Higher Education in Armenia

Transcription

ARMENIA
A COUNTRY AND
THE PEOPLE
A guidebook
Ye r e v a n
199 9
1
Authors:
Konstantin Khudaverdyan
Yeghishe Sargsyan
Translation by
Artashes Emin
Armenia, A country and the people,
A guidebook. Yerevan, V. Movsessian,
1999 p. 204.
Publisher:
© Vera Movsessian, 1999
AraM
© ENCYCLOPAEDIA-ARMENICA Ltd
17 Toumanian Street, Yerevan
2
INDEX
To the guests of Armenia
................................................................
6
General information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The flag of the Republic of Armenia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The coat of arms of the Republic of Armenia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The national anthem of the Republic of Armenia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
7
8
9
9
Natural environment
....................................................................
Armenians and the Armenian language
........................................
11
14
From the depth of centuries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
The Armenian Apostolic Church
...................................................
59
The Republic of Armenia today . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
State organization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
The Constitution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
The President . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
The National Assembly (Parliament) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
The cabinet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
The Constitutional Court . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Administrative division.
Territorial governance and local self-administration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
The provinces of Armenia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
The communities of the city of Yerevan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
The judiciary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
State holidays and remembrance days . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Armenia on the international scene . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
Membership to international organizations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
Diplomatic missions of foreign states . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Representations of international organizations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Embassies of the Republic of Armenia abroad . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Permanent missions to international organizations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
The economy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Industry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Agriculture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Transport . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
The social sector . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
3
INDEX
Education . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
Science . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
Culture and sport . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
Literature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
Music . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Fine arts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Theatre . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
Cinematography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
The capital city of the Republic of Armenia Yerevan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Some background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Churches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
Parks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
Monuments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Historical and architectural monuments of Armenia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
Armavir province . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
Ararat province . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126
Kotayk province . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
Aragatsotn province . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
Shirak province . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135
Lori province . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138
Tavoush province . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140
Gegharkounik province . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
Vayots Dzor province . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
Sunik province . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
Armenians in the contemporary world . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150
Miscellaneous data and useful tidbits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153
The rights and obligations of foreign nationals
in the Republic of Armenia, the procedure for entry
and exit, residence permits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153
Business information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158
Transport and communications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164
Air connections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164
Distances from Yerevan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165
Time zone chart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166
4
INDEX
Railways . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
Highways . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168
Highway mileage to Yerevan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168
Yerevan City transport . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169
Transport terminals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169
Underground stations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 170
Telecommunications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171
Telephone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171
Domestic area codes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171
Country codes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173
Long distance phone tariffs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
Mail tariffs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
Domestic mail codes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178
Tourism, hotels, resorts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
Yerevan hotels: a directory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180
Armenian resorts and spas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181
The climate. Clothing. Traditional costumes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182
The Armenian alphabet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184
Survival lexicon in the Armenian . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
Spelling of Armenian numerals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187
On Armenian cuisine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188
Traditional bread . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189
Description of traditional meals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190
Armenian fish . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192
Armenian wines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193
Armenian cognacs (brandies) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194
Gastronomic glossary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195
Miscellaneous reference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200
Public offices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200
Creative associations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201
Libraries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202
Yerevan churches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202
Sports facilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202
Farmers markets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
Emergency numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
City information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
5
TO THE GUESTS OF ARMENIA
We take the liberty to surmise that a foreigner, upon deciding to visit
Armenia, already possesses certain information on the country, its nature,
attractions, its people. This is the very information that, even though it
may be fragmented and superficial, motivates an outlander to undertake
a trip to Armenia to come to know this ancient land, its culture, its past
and its present better. We want to assist our potential guests by offering
them a brief necessary background on Armenia and the Armenians. This
The Ararat valley
GUIDE compiles what we think is essential: a history of the Armenian
people in a nutshell, the state organization, the economy, science and culture of present-day Armenia, its attractions as well as some useful advice
for the visitors to our country.
6
G E N E R A L I N F O R M AT I O N
Republic of Armenia Hayastany Hanrapetoutyun
Armenia Hayastan
Independence day: September 21, 1991 (the day of the referendum)
Constitution: adopted through a referendum on July 5, 1995
Flag: tricolor, horizontal stripes of (from top to bottom) red, blue
and orange
Coat of arms: the restored coat of arms of the First Republic
(19181920)
National Anthem: Mer Hayrenik Our Fatherland
System of governance: presidential
Capital city: Yerevan
Administrative division: Eleven provinces (including the capital
city of Yerevan that possesses a status of a province)
Currency unit: dram, introduced in 1993, one dram = 100 lumas
Geographic coordinates: on the South: 38o 50' Northern latitude;
on the North: 41o 20' Northern latitude; on the West: 43o 30' Eastern
Longitude; on the East: 46o 00' Eastern Longitude
Neighbouring countries: on the North: Georgia; on the East:
Azerbaijan; on the South: Iran; on the SouthWest: Nakhijevan
(Azerbaijan); on the West: Turkey
Territory: 29,74 thousand square kilometers
Average altitude above sea level: 1,800 meters
Highest mountain peak: Aragats (4,090 meters)
Lowest altitude: 380 meters in the Debed canyon
Biggest natural freshwater reservoir: lake Sevan (1,897 meters
above sea level, 81 meters at its deepest)
Land: cultivable 3.2%, pastures 29.8%, forests 12%, drylands
17.8%, alpine 37.2%
Climate: dry continental
Population: 3,766.4 thousand (as of 1996)
Average population density: 125 per square kilometer
7
ARMENIA
Population breakdown (as of 1995): urban 67.5%, rural 32.5%,
female 51.5%, male 48.5%, 16 years of age and under 32.5%, between 17 and 59 years of age 56.2%, 60 and over years of age 11.3%
Ethnic breakdown: Armenians 96%, minorities: Russians, Ezidis,
Kurds, Assyrians, Greeks, Ukrainians, Jews and others
Language: Armenian
Religion: Christian
Church: Armenian Apostolic
Religious centre: St. Ejmiatsin, the Cathedral of the Armenian
Apostolic Church and the residence of the Catholicos (Patriarch) of
all Armenians
Cities: (thousands of people as of 1996)
Yerevan
1,249.4
Gyumri
211.1
Vanadzor
172.6
Vagharshapat
64.7
Hrazdan
63.8
Abovyan
61.6
Kapan
46.7
Armavir
Charentsavan
Gavar
Artashat
Dilijan
Ashtarak
Goris
46.4
36.3
34.1
34.0
30.9
28.8
28.8
Sevan
Alaverdi
Stepanavan
Artik
Ararat
Spitak
Jermuk
28.7
25.3
24.9
23.7
21.9
21.4
10.3
THE FLAG OF THE REPUBLIC OF ARMENIA
The law On the state flag of
the Republic of Armenia was
adopted on August 24, 1990, by the
Supreme Council of the Republic
of Armenia. The state flag is a
rectangular panel with three equal
horizontal stripes of red, blue and
orange colours (from top to bottom). The proportion of width to
length is 1:2. The state flag is identical in size and colours to the
state flag of the First Armenian republic (19181920). The colour
red symbolises the blood shed by the Armenian people in its
struggle for independence, the colour blue symbolises the clear
8
sky of Armenia and the colour orange symbolyses the creative
drive of the nation.
