Aygestan / Ballyja Այգեստան / Ballıca
Aygestan / Ballyja Show map of Azerbaijan Aygestan / Ballyja Show map of Karabakh Economic Region
Coordinates: 39°51′57″N 46°43′24″E / 39.86583°N 46.72333°E / 39.86583; 46.72333
Country	Azerbaijan
• District	Khojaly
Area
• Total	2,283.46 km2 (881.65 sq mi)
Elevation	1,084 m (3,556 ft)
Population  (2015)[1]
• Total	1,084
Time zone	UTC+4 (AZT)

Aygestan (Armenian: Այգեստան) or Ballyja (Armenian: Բալուջա, romanized: Baluja; Azerbaijani: Ballıca) is a village in the Khojaly District of Azerbaijan. The village has an ethnic Armenian-majority population, and also had an Armenian majority in 1989.^[2] Prior to the 2023 Azerbaijani offensive, it was de facto controlled by the Republic of Artsakh.^[3]

History

The modern village was founded in the 17th century.^[4] During the Soviet period, the village was part of the Askeran District of the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast.

Historical heritage sites

Historical heritage sites in and around the village include tombs from the 2nd–1st centuries BCE, a 12th/13th-century village, the 12th/13th-century Tamtsi Church (Armenian: Թամցի եկեղեցի), the 12th/13th-century shrine of Prshni Nahatak (Armenian: Փռշնի Նահատակ), a 13th-century khachkar, a cemetery from between the 17th and 19th centuries, and the church of Surb Astvatsatsin (Armenian: Սուրբ Աստվածածին, lit. 'Holy Mother of God') built in 1850.^[1]

Economy and culture

The population is mainly engaged in agriculture and animal husbandry, as well as in different state institutions. As of 2015, the village has a municipal building, a house of culture, a secondary school, a kindergarten, and a medical centre.^[1] The village is home to the Artsakh Brandy Company.^[5]

Demographics

The village had 1,091 inhabitants in 2005,^[6] and 1,084 inhabitants in 2015.^[1]

Gallery

• 
  St. Astvatsatsin Church
• 
  Municipal building
• 
  School
• 
  Beekeeping
• 
  Street
• 
  A view of the village
• 
  WWII (Great Patriotic War) monument