There is a long history of Poles in Azerbaijan (Polish: Polacy w Azerbejdżanie, Azerbaijani: Azərbaycan polyakları).

In the 17th century, missionaries Paul Wroczyński, Jedrzej Zielonacki and Alexander Kulesza set up a mission in Ganja, in the 1680s.

Missionaries and their followers brought gifts to the court of Shah in the form of valuable paintings, illuminated manuscripts of the Bible, etc.

The Poles began to appear in Azerbaijan from the 13th century on, mainly as abductees, captured by the Mongol-Tatars, but also as those who came there voluntarily.

[4] At this time Russia waged a war of aggression in the Caucasus, and as forced recruits here involved young men from all the occupied territories (mostly from Poland).

The main points where the Poles were sent to military service, were in Azerbaijan - Quba, Qusar, Shamakhi, Ganja, Baku, and Zaqatala.

Some Polish exiles were completely deprived of their liberty and detained in custody in places like the island fortress and Zaqatala Nargin.

At the beginning of World War I created the "Polish Committee of Baku on the organization of aid war-ravaged population of the Kingdom of Poland."

However, the selected governing bodies of the Polish organizations were not active enough in the future, and the decision of the meeting lost its validity for the Ministry of Justice.

Demurow Stefan was born in Tbilisi in 1871, graduated from seminary in 1895. and before the arrival in Baku was the pastor of a Christian church in Kutaisi (1895–1902) and Perekopiu (1902–1904).

After the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1997 group of Polish Christians with a priest from Poland - Jerzy Pilyus arrived in Baku.

The building was funded by proceeds from Pope John Paul II's book sales and foreign donations.

Even earlier, in the 19th century, the Poles were visiting Azerbaijan for various reasons such as political exiles, the tsarist army soldiers recruited from the Polish Kingdom, as well as Poles looking for a good job, especially during the dynamic development of Baku city - the so-called oil boom at the beginning twentieth century.

The Poles have made a major contribution to economic development, scientific, cultural, education areas of the country.

[22] In Azerbaijan, prominent scholars of Polish origin also lived who have made a major contribution to the scientific and technical development.

In 1919 Baku State University was established, which was of great importance for the overall development of the whole scientific system in a country that was backward at that time.

In the medical field - prof. Paul Zdrodowski (microbiology), prof. Uszyński, Malinowski, Różanowski, Berłacki, Mizernicki, Zamuchowski, in the social sciences - prof. Alexander Makowielski, Wsewołod Bronisław Tomaszewski, Aleksander Selichanowicz, M. Dabrowski, M. Downar-Zapolski, Associate Professor P. Piłaszewski, in other fields - prof. K. Krasuski (chemistry), Associate Professor P. Michalewski (geophysics) were among them.

[citation needed] Stanislaw Despot-Zenovich, who made a great deal for the improvement of the city was Mayor of Baku 16 years (1878–1894).

Paul Potocki (1879–1932) was the first who applied the technique of draining the sea bottom for oil in the filling of the bay Bibiheybət.

The conductor of Opera and Ballet Theater Vladimir Trahimovich, a teacher of piano Regina Sirovich, author of the best and relevant to the present day tutorial for piano (co-authored with L. Egorova), a famous jazz musician, Bronislaw Posadovsky were also among known Poles of Azerbaijani music scene.