Absheron Peninsula
The Absheron Peninsula (Azerbaijani: Abşeron yarımadası) is a peninsula in Azerbaijan. It is the location of Baku, the biggest and the most populous city of the country, and also the Baku metropolitan area, with its satellite cities Sumqayit and Khyrdalan.
Absheron Peninsula | |
|---|---|
| Country | Azerbaijan |
| Seat | Baku city |
| Subdivisions | |
| Area | |
| • Total | 2,110 km2 (810 sq mi) |
| Population (2022) | |
| • Total | 4.6 million |
| • Rank | 1st |
| • Density | 3,070/km2 (8,000/sq mi) |
| Ethnicity | |
| • Azerbaijani | 80% |
| • Other | 20% |
| ISO 3166 code | AZ-AB |
There are three districts, of which two are urban (Baku and Sumqayit) and one is suburban (Absheron Rayon).
It extends 60 km (37 mi) eastward into the Caspian Sea, and reaches a maximum width of 30 km (19 mi). Though technically the easternmost extension of the Caucasus Mountains, the landscape is only mildly hilly, a gently undulating plain that ends in a long spit of sand dunes known as Shah Dili, and now declared the Absheron National Park. In this part, the peninsula is dissected by ravines and characterized by frequent salt lakes.