THE COAT OF ARMS OF THE REPUBLIC
OF ARMENIA
The law On the state coat of arms of the
Republic of Armenia was adopted on April
19, 1992, by the Supreme Council of the Republic of Armenia. It is a rendition of the
coat of arms of the First Armenian republic
(19181920) that had been authored by the
architect, member of the Russian Academy
of Fine Arts Alexander Tamanian and artist
Hakob Kojoyan.
Description of the coat of arms: the central shield of the coat of arms
bears the charges of four royal Armenian dynasties: the Artaxids, the
Arshakids, the Bagratunis and the Rubinyans (the Cilician kingdom). These
surround the depiction of mount Ararat with the outline of Noahs ark resting on the peak. The silver waves of lake Van are at the foot of the mountain. The shield is supported by a lion and an eagle that symbolise the spirit,
the power, forbearance and valour. A sword at the bottom represents the
struggle of the Armenian people for Freedom and Independence, while the
quill and cereal spikes symbolyse its creative talent and peaceful character.
THE ANTHEM OF THE REPUBLIC OF ARMENIA
Mer Hayrenik/Our Fatherland
The first and the last quatrains of
the Anthem in the Armenian language:
The Armenian text
in Roman transliteration:
1.
Ø»ñ Ð³Ûñ»ÝÇù, ³½³ï, ³ÝÏ³Ë,
àñ ³åñ»É ¿ ¹³ñ»¹³ñ,
Æñ áñ¹ÇùÁ ³ñ¹ Ï³ÝãáõÙ ¿
²½³ï, ³ÝÏ³Ë Ð³Û³ëï³Ý:
1.
Mer Hayrenik, azat, ankah,
Vor aprel eh daredar,
Ihr vordikeh ard kanchoom eh
Azat, ankah Hayastan.
9
ARMENIA
4.
²Ù»Ý³ÛÝ ï»Õ Ù³ÑÁ ÙÇ ¿,
Ø³ñ¹ ÙÇ ³Ý·³Ù åÇï Ù»éÝ»,
´³Ûó »ñ³ÝÇ, áñ Ûáõñ ³½·Ç
²½³ïáõÃÛ³Ý ÏÁ½áÑíÇ:
4.
Amenayn teg maheh me eh,
Mard me angam pit merneh,
Bayts yerani, vor your azgi
Azatootyan kezohvi.
Literal translation:
1.
Our Fatherland, free, independent,
That has lived for centuries,
Is now summoning its sons
To the free, independent Armenia.
4.
Death is the same everywhere,
A man dies but once,
Blessed is the one hat dies
For the freedom of his nation.
The background of the Anthem: By the end of the 19th, beginning of the
20th centuries the song Our Fatherland inspired thousands of patriots and
was sung by them during heroic battles of the Armenian people for freedom
and independence. In 1918, during the days of establishment of the First
Republic, Our Fatherland became the National Anthem of the Republic
of Armenia. The author of the lyrics is poet Mikael Nalbandian (18291866).
Pursuant to the resolution of the Supreme Council of the Republic of Armenia of July 1, 1991, the anthem of the Republic of Armenia of 19181920 is
adopted as the basis for the national anthem. The text of the anthem has
been subjected to changes.
The score of the anthem:
10
N AT U R A L E N V I R O N M E N T
Kharberd, Yerznka, Alashkert
and Shirak valleys, that had
played a prominent economic
role in the life of the Armenian
people. The Ararat valley is the
The Armenian people have
lived on the Armenian plateau, a
vast territory of more than 300
thousand square kilometers,
stretching over the central and
Northern parts of Asia Minor.
The Armenian plateau is bound
on the North by the Lesser Caucasus range and on the South by
the Armenian Taurus range,
while on the West it descends
into the Euphrates valley and on
the East into the Caspian lowland. Almost in the centre is a
huge volcanic massif with twin
peaks: the Greater Ararat (altitude: 5156 m above sea level, the
Armenians also call it Massis)
and the Lesser Ararat (altitude:
3914 m above sea level, the Armenians also call it Sis). The Armenian Range stretches West of
the Ararat massif, breaking down
into individual mountains. The
mountainous system of the
Lesser Caucasus contains a number of peaks, among which
Aragats (altitude: 4095 m) is the
highest on the territory of the
Republic of Armenia. There are
a number of plains and fertile
valleys within the Armenian plateau. The best known among
these are the Ararat, Moush,
Aragats mountain
biggest and the most fertile
among these, it has become the
centre of economic, political and
cultural life of Armenians. Several of the capital cities of ancient
Armenia: Armavir, Yervandashat, Vagharshapat and Dvin
were in the Ararat valley. This is
where the capital of the current
Republic of Armenia, the City of
Yerevan is, as well as St. Ejmiatsin, the centre of the Armenian
Apostolic Church.
The Armenian plateau is rich
with rivers. Here lie the origins of
rivers Euphrates and Tigris with
their tributaries, flowing into the
Persian gulf, as well as of Kura
and Arax, flowing into the
11
ARMENIA
in the world (covering approximately 1,400 sq k). Up to two
dozen small rivers flow into the
lake, while only one flows out of
it, river Hrazdan. The water is
fresh, the fish are the i s h k h a n
(local trout) and whitefish.
The natural environment and
the climate of the Armenian plateau were favourable from times
immemorial for the settlement of
people: first they hunted, then
proceeded to cultivate the land,
herd cattle and engage in crafts.
The population of the plateau
from early on grew wheat, grapes,
sesame and fruits: apricots,
peaches, apples and others. The
Caspian Sea. The longest river in
the Republic of Armenia is Arax,
its tributaries are Akhourian,
Hrazdan, Kassakh, Azat and others. The biggest lakes of the plateau are Van, Urmia and Sevan.
Lake Van (currently within the
territory of Turkey) was called
Tosp in the ancient times or, alternatively, the sea of Bznuni. Its
surface stretches over 3,733 sq k.
and the water is salty. From times
immemorial they made salt and
fished the famous t a r e k h here,
a fish indigenous to lake Van. The
ancient name of lake Urmia (currently within the territory of Iran)
was Kaputan. Its mirror is 5,800
Lake Sevan
Armenian plateau is the home of
some of these species.
The Armenian plateau is rich
with minerals. Armenian and
sq k, fish do not breed in its salty
water. Lake Sevan, called the
Geghama sea in the olden times,
is one of the largest alpine lakes
12
foreign sources hold that copper
ore, lead, silver and gold were
mined here a long time ago.
There also were salt mines. The
The fauna of the plateau was
especially rich in the ancient
times. Until now the noble deer,
the mountain goat, the roe deer,
the Armenian moufflon, the boar
breed here. The predators include the wolf, the bear, the fox,
the birds include the eagle, the
kite, the falcon, the stork, the
pheasant, the partridge and others. The scholars have discovered
sites of primitive men on the Armenian plateau as well as evidence of their productive activity,
which allows to rightfully rank
this region with the most ancient
cradles of human civilization.
A Zangezour landscape
population used a diversity of
building materials: basalt, multicoloured tuff, marble, limestone.
13
ARMENIANS AND THE ARMENIAN
LANGUAGE
this long and mingled process was
reserved to tribes speaking a language of the Indo-European family. Local tribes of other language
families (Hurrites, Urartians and
others) have also contributed to
the formation of the Armenian
people. The scholars single out
H a y a s a , a tribal association
that populated the Armenian plateau and, they maintain, has lent
its name to the way Armenians
call themselves: H a y (Ñ³Û).
