Haji Zeynalabdin Taghiyev

Haji Zeynalabdin Taghiyev was born into a poor Baku family in 1838 and worked as a mason's assistant from childhood. When oil gushed from land he had bought at Bibi-Heybat he became one of the richest men in Baku.

He spent his fortune on public enlightenment: he built a theatre in 1883 (where Leyli and Majnun premiered), opened the first secular school for Muslim girls in 1901, paid for dozens of young people to study abroad and backed the Shollar water pipeline.

Under Soviet rule his property was confiscated; he died in Mardakan in 1924. He is still remembered with respect simply as "Haji".