The Qara Qoyunlu or Kara Koyunlu (, ) were a tribal alliance of Oghuz tribes. They ruled Azerbaijan, Armenia, eastern Anatolia, and northern Iraq from 1375 to 1468. The Kara Koyunlus settled in the south of Lake Van. They became strong in Erzincan, Sivas and in the north-eastern lands of Eastern Anatolia in the 1370s. The Kara Koyunla fought against the Aq Qoyunlu, Jalairis, and Timurid.
The Qara Qoyunlu dynasty was founded by Bayram Khoja. His successor, Qara Muhammad, became related to Jalairi Sultan Ahmad in order to end problems with the Jalairi. This led to the capture of the western part of Azerbaijan, including Tabriz. The Qara Qoyunlus become a great empire during the rule of Gara Yusif. In a battle against the Timurids and Jalairis, Qara Yusif created a large state from Azerbaijan. This united Eastern Georgia, Arab Iraq and Ajam Iraq. Qara Iskander, the son of Qara Yusif, restored the rule of Kara Koyunlu in 1421. Sultan Shahrukh left Tabriz, he entered the city. When Shah Rukh returned, all the lands he had captured were recaptured by Black Alexander.
According to the German Turkologist Gerhard Doerfere, it is very strange that the word "Turkmen" still confuses the Aq Qoyunlu and Qara Qoyunlu Turkmens. The word Turkmen actually means "nomadic Oghuz. Aq Qoyunlu and Qara Qoyunlu" are Azerbaijanis
researchers associate the Oghuz dialect of Kara-Qoyunlu with the Azerbaijani language. For example, Faruk Shumer recorded that the Eastern Oghuz dialect of Qara-Qoyunlu is called the Azerbaijani language today, and Muhsin Behramnejad named Azerbaijani language an inherited from Qara-Qoyunlu Turkmen tribes. Sultan Kara-Koyunlu 1435-1467 Jahan shah is the generally recognized representative of Azerbaijani poetry.