The Armenian plateau is the
cradle of Armenians. This circumstance, i.e. the geopolitical
situation of the Armenian people,
has left an imprint on its entire
history. Living on the junction of
two worlds, the Asian and the
European, the Armenians were
exposed from early on to the cultures of the East and the West,
and the Armenian culture itself
incorporated many elements of
these civilizations. The territory
of the Armenian plateau, by virtue of its geographic location, has
been subjected to the rampage of
conquerors moving from West to
East but even more often from
East to West. This fact has mostly
predetermined the patterns and
The process of the formation
of the Armenian people took
place in the depth of ages, between the 2nd and 1st millennia
B.C. Which explains why it is of-
Monument in Yerevan to the
forefather of Armenians Haik
ten impossible to reliably and
comprehensively shed light over
many a circumstance in the making up of the Armenian people.
Modern science maintains that
the process of the formation of the
Armenian people has incontestably taken place on the Armenian
plateau, involving several tribes
and associations of tribes that
have gradually converged into a
single nation. The leading role in
14
A R M E N I A N S A N D T H E A R M E N I A N LA N G UA G E
peculiarities of the historical development of Armenians. The
geopolitical factor has not lost its
significance in our days either.
Armenians have long been
known to adapt rapidly to the shifting conditions of life, they are hard
working, experienced and lucky in
trade matters. Such an appraisal of
the Armenians has contributed to
the fact that in many countries
where Armenians have resettled in
view of social hardships in the motherland, they have been granted various privileges up to the right to selfgovernance. Armenians, especially
the ones living in alien lands, are
characterized by a leadership drive.
It comes as no accident that in a
wide range of countries with Armenian communities the Armenians
have attained top positions not only
in the economy or trade, but also on
the social and political scenes. For
example in the Byzantium of the 9th
11th centuries the ruling dynasty was
the Macedonian or Armenian whose
crowned representatives were of Armenian descent. Throughout different centuries Armenians have held
highest civil and military posts in
Georgia, Russia, Bulgaria, Hungary,
Rumania, Egypt and other countries. There are Armenians currently
known to play a visible role in the
economy, politics and culture of
countries like France, the U.S.A.,
Syria, Lebanon etc.
Possessing centuries of experience of living in alien environments
the Armenians are not xenophobic,
although they do have their own
Many factors have affected the
formation of Armenian mentality.
These may include the tribulations
of Armenian history, the exposure of
the Armenian people to the proponents of Western and Eastern civilizations, early accession to Christian
ethics. And although the Armenians
are quite susceptible to cultural penetration, they somehow succeeded in
preserving their ingenuity, traditions
of social behaviour and family
lifestyles many of which date back
millennia. The Armenian family is
traditionally strong, even now divorces are a rare occurrence. The
patriarchal flavour of the Armenian
family is in that more often than not
it comprises three generations living
under a single roof. Respect towards
the elders, love and constant care for
the children are all characteristic
features. Armenian families with
many children were a common occurrence in the past, now it is predominantly a rural phenomenon
while urban families, as a rule, have
one or two children.
Armenians are hospitable, convivial people that know how to
drink. It is quite a challenge to encounter a drunk Armenian out in
the street, an intoxicated Armenian
prefers to stay home.
15
ARMENIA
assessment of the ways and features
of national characters of their close
and distant neighbours. Incidentally, Armenians are at their most
ironic when it comes to themselves.
The natives of Van, for example, enjoy the popular perception of being
closefisted, the Gyumri people are
the witty ones while the natives of
Lori are the simple-minded etc.
This typology, often groundless,
usually sticks for good, gets down
from one generation to another and
finds its reflection in folklore and
literature.
It is believed that Armenians find
it difficult to abide by common rules
and aspire to do it their way even in
situations that are not asking for it.
This is not a totally unwarranted
statement, suffice it to observe for a
while the behaviour of motorists and
pedestrians in the streets of Armenian cities to get reassured: both the
former and the latter are not happy
with traffic rules.
Monument to the Armenian script
in Oshakan
menians adds up to over 25 thousand manuscripts currently preserved in the Yerevan Matenadaran the Institute of Ancient
Manuscripts named after the inventor of the Armenian script, as
well as in the depositories and libraries of Jerusalem, Vienna,
Venice, London and other locations.
The Armenian language is of
the Indo-European family, representing a stand alone ramification of the family with one of the
oldest scripts. The Armenian
script was created at the beginning of the 5th century by St
Mesrob Mashtots, it has since
become the solid foundation for
the national language and culture. The written legacy of Ar-
Armenian medieval manuscript
16
FROM THE DEPTH OF CENTURIES
A brief survey of the history and culture of Armenia
Ancient Armenian
states
Alexander the Great emerged as
a result. But even before that Armenia broke into two parts: The
Greater Armenia (comprising
most of the Armenian Plateau)
and Lesser Armenia (the territory of Upper Euphrates). Lesser
Armenia became a part of Alexanders Empire, while Greater
Armenia restored its independence and descendants of the
Yervandouni continued to reign
there. Following the collapse of
the empire of Alexander the
Great Armenia was included in
the state of the Seleucids, one of
the Hellenistic countries that
emerged over the ruins of Alexanders Empire. Hellenism had a
great impact on the socio-economic and cultural life of the
Armenian society. Through this
time the highly developed ancient Greek civilization came into
contact with the local cultures of
Asia Minor, including Armenians. As a result of this Armenian culture of the period combines elements of Western as well
as Eastern civilizations.The political structures of the Armenian society were also affected by
The history of Armenian statehood adds up to over three millennia, dating back to the history
of Urartu (the Araratian kingdom), a powerful state, a peer and
rival of Assyria. A multitude of
monuments of the Urartian period has survived on the territory
of the Armenian plateau, their
study by archaeologists allowed to
arrive at a perception of the history, state organization and the
culture of this once powerful state.
Following the decline of Urartu
by the end of the 7th century B.C.
the ancient Armenian kingdom
emerged on its ruins, ruled by the
kings of the Yervandouni (Orontid) dynasty. Shortly thereafter the
Armenian kingdom fell under the
domination of the Persian state of
Achaemenids. By the end of the
4th century B.C. the situation in
Asia Minor had changed radically: the troops of Alexander the
Great have invaded from the West
and crushed the Achaemenid
kingdom, they conquered Asias
Minor and Central, as well as India. The colossal empire of
17
ARMENIA
Hellenistic influence. In the beginning of the 2nd century B.C. a
united Armenian kingdom came
into being. The king of Greater
Armenia Artashes I (189160
B.C.), the founder of the Artaxid
Armenia between Rome
and Parthia
The confrontation that emerged between Rome and Parthia
(ancient Iran) created a new political situation for Armenia that
persisted for many centuries to
come: Armenia had to take care
first and foremost of the preservation of its independence and territorial integrity, making a choice
between conflicting powers. The
territory of Armenia often became an arena of military confrontation. The Artaxid dynasty
phased out in the 1st century B.C.
The crisis of the ancient Armenia
state was overcome in the middle
of the 1st century A.C. when, on
the background of an ArmenoParthian treaty the throne of Armenia was taken by Tiridates, the
brother of the Parthian king
Vagharsh I from the dynasty of
Arshakuni (Arsacids). Tiridates I
became the founder of the new
dynasty of Arsacids in Armenia.
Important events took place while
the dynasty was in power: the
country embarked on the period
of development of feudal relations, it adopted Christianity and
the Armenian script was created.
The period of relative stability
A coin minted by Tigran the Great
dynasty, converged into a united
state most of the Armenian-populated lands of the Armenian plateau. The state of the Artaxids
reached the peak of its might during the reign of Tigranes II the
Great (9555 B.C.). Armenia substantially expanded its boundaries, exceeding the patterns of its
ethnic settlements. For some
time it succeeded in withstanding
the agression of Rome towards
the East. Nevertheless Rome finally took over and forced a
peace treaty over Armenian, pursuant to which it had to give up
all of its acquisitions.
18
F R O M T H E D E P TH O F C E N T U R I E S
both the dwellers of the Armenian
plateau and those ancient societies
and countries with which the Armenians had long maintained contact.
At the earliest stages of its development ancient Armenian culture was
singled out by its perceptiveness towards the cultural accomplishments
of other peoples. This feature of ancient Armenian culture became
most salient during the Hellenistic
period. Being a culture of a higher
order, Hellenism nevertheless did
not level out local Armenian culture,
while leaving a deep impact on the
latter. In material culture the Hellenistic influence is most apparent in
was soon to be over. In 387 Armenia was divided between Rome
and Iran. The situation that
emerged carried on through centuries to come: a division of Armenia into Western and Eastern
sections. The borer between the
two was constantly shifting depending on which of the dividing
powers took over in their ever
continuing confrontation.
Culture of ancient Armenia
The formation of ancient Armenian culture enjoyed the input of
The fortress and temple of Garni
19
ARMENIA
urban planning and architecture.
Ancient authors have left us descriptions of magnificent Armenian captals of the Hellenistic period:
theon was headed by H a y k, who
was considered to be the forefather
of Armenians. Other gods that were
worshipped included A r a (there is
a beautiful legend about Ara the
Handsome and the Assyrian Queen
Semiramis) and To r k (the legend
holds that he was a giant prone to
kindly deeds). Later under Hellenistic influence the Armenian heathen
gods assume certain new functions.
A r a m a z d takes over as the principal god, A n a h i t becomes the patron of the country, Va h a g n becomes the god of war, T i r that of
wisdom and script, while A s t r i k
is the goddess of love and so on.
There were numerous temples to pay
tribute to these gods, their deeds
were reflected in myths and tales.
Ancient sources have preserved
information about the theatre arts in
Armenia. It is known that Tigranes
II had built in his capital city of Tigranocert a theatre where Greek actors used to perform. His successor
king Artavazd II offered his royal
palace in Artashat for theatrical performances. Greek pieces as well as
tragedies written by Artavazd himself were performed there. King
Artavazd II is rightfully considered
to be the first Armenian playwright,
which entitled him to be cast in
stone in a bas-relief of the pediment
of the building of the Armenian
Academic Drama Company in
Yerevan.
The sculpted head of Anahit,
goddess of maternity and fertility
Artashat and Tigranocert. The archaeological excavations in Artashat
undertaken in our times have attested to this depictions.
The best known monument of
the Hellenistic period in Armenia is
the heathen temple in Garni, built
in the 1st century. It comes to prove
the high mastery of local architects
and builders. No less interesting is
the fortress of Garni that allows to
form a perception about the fortifications in ancient Armenia.
The heathen religion was an important component of ancient Armenian culture, it underwent certain
changes prior to the spread of Christianity. The Armenian heathen pan-
20
ity may be successfully used in
the interests of central authorities
and the treatment of Christianity
changed radically. The traditional
date for the adoption of Christianity in Armenia is 301 A.D. Moreover, Tiridates banned the heathen faith and proclaimed Christianity to be the sole official religion of his kingdom. Armenia
thus became one of the first countries where Christianity was acknowledged as a state religion.
The church that was established
through the preachers and endorsed through the martyrdom of
the Apostles became known as the
Holy Armenian Apostolic
Church.
The first Patriarch (Catholicos) of the Armenian church was
Gregory of Partev, whom the
church holds to be the second
(following the Apostles) illuminator of the Armenians, later
Gregory the Illuminator was
canonized by the Armenian
church.
Even prior to the Hellenistic theatre ritual pageants, popular games
and festivities held at city squares
were commonplace in Armenia.
The culture of ancient Armenia
became the foundation upon which
the formidable building of Armenian national culture was erected in
subsequent historical periods.
Conversion of the Armenian
people into Christianity
A pivotal event in the history
of the Armenian people, the adoption of Christianity, took place
during the reign of the Arsacids.
The first Christian communities
had emerged in Armenia back in
the 1st century, Christianity had
come to Armenian from the South
from Syria and from the West
from Lesser Armenia and Cappadocia. The church tradition ties
the spread of Christianity in Armenia with the efforts of the
apostles Thaddaeus and Bartholomew that have brought the light
of the Bible into Armenia (the
land of Ararat, as in the Scriptures). Initially king Tiridates III
the Great (298330 A.D.) severely
persecuted the first Christians.
Soon thereafter the ruling class of
Armenia, as in other countries, realized that the ideas of Christian-
The adoption of Christianity left
a powerful impact on the subsequent
history of the Armenian people. The
Christian faith provided an impetus
for the further development of enlightenment and culture. Christian
ethics became the basis for the Armenian outlook, left an immutable
21
ARMENIA
former tolerance towards the
Christian faith of the Armenians
was replaced by an urge to convert them to M a z d e i s m, a
branch of Z o r o a s t r i a n i s m
professed in Iran. This claim was
jeopardizing the preservation of
the specialness of Armenians.
In the Spring of 450 the Persian authorities attempted to
force Armenians to convert. A
popular uprising was the response. Armenians nakharars
lacked unity, though: the proponents of drastic action converged
around sparapet Vardan Mamikonian, while m a r z p a n (Persian-appointed ruler of the country) Vassak Suny assumed a stalling position and subsequently
went over to the Persians along
with his supporters.
imprint on the spiritual makeup and
the psyche of the nation. Along with
that the Armenian church came to
play a salient role in the life of the
Armenian society, especially after
the loss of statehood. The statutes of
the Armenian church regulated
many aspects of the lives of Armenians, the church had assumed some
of the functions of the state, it was a
solid support in the centuries-long
struggle of the Armenian people to
preserve its ingenuity.
Eastern Armenia in the
5th century. Struggle against
Persian domination
Eastern Armenia, having lost
its sovereignty, became a part of
the Sassanid Iran, but it preserved certain institutes of selfgovernance as well as the social
status of landowners, the n a k h a r a r s. Eastern Armenia had
its own army under the command
of the s p a r a p e t. Initially the
Persian authorities were quite tolerant towards the Armenian
church as well.
Nevertheless towards the
middle of the 5th century the
situation changed. Iran increased
the taxes on the population of
Eastern Armenia and began the
practice of appointing Persians to
leading posts in the country. The
On May 26, 451, the decisive
battle was waged on the Avarayr
plain Southeast of the Ararat
mountain. Before the battle Vardan
Mamikonian addressed his warriors
with the following words that later
became the motto of many generations of Armenian freedom fighters: Unconscious death is death
indeed, apprehended death is immortality. Both parties fought
fiercely and incurred great losses.
