The administrative center of the uezd was the city Novobayazet (present-day Gavar) for which the district was eponymously named.

Resulting from the Ottoman invasion of the South Caucasus, in 1918–1920 the population of the district contracted significantly due to famine and large-scale ethnic cleansing.

The administrative center of the uezd, Novobayazet, as indicated by its name meaning "New Bayazıt", was founded by Armenian immigrants from Doğubayazıt in the early 19th century who accompanied the withdrawing Imperial Russian Army to escape persecution in the Ottoman Empire.

The majority of the population indicated Armenian to be their mother tongue, with a significant Tatar[c] speaking minority.

The statistics indicated the city of Nor Bayazet and its peripheries to be overwhelmingly Armenian, with a significant Shia Muslim minority:[13]