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Greetings to Heydarbaba
Shahriar's 1954 poem in Azerbaijani Turkic — a masterpiece devoted to childhood, the village and the mother tongue.
Greetings to Heydarbaba is addressed to Mount Heydarbaba near Khoshginab, the village of Shahriar's childhood. It is written in syllabic metre, in the language of the people, in stanzas.
The poet blends scenes of village life, holidays, customs and childhood friends with gentle humour and longing for days gone by, and the poem became a symbol of the return to the mother tongue.
It is cherished in both parts of Azerbaijan, in Türkiye and across the Turkic world, has been translated into dozens of languages and has inspired countless poetic responses.
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Updated: October 1, 2026