Azat, Armenia

Azat (Armenian: Ազատ, also Romanized as Azad; until 1935, Aghkilisa) is a village in the Gegharkunik Province of Armenia. The village has a heavily ruined 11th century church and a pair of medieval khachkars. The village was the birthplace of the celebrated Azeri folklore poet Ashig Alasgar (Ashug Alesker) (1821-1926). All the ethnic Azeri inhabitants of Azat fled to Azerbaijan in 1988-89 during the course of Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict.