Son Zəng

The last day of the school year here in Azerbaijan, May 31st, is called "Son Zəng" or last bell. For everyone not graduating, it is just a day to celebrate the year ending. For those in 11th grade, (schools here go from first to eleventh grades) it is a commencement/graduation ceremony filled with joy and sadness.

It is a time of happiness for the obvious reasons... who doesn't love getting a diploma? Here in Azerbaijan students stay in the same class with the same people for pretty much their entire school careers. This means that Fulano and Fulana from your first grade class are also in your 2nd, 3rd, 4th... and 11th grade classes. Unless you move schools or have some other issue, you're stuck with the same classmates for 11 years. Since the classes are around 15 kids each, this means that students here tend to get really close with their classmates. It wasn't until recently that I began to understand that the sinif yoldaşı relationship is a deep one and not just a superficial "we were in the same algebra class in 5th grade" type deal. So graduating in the 11th grade, especially if you will be leaving your town to go to university, is a big time of change for the students who have formed such close friendships and bonds.

Last year I did not attend any Son Zəng ceremonies because I was traveling in another part of Azerbaijan on May 31st. This year however I made sure to stay in Zaqatala, especially since I knew so many 11th graders who would be graduating. I attended the Russian School's Son Zəng with my friend Könül, and we had a blast. We got there a bit late but I don't think we missed too much since we were still there for another two hours. The ceremony was held in the backyard of the school, and each graduating class took turns going on the stage and singing songs they dedicated to their teachers and classmates. Then some teachers made some speeches, some students made speeches, some kids got diplomas, everyone started dancing, and finally a little girl in the first grade went around (on the shoulders of an 11th grader) ringing a bell. There were tons of flowers and giant stuffed animals, as well as confetti. I congratulated all the students I knew and took pictures with them so I would remember the day.

Below are two examples of my favorite part of the ceremony: the classes coordinated their outfits so they would all match! Check out these lovely ladies dresses and this boy band next to them: