiya”. The Society for the Survey and Study of Azerbaijan had branches in Nakhchivan, Karabakh, Ganja, Sheki and other places. In a short period of time, the society gains prominence. The Society’s achievements created the need for further improvement of structuring in this sphere. As a result, on the basis of the decision of the Central Executive Committee (CEC) of Azerbaijan dated 9 November 1929, the Azerbaijan Society for Scientific Research and Studies transferred into Azerbaijani State Scientific-Research Institute. On 29 December 1932, the Azerbaijani department of the Transcaucasian branch of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR was established. The Azerbaijan Branch of the Transcaucasian Branch of the USSR Academy of Sciences began to function effectively, as it was organized on the basis of the scientific basis that existed before that time. The department had special sectors for research into individual areas, which were soon transformed into independent research institutes within the Academy. However, the functioning of the existing structure based on the principles of multilevel subordination caused certain difficulties in management, and soon there was a need to create a new institute working directly with the central organization.

Thus, on 25 October 1935, the Azerbaijani branch of the USSR Academy of Sciences, headed by Academician Franz Levinson-Lessing (1861-1939), was created on the basis of the department. The creation of the Azerbaijani branch marked a new level of science management in Azerbaijan and was a step forward in this area. Sectors of chemistry, geology, history, ethnography and archeology, botany, zoology, energy, physics and soil science were established at the branch. In addition, the increase in organizational status soon made it possible to establish independent institutes at the branch – geology, history, geography, oil and chemistry, language and literature. Besides, the increase of organizational status allowed to establish research institutes within the branch. The studies carried out by scientific institutions differed for their more systematic and regular character, meeting more the requirements of socio-economic and cultural development in the country. Among the most important research projects carried out in the early years of the Azerbaijani academic institutions are the drawing up of the first geological map of Azerbaijan, the beginning of research into volcanology and Mesozoic history, the discovery of unique therapeutic oil in Naftalan, the publication of a three-volume collection of materials about the flora of Azerbaijan, plans for the creation of the Mingachevir hydroelectric power station and the Samur-Davachi canal and publication of a geographical atlas of Azerbaijan took a special place. By the decision of the Council of People’s Commissars of the USSR of 23 January 1945, the branch was transformed into the Academy of Sciences of the Azerbaijan SSR. Thus, the Academy of Sciences of Azerbaijan SSR was established.

Recommended literature:

1. Azərbaycan Tarixi Muzeyi - 2007 = Музеи истории Азербайджана - 2007 / AMEA Azərbaycan Tarixi Muzeyi ; red. heyəti: N. A. Əliyeva, F. R. Cabbarov, M. H. Zeynalova ; red. N. M. Vəlixanlı. - Bakı : Elm, 2007. - 478 s.
2. Hacıyeva, Zemfira Əli qızı. Azərbaycanı tədqiq edən və öyrənən cəmiyyət (Tətəbbö) : Azərbaycanda elmin inkişaf tarixindən = Общество обследования и изучения Азербайджана : история развития науки Азербайджана / Z. Ə. Hacıyeva, N. A. Əliyarlı ; elmi red. S. H. Həsənov ; tərc. N. İ. Həmidov ; AMEA Rəyasət Heyəti. - Bakı : Elm, 2021. - 108 s.
3. Məlikli, Günel Qurbanəli qızı. Azərbaycan Milli Elmlər Akademiyasının şərəfli tarix yolu / G. Q. Məlikli ; elmi red. İ. Ə. Həbibbəyli ; AMEA Fəlsəfə və Sosiologiya İnstitutu. - Bakı : Elm : Red N Line, 2020.
4. Kərimova, Tamilla Sabir qızı. Azərbaycan Milli Elmlər Akademiyasının yaranması / T. S. Kərimova ; layihənin rəh., ön sözün müəl. Y. M. Mahmudov; AMEA A.A. Bakıxanov adına Tarix İnstitutu. - Bakı : Elm və təhsil, 2015. - 488 s.