Vardan Mamikonian and many of
his comrades-in-arms fell in action.
22
Central part of Grigor Khanjians painting Vardanank
(The Battle of Avarayr)
According to an eye-witness historian Yeghishe there were neither
winners, nor losers in this battle.
The resistance of the Armenians
carried on through the end of 451,
but the uprising was suppressed.
Nevertheless the rugged struggle of
Armenians made the Persians settle
for concessions, ease the tax burden
and, what was most important, let
go of the intention to convert Armenians into Zoroastrian faith. The
battle of Avarayr wend down in the
history of the Armenian people as
one of the heroic pages of national
liberation struggle.
23
ARMENIA
In 482 a new uprising against
the Persians caught on. It was
headed by sparapet Vahan Mamikonian, the cousin of Vardan.
The struggle went on with intermittent success, but in 484 the
rebels succeeded in negotiating
advantageous terms of armistice,
which was concuded in the
settlement of Nvarsak. These
terms essentially meant the restoration of self-governance of
Armenia.
their rule there. Armenian historians of the time recount the
grave situation of the Armenian
people under the rule of the Arab
caliphate: the onerous tax burden, the religious persecution.
The ever-increasing suppression
caused the wrath of the people
and revolts against the Arab yoke.
The first tremors took place in
703, they were followed by the
uprisings of 74750 and 77175.
The liberation struggle was led by
the nakharars, the most influential among whom were the
Mamikonians
and
the
Bagratunis. The rivalry between
these two clans outgrew into enmity, but the Bagratunis finally
took over.
The most negative consequence of Arab rule was the
changes they brough into the ethnic composition of the country.
The Arabs settled down on substantial parts of the Armenian territory, displacing the local population. Under the Arabs began
the exodus of Armenians from
their historical homeland and it
remained a characteristic feature
of subsequent history of the Armenian people. Failing to withstand the heavy social toll, Armenians left for the neighbouring
Armenia under the rule of
Arab caliphates
The 7th century was marked
by new changes in the political
situation of Asia Minor as a result of Arab conquests. The Arabs created a powerful state, the
Caliphate, cemented by uniform
religion, the Islam, and in the 30s
and 40s of the 7th century they
struck a few blows on Iran, conquered its central and Western
regions, took over Mesopotamia,
Syria, Palestine and Egypt. The
Arabs came into contact with the
Byzantine empire and won several victories over their troops but
stopped short of toppling the empire. In 610 the Arabs entered
Eastern Armenia for the first time
and shortly thereafter established
24
Christian countries, Georgia and
Byzantium. It was to Byzantium
in particular that a significant
number of nakharars moved
along with their courts. As a result the number of nakharar clans
in Armenia fell drastically.
and it came to the benefit of the
Byzantine empire that conducted a consistent policy of absorption of Armenian lands.
Having existed for just 160
years, the state of the Bagratids
left a visible trace in the history
of the Armenian people. This period is set aside by a significant
increase in production, development of trade and urban lifestyles,
serious accomplishments in the
spiritual domain. On the background of a knotty international
situation Armenia succeeded in
avoiding major calamities and the
prevailing peace contributed to
creative output. In 1045 the capital city of Ani was taken by the
Byzantians and the last Bagratuni
king Gagik II was dethroned and
escorted to Byzantium. After the
fall of the state of the Bagratids the
Armenian statehood on the territory of historical Armenia was restored only nine centuries later at
the beginning of the 20th century.
The state of the Bagratids
The struggle of the Armenian
people against the Arabs succeeded at the end of the 9th century. The Arab caliphate was at a
decline and the nakharar clan of
the Bagratunis (Bagratids) managed to strengthen its position and
shortly proclaimed the independence of Greater Armenia. A representative of the clan Ashot
I became the first king of the new
dynasty (886).
Although the Armenian state
was restored under the former
name Greater Armenia, the
Bagratids still failed to bring together under their aegis all of the
Armenian lands. Apart from
Greater Armenia, the capital of
which became the city of Ani on
Akhourian river, there were several other stand alone Armenian kingdoms and principalities. Such divergence was characteristic of the feudal society at a
certain stage of its development
Armenia between the
1217th centuries
The next several centuries
added up to one of the most dire
periods in the history of Armenian people. From the second
half of the 12th century Armenia
25
ARMENIA
to power in Iran. Conflict
loomed between the two troublesome neighbours of Armenia.
Wars broke out between them
that carried on with intermittent
success and intervals. These
gravely affected the situation of
Armenia that usually was the
battlefield. In 1638 Turkey and
Iran finally concluded a peace
treaty that once again redrew the
border between them. Western
Armenia was ceded to Turkey,
while Eastern Armenia went to
the Iranians. This status quo was
basically unchanged until the beginning of the 19th century.
succumbed to devastating raids
of successive foreign conquerors:
the Seljuk tribes, the Mongols,
the hordes of Tamerlane. All
these conquerors were at a lower
stage of socio-economic and cultural development compared to
Armenia, for which reason Armenia suffered serious setbacks
and degradation. Production began to falter, the once flourishing
cities were abandoned, the development of national culture was
stalled. The Armenian people
spared no efforts to withstand the
blows of fate, to survive and to
carry on.
In the second half of the 15th
century and the beginning of the
16th the situation in Asia Minor
changed drastically. The state of
Ottoman Turks that had emerged
in the middle of the 14th century
came up with a succession of devastating blows on Byzantium. In
1453 the Ottoman Turks conquered Constantinople and the
Byzantine empire ceased to exist.
The Ottoman empire took over
its lands, expanded over the territory of Asia Minor, the Balkan
Peninsula and became one of the
powerful players of the time.
From the beginning of the 16th
century the Safavid dynasty came
The Cilician Armenian
kingdom
The Cilician Armenian state
came into being in the 11th century and lasted for three hundred
years, a formidable phenomenon
not only in the history of the Armenian people but also in world
history. The world history records no other precedent of a nation succeeding in building a nation-state away from its homeland.
Cilicia was a country on the
Northeastern shore of the Mediterranean, it was bound on the inland
by several mountain ranges that
26
tablished relations with the
Mongols that were knocking at
the doors of Cilicia, they concluded a treaty with the latter and
thus protected the country from
the invasion of Mongol hordes.
At the end of the 13th, beginning of the 14th centuries the
Cilician Armenian kingdom entered a period of political crisis.
The Egyptian Sultanate had
gained in power by then and was
harassing Byzantium as well as
the Cilician state. The culmination came during the reign of the
last royal dynasty, the Lucignans
(natives of the island of Cyprus).
In 1375 the Cilician Armenian
kingdom ceased to exist.
prevented easy access to Cilicia by
land. It is most probable that Armenians had lived in Cilicia from times
immemorial, but they only became
dominant in the population later,
when several waves of immigration
from the territory of historical Armenia contributed to a significant
increase of the Armenian population
on Cilicia. The migrants included
representative of nakharar clans who
initiated the establishment of Armenian statehood on the new land.
