The well-known publicist, historian-scientist and pedagogue Rashid bey Asad oglu Ismayilov was born in 1877 in the city of Iravan. He graduated from Iravan Teachers’ Seminary. In 1903, he started working in “Shargi-rus” newspaper. In addition, he published articles in the Russian-language press (“Sankt-Peterburgskiye vedomosti”, etc.) printed in the Caucasus and in the center of Russia. Rashid Bey Ismayilov worked for one year in “Tiflisskiy listok” newspaper. He had close relations with Jalil Mammadguluzade, Muhammad aga Shahtakhtinsky, Ahmed bey Aghayev (Agaoglu), Alimardan bey Topchubashov and others, and worked together with them. After the publication of “Sharqi-rus” newspaper was stopped, he headed the Middle East department of “Novoye obozreniye” newspaper. Although Rashid Bey Ismayilov applied to the Viceroy of the Caucasus to publish a newspaper called “Taza Zaman”, he was not allowed to publish the newspaper on the pretext that he was a pan-Islamist.

In 1904, his book “Brief History of the Caucasus and Brief Biographies of Famous Turkish Writers and Poets from Transcaucasia” was published in Azerbaijani Turkish at the “Shargi-rus” printing house in Tbilisi. Some issues of the history of the Caucasus, including Azerbaijan in the 19th century, are reflected in this book. Rashid Bey Ismayilov translated Zurab Antonov’s play “Koroglu” from Georgian into Azerbaijani, and that work was staged in Tbilisi theater.

Rashid Bey Ismayilov worked in a responsible position in the Council of Ministers during the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic. On January 15, 1919, an extraordinary meeting of Azerbaijanis living in Iravan governorate was held in Baku and the Society of Compatriots of Muslims of Iravan governorate was founded. Rashid Bey Ismayilov worked effectively as the responsible secretary of this society.

After the fall of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic, Rashid Bey Ismayilov worked as a history teacher at school No. 18 in Baku.

After A.A.Bakikhanov, Rashid Bey Ismayilov showed the second initiative in the field of researching the history of Azerbaijan based on scientific sources. His book “History of Azerbaijan”, which covers the history of Azerbaijan from ancient times to the establishment of Soviet power in April 1920, was published in Baku in 1923. In the work, the section “Declaration of independence of the Transcaucasus” is devoted to the situation on the eve of the establishment of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic, and the section “Azerbaijan Republic” is devoted to its establishment and activities. Some issues of the history of the Caucasus, including Azerbaijan in the 19th century, are reflected in this book.

Rashid Bey Ismayilov died in Baku in 1941. His “History of Azerbaijan” was reprinted in Cyrillic by “Azernashr” in 1993.

Rashid Bey’s elder brother Karim Bey Ismayilov graduated from the Gori Teachers’ Seminary in 1892 and became an employee of “Molla Nasreddin” magazine.