The Ayrumlu tribe, as a branch of the Oghuz Turkish tribes and related to the Rumlu tribe—one of the seven main Qizilbash tribes of the Safavids—is today dispersed across three countries: Iran, Turkey, and Azerbaijan. It has played a key role in the political and military developments of Azerbaijan and Iran. This article, adopting a historical-analytical approach and based on primary sources (such as Ottoman Tahrir Defters, Russian AKAK documents, and Persian texts like *Ahsan al-Tawarikh*) and secondary sources (works by Faruk Sümer, Fahrettin Kırzıoğlu, and others), examines the historical roots (migration from Anatolia to Azerbaijan after 1301 AD and the evolution of the name from Rumlu to Ayrumlu), tribal structure (a confederation of four clans: Dashlu, Akıncı, Aghsaqlo, and Shams al-Dinlu), culture and language (the Ayrum dialect as one of the recognized dialects of Azerbaijani Turkish in northwestern Azerbaijan), and their role during the Safavid (border-guarding in Chokhur-e Sa'd and border battles), Afsharid, and Qajar periods (establishment of the Shorayel Sultanate, conflicts with the Russians, migration after the Treaty of Turkmenchay, settlement in Somay and Margavar of Urmia, ethnic challenges, and their role in border security).
Findings indicate that the Ayrumlu were not merely a subordinate tribal unit, but a driving force in consolidating the eastern borders of the Safavids and the northern borders of the Qajars, which led to the fading of a Rumlu-centric identity and the establishment of an independent Ayrumlu identity.
This research emphasizes the importance of preserving the cultural heritage of this tribe and offers suggestions for future research.