The founder of the Cilician
Armenian state was Prince
Rouben, hence the principality
he created in 1080 was called the
Roubenian (Roubenid) principality. During his reign and the
reign of his successors the newly
created principality withstood
the onslaught of Byzantium that
strived to put an end to a foreign
state unit on its territory. The
Cilician Armenian state reached
its prime in by the end of the
12th, beginning of the 13th centuries under Levon II, who was
proclaimed king and recognized
not only by a number of European courts, but by Byzantium
itself. The rise of the Cilician
kingdom continued through the
first decades of the rule of the
next dynasty, the Hetoumian
(Hetoumids). The Hetoumids es-
Armenian migratory
settlements
In view of the expansion of
Armenian migration in the
Middle Ages Armenian migratory settlements and communities emerged in many countries,
some of these communities were
entitled to self-governance, had
their own judiciary etc.
In the 15th and subsequent
centuries the biggest Armenian
settlement was in Constantinople, where Armenians had lived
since the times of the Byzantine
27
ARMENIA
were self-governing. The first information about Armenians in
Moscow pertains to the 14th century. In subsequent centuries the
Armenian community in Moscow continued to grow, it built
churches and settled in downtown quarters. The Armenian
population of Moscow were
mostly merchants, servicemen,
craftsmen and entrepreneurs.
Beginning from the 13th century Armenian communities
emerge in Poland. The Armenians of Lvov, Kamenets-Podolsk, Zamosc, Stanislaus and
other cities had their own administrations and judges. The Polish
authorities favoured Armenians,
deeming them useful for the development of crafts and trade.
In the same period Armenians
appeared in Romania, Bulgaria,
Hungary, they also settled in
Italy, France and other European
countries.
empire. The Armenian craftsmen, merchants and industrialists of Constantinople played a
leading role in Turkish foreign
trade and economy. In 1461 the
Armenian Patriarchate was
founded in Constantinople.
From the 11th century Armenian settlements began to appear
in the Crimea, Armenians settled
in the cities of Capha (Theodossia), Ak-Mecheti (Simferopol),
Surhat (Stary Krym) and others.
The Crimean Armenians cultivated land, grew fruit, many Armenian merchants played a significant role in trading with the
West as well as the East.
Armenian migratory settlements also evolved in Syria
(Aleppo) and Egypt (Alexandria
and Cairo). The most significant
Armenian community in the
East was that of New Julfa (Iran),
that was widely known in the
commercial world for its wealthy
Armenian trading houses.
There were several major Armenian settlements in Russia, the
most significant among these
were the community of Astrakhan (founded in the 16th century) and the one in Nor Nakhijevan (founded at the end of the
17th century). Both communities
Ending up in an alien environment Armenians displayed unique
perseverance, they defied assimilation, preserved their language and
cultural traditions. In a certain sense
the spiritual life of Armenians
throughout the gloomy Middle Ages
had moved to the Armenian settlements. It is therefore not accidental
that such important events as the
28
of the 4th century had fully understood the expediency of it.
The Armenian script was developed by vardapet Mesrob Mashtots
(circa 362440) with the active support of Catholicos Sahak Partev.
The Armenian script, created in the
beginning of the 5th century, was
based by Mesrob Mashtots on the
principle of matching every phoneme of the Armenian language
with a proprietary letter. The fact
that the letters thus created have
been serving the people for the last
sixteen centuries attests that
Mashtots solved the problem brilliantly. Following the development
of the script Mesrob Mashtots em-
printing of the first book, the publication of the first Armenian periodical or the emergence of theatre companies took place within the Armenian migratory settlements. The Armenian communities in these also
contributed to the forging of links
between Armenians and other nations.
Armenian medieval culture
A most important event in the
cultural life of the Armenian society of the early Middle Ages was the
development of the Armenian script.
The creation of the national script
was determined first of all by the necessity of translating into the Armenian language of the Bible and
books of sermons, since the Armenian church strived to ensure the accessibility of the Christian teaching
for its congregations. Apart from
that the Aramaic, Greek and
Assyrian that have been used as the
written language in Armenia
through different periods only had
limited application and were accessible exclusively to the elite. It was
apparent that the lack of Armenian
script proper was not only hampering the development of original literature, theological and academic
endeavors, but also of the Armenian
language itself. The fact that the idea
of creating an Armenian script enjoyed such wide endorsement comes
to prove that the Armenian society
The Mesrob Mashtots Memorial
in Yerevan
barks with his students on the translation of the Bible into the Armenian language and after that founds
schools where children learn Armenian. The script became a solid
foundation for the further development of the Armenian language, it
29
ARMENIA
contributed to the formation and
development of genuinely national
Armenian culture. Since culture as
such was a decisive factor in the
preservation of the singularity of
Armenians, the creation of the Armenian script transcends the significance of a purely cultural event.
Byuzand and Lazar of Parb. Their
works shed light on the main events
of Armenian history, beginning with
approximately the 3rd century: the
conversion of Armenians into Christianity, the formation of Armenian
statehood, relations of Armenia with
other countries etc. The work of historian Korune (5th century) is dedicated to the deeds of Mesrob
Mashtots, while his contemporary
Yeghishe describes in great detail the
uprising of Armenians against Persian rule under the leadership of
Vardan Mamikonian. The father of
Armenian historiography Moses of
Khoren also worked in the 5th century, his work History of Armenia
is the summit of medieval Armenian
historical school of thought. Moses
of Khoren was the first among Armenian historians to attempt to lay
down a complete history of the Armenian people from its emergence to
the authors time.
The events of the 6th to 8th centuries are recounted in the works of
historians Sebeos (7th century) and
Ghevond (8th century). The development of Armenian historiography
carried on through subsequent centuries.
The medieval Armenian historiography was completed by the fundamental work of Mikael Chamchian, the three volumes of The
history of Armenia (published by
the end of 18th century). This work
Historiography has an important role in medieval Armenian culture, it had formed by the 5th century. This century is represented by
historians Agathangelos, Pavstos
The statue of Movses Khorenatsi
in Yerevan
30
outlines the history of the Armenian
people from ancient times to the
18th century, and it marked the
maturation of Armenian historiography into a new period of development.
legacy is left by Anania Shirakatsi
(7th century), a geographer, cosmographer and mathematician,
who offered an accurate explana-
The Middle Ages is a period of
development of Armenian theological and philosophical schools, the
time for philosophical apprehension
of the Christian teaching. The first
works in this domain were authored
by Mesrob Mashtots and his disciple
Yeznik of Kolb, who acted as advocates of Christianity. The greatest
Armenian philosopher of the early
Middle Ages was the follower of
neoplatoism David Anhaght (the
Invincible), whose works deal with
the fundamental problems of philosophy of the time: the theory of
cognizance, logic, aesthetics, interpretation of the categories of classical Greek philosophy etc. In the centuries to come the struggle of the Armenian church for its independence
and against the attempts of Catholicism to impose a union on Armenians had a significant impact on the
development of Armenian theological and philosophical schools. Armenian theologians and philosophers protected in their works the
national church and its teaching.
The statue of Anania Shirakatsi
in Yerevan
tion for such natural phenomena as
the succession of seasons, solar
eclipses, tides etc. Armenian scholars had scored in medical science as
well. The most prominent representative of Armenian medical school
Mkhitar Heratsi (11 century) in his
work Appeasement of fevers offered a description of symptoms of
Medieval Armenian scholars
were interested in a wide scope of
natural sciences: geography, mathematics, medicine etc. A great
31
ARMENIA
Middle Ages) poem strives to reveal
the inner world of a man, his
cravings and passions. This work of
Grigor Narekatsi is an ode to the
Human, it is the precursor of Renaissance in Armenian culture.
many conditions along with recommendations for their treatment.
The works of a 15th century doctor
Amirdovlat Amasiatsi are on general practice and pharmacology,
outlining the accomplishments of
contemporary medicine.
The creation of Armenian script
provided an incentive for the development of Armenian literature, that
possessed rich traditions of oral lore
prior to that. The medieval historians may rightfully be considered the
first Armenian writers, many of
them not only possessed outstanding literary talent, but they also incorporated in their works samples of
folklore: myths and legends, saving
them for generations to come. As
early as in the 5th century an important literary genre branched off, the
hagiography, represented by numerous deeds of the saints. The principal poetic genres were spiritual poems and hymns, the s h a r a k a n s
and the k t s o u r d s , their first authors were Mesrob Mashtots and
Sahak Partev. Outstanding poets,
Catholicos Komitas and Davtag
Kertogh worked in the 7th century.
Armenian poetry of the late medieval period was marked by the creation of a work that was to become
the culmination of the poetry of the
time. It is the Book of lamentations by Grigor Narekatsi (10th
century). This profoundly religious
(which is characteristic for the
Grigor Narekatsi. A portrait in a
12th century manuscript
The poetry of Kostandin Yerznkatsi (1314th centuries) has clear
secular motifs, the poems of Frik
(13th century) touch upon social issues, the poet stands up for justice,
while Nahapet Kuchak (16th century) was a fine romantic. The medieval Armenian poetry is crowned by
the work of a formidable poet SayatNova (18th century), an apex of lyricism.
Oral poetic lore, possessing fine
traditions, continued to develop
throughout the Middle Ages. The
32
temple of Zvartnots collapsed from
an earthquake impact.
The Armenian architecture
reached a new peak under the
Bagratids. Numerous churches and
cathedrals, palaces, guest houses etc.
were built in the Bagratid capital of
Ani, making up a wonderful architectural ensemble. Following the
14th century there came a certain
slack in the development of Armenian architecture. According to the
opinion of historians of architecture
the best samples of Armenian architecture had an impact on the architecture of many countries.
greatest monument of this genre is
the epic David of Sassoun, which
reflects the struggle of the Armenian
people against Arab rule in the 9th
10th centuries. This epic tale condenses the outlook of the people, it
sings praise to justice, kindness and
the outgoing character so understandable for the people. This epic
went down from generation to generation through oral lore until it got
recorded in the 19th century.
Armenian architecture of the
medieval period was highly developed, it had produced a succession
of genuine masterpieces. The
church architecture was most advanced and it had progressed
through several stages. The initial
shape of the Armenian church was
the basilica. Among stone basilicas
the most famous is the church in
Kassakh (45th centuries) and the
Yererouyk basilica (5th century).
Later on the cross based cupola
shape became prevalent for
churches. The most outstanding
monument of this period is the St.
Hripsime church in Ejmiatsin, built
by Catholicos Komitas in 618 on
the site of the legendary martyrdom
of Virgin Hripsime. The temple of
Zvartnots (of vigilant forces) is a
formidable monument close to
Ejmiatsin. The footprint of the
huge temple is round, it had three
tiers astounding in their magnificence. In the tenth century the
The fine arts in medieval Armenia mostly developed in three
modes: frescoes, mosaics and book
Toros Roslin. The adoration
of the Magi
33
ARMENIA
illuminations. The murals were not
widespread, out of churches with
preserved frescoes the better known
are the churches in Aruch, Talin,
Lmbat (7th century). In the 6th7th
centuries mosaics depicting grapevines, birds and fish decorated the
Armenian churches of Jerusalem. In
the late Middle Ages the Armenian
book illumination flourished. A
great number of manuscripts were illuminated with miniatures, the dyes
of which have not faded through the
centuries. There were several schools
of Armenian miniature painting: the
Cilician, the Vaspourakan, the
Artsakh, the Gladzor etc., each of
which had its own unique features
and traditions. Toros Roslin (13th
century), the greatest miniature
painter, represented the Cilician
school.
script, Mesrob Mashtots and his disciples used to teach there. The
schools as a rule were maintained by
the church, most of them were at
monasteries and the teachers were
the v a r d a p e t s, monks that were
reserved the right to teach. The
quantity of such schools increased
by the late Middle Ages, they were
in a number of cities of Western and
Eastern Armenia: Ani, Narek,
Karin, Tatev, Sanahin, etc. In Cilicia
such schools existed in Sis, Akner
etc. Later in the 1718th centuries
Ejmiatsin became the leading educational centre for Eastern Armenia,
while Constantinople remained such
for Western Armenians.
The highest degree of education
was offered by universities, the most
famous among these were the
Gladzor (1314th centuries) and the
Tatev (1415th centuries) Universities. Along with theology these universities taught natural sciences,
philosophy, music and other subjects. The graduates received the
title of vardapet.
The medieval universities were
also research centres. They had
m a t e n a d a r a n s , depositaries of
manuscripts, and the teachers wrote
academic treatises. Two Catholic
congregations of Armenian monks
in Venice and Vienna played a significant role in the development of
different branches of Armenology.
The first was founded in 1717 on
Armenian medieval music was
predominantly spiritual. The liturgy
in the Armenian church was accompanied by hymns. Certain psalms
and hymns that were performed in
the church had acquired over time a
new, secular content. By the end of
the Middle Ages the art of gousans
and ashoughs was quite commonplace, they sang songs to their own
lyrics.
The enlightenment was an important component of medieval Armenian culture. The first Armenian
schools were founded immediately
upon the invention of the Armenian
34
Ejmiatsin printshop was founded,
the first in Armenia proper.
In 1794 the first Armenian periodical was published in Madras, the
Azdarar (Herald) magazine, which
marked the onset of the bicentennial
history of Armenian periodicals.
the island of San Lazarro in the Venetian Gulf by Mekhitar Sebastatsi,
and it was later called in his honour
the Mekhitarist congregation. The
second was founded in 1811 by several members of the initial brotherhood that have left Venice. Both
congregations continue to operate
today.
The search for ways
of liberation
On the eve of the New Age two
important events took place in the
history of Armenian culture. In 1512
in Venice first Armenian printing
was initiated. The printer Hakob
Meghapart published in a printshop
he had founded the first Armenian
printed book Friday book, that
contained diverse information.
The second half of the 17th
century and the entire 18th century were marked by consistent
search by the Armenians of ways
for liberation from the yoke of
two Eastern despots: Turkey and
Iran. The leading role in this was
reserved to the Armenian church
that epitomized the interests of
the nation. Initially the Armenians attempted to solicit help
from the European countries.
With this purpose missions were
sent by the Armenian church to
Europe, approaching different
European governments and the
Holy See to no avail. The strengthening of the Russian state in the
1617th centuries and the increase of its role in international
relations prompted the Armenian
socio-political circles to view
Russia as the external force that
could help the liberation of Armenian from the yoke of Turkey
The first Armenian printed book
Ourbatagirk, published by Hakob
Maghapart
Somewhat later Armenian printshops were founded in Constantinople, as well as in Lvov and Amsterdam in the 17th century, in Madras (India) in the 18th century, and
then in St. Petersburg, Astrakhan,
Nor Nakhijevan. In 1771 the
35
ARMENIA
and Iran. Due notice was taken
of the fact that Russian militarystrategic and economic interests
urged it to procreate its power in
the Transcaucasus and ensure access to the Middle East. Foreign
political interests of Russia apparently coincided with the interests of the Armenian people. In
the very beginning of the 18th
century a renowned figure of the
Armenian liberation movement
Israel Ori, following his failure to
ensure the support of European
states, arrived in Russia and conducted negotiations with Tzar
Peter I. The latter, governed by
Russian interests, pledged to offer assistance in the liberation of
Armenia. And although this intention did not materialize at the
time, in subsequent plans of the
liberation of Armenia Russia was
once again a major player.
din. As a result of the Russo-Persian war of 18041813 Russia annexed, among other territories,
Karabagh (Artsakh). And, finally,
in the course of the Russo-Persian war of 18261828 the Russian troops took over Yerevan on
October 1, 1828. Pursuant to the
Turkmenchai treaty of February,
1828, Iran accepted the transfer
into Russian rule of the Yerevan
and Nakhijevan khanates. Thus
the greater part of Eastern Armenia was joined with Russia.
The masses of the Armenian
people welcomed the inclusion
of Eastern Armenia into the Russian empire, they rightfully
maintained that at least a portion
of the Armenian people was thus
relieved of the threat of physical
extermination.
As a part of Russia that had
embarked on a path of capitalistic
development, the economy of
Eastern Armenia underwent a certain rise. Agriculture became its
leading sector, although beginning from the second half of the
19th century substantial shifts occurred in industry as well: copper
mining, processing of agricultural
produce, wine and cognac production. By the end of the century the railway construction had
Eastern Armenia as part
of Russia
The Russian policy towards
the Transcaucasus has yielded
specific results from the beginning of the 19th century. In 1801
Georgia acceded to Russia, along
with it the Northern regions of
Armenia also were added to Russia: Lori-Pambak and Shamsha-
36
idea of a reprisal. The Zeytoun
uprising of 1862 is one of the heroic pages in the national-liberation struggle of Armenians.
Zeytoun became the symbol of
courage and selflessness of Armenian freedom fighters.
commenced. Nevertheless Armenia still remained a supplier
of raw materials for the Russian
industry. Armenian workers labored not only in Eastern Armenian enterprises, but also in the
industries of neighbouring Georgia and Azerbaijan.
In the middle of the 1870s the liberation movement of the Balkan
peoples against the Turkish yoke
gained momentum. Russia openly
supported the revolt of Slavic peoples. In the Russo-Turkish war that
followed in 18771878 Russia won a
comprehensive victory. In the course
of the war Russian troops liberated
a substantial part of Western Armenia, took the cities of Ardahan,
Bayazet, Alashkert, Kars, Erzeroum.
On March 3, 1878, a peace agreement was signed in San-Stefano.
The terms of the agreement fixed
the strengthening of Russian position on the Balkans and in the
Transcaucasus: Bulgaria, Serbia,
Montenegria and Romania were liberated from the Turkish yoke, Russia received a part of Bessarabia, as
well as the cities of Batum, Kars,
Ardahan and Bayazet. The rest of
the territory of Western Armenia
taken by Russians during the war
went back to Turkey.
Upon the demand of Western Armenian public a special Article (16)
was included in the text of the agreement with a view of granting Western Armenians certain safeguards
National-liberation struggle
of Western Armenians in
the second half of the 19th
century. The emergence of
the Armenian question
In the second half of the 19th
century the situation of Western
Armenians under the rule of the
Ottoman empire continued to deteriorate. Western Armenian farmers were mercilessly exploited,
they were subjected to arbitrary
treatment by the authorities, to
ethnic pressure.The situation provoked the natural protest of Western Armenians, that more often
than not took the form of rebellions. The best known among
these was the heroic uprising of
the Zeytoun Armenians in 1862.
The inhabitants of Zeytoun, an
alpine settlement in Cilicia,
through their stubborn resistance
forced the Turkish authorities to
negotiate with them and drop the
37
ARMENIA
Russia ended up in complete isolation at the congress, the European
countries came up with a joint front
against her. The San-Stefano agreement was revised and Russia was deprived of many a fruit of its military
triumph. Russia even failed to insist
on the adoption of a resolution in
defence of the interests of Western
Armenians. The Berlin agreement
included Article 61 providing for the
implementation of reforms in the
Armenian-populated areas, but the
language was not backed by the important safeguard provided by the
San-Stefano agreement: the presence
of Russian troops in Western Armenia. The further developments demonstrated that the Turkish authorities not only failed to comply with
the requirements of Article 61 of the
Berlin Agreement, they embarked
on the implementation of their own
programme of resolving the Armenian Question through physical extermination of Western Armenians.
and rights within the Turkish state.
Pursuant to this article Turkey was
obliged to undertake the necessary
reforms in the Armenian-populated
areas and the guarantor of these reforms was to be the Russian army,
remaining for that purpose on the
territory of Western Armenia for the
duration of six months. With the
signing of the San-Stefano agreement the plight of Western Armenians became an issue of international relations, the A r m e n i a n
Q u e s t i o n , that was destined to
become the topic of discussions in
international diplomacy for a long
time to come.
The general post-war situation
along with the strengthening of Russia was in no way in the interests of
the European powers, not to mention Turkey. England and the
Austro-Hungarian empire insisted
on holding a congress of European
countries with the purpose of discussing post-war settlement in Europe. Berlin was decided to be the
venue of the congress.
Upon learning of the congress the
Western Armenian society decided to
send an Armenian delegation to Berlin and submit to the participants of
the congress documents substantiating the necessity to grant Western Armenians national autonomy within
Turkey. The delegation was headed
by a renowned clergyman and politician Mkrtich Khrimian.
Following the Berlin
Congress. The formation of
Armenian political parties
The resolutions of the Berlin
Congress disillusioned the politically active segment of the Armenian society. A conviction began
to prevail that the nation should
itself take care of its own issues.
38
The need for the organization of
national liberation struggle was
substantiated by many famous
public figures, the writers Raffi
and Raphael Patkanian, columnist
Grigor Artsruni and others in particular. Different organizations,
societies and groups began to
emerge, they set forth their own
programmes for the liberation of
the Armenian people. And though
these organizations were operating both in Western and in Eastern Armenia, they had limited
membership and were unable to
unfold wide-scale activities. They
were but a phase in the formation
of Armenian political parties.
group of Armenian students in Switzerland created in Geneva a socialdemocratic party Hnchak by the
name of the Hnchak (Bell) paper
they published. The principal objective of the party was the resolution of
the Armenian Question. In 1890 in
Tiflis the party Armenian Revolutionary Federation (Dashnaktsoutyun) was founded. In order to attain
the principal objective, the resolution
of the Armenian Question, the party
adopted methods of armed struggle
and impacting the international public opinion. The Dashnaktsoutyun
party created its organizational units
in Western and Eastern Armenia, as
well as in Europe and the Middle
East. Shortly thereafter it became one
of the most influential Armenian political parties.
The emergence of Armenian political parties was determined by further strengthening towards the end of
the 19th century of the national liberation struggle of Armenians. The
programmes of Armenian political
parties gave central priority to the
resolution of the Armenian Question and the liberation of Western
Armenians. In 1885 the first Armenian political party, the Armenakan
organization (by the name of the
Marseilles- published newspaper
Armenia) was formed. The party
predominantly operated in Vaspourakan (Western Armenia). Its programme provided for the liberation
of the Armenian people with the subsequent creation of a