Gabala (Azerbaijani:Qəbələ) (Lezgian:Кьвепеле), also known as Qabala, is a city in Azerbaijan and the capital of the Qabala Rayon. The municipality consists of the city of Gabala and the village of Küsnat. Before 1991 the city was known as Kutkashen, but after Azerbaijan's independence the town was renamed in honour of the much older city of Gabala, the former capital of Caucasian Albania, the archaeological site of which is about 20 km southwest.