NIZAMI GANJAVI’S INFLUENCES IN THE ACTIVITIES OF THE ASHIGS OF SOUTH AZERBAIJAN: EPICS “SHIRIN AND FARHAD” AND “LEYLI AND MAJNUN”

Abstract

South Azerbaijani ashiq art is of particular importance and interest as an important and tradition-continuing branch of Azerbaijani ashiq art. There are many epics that were created under the influence of written traditions in the epic repertoire of Southern ashiqs. The epics “Shirin and Farhad” and “Leyli and Majnun” derived from the poems of the great Azerbaijani poet Nizami can also be mentioned in this order. Though the variants of the epics “Shirin and Farhad”, “Leyli and Majnun” collected from the repertoire of South Azerbaijani ashiqs have been in books since the beginning of our century (the 21^st century), the transformation of these stories into ashiq epics, taking a unique picture under the influence of folk epic traditions, undoubtedly took place much earlier. In the article it is studied what form and how the poems on the theme “Khosrov and Shirin”, “Leyli and Majnun” in the classical literature of Azerbaijan are adapted to the genre of folk epic on the example of epics told by Ashiq Huseyn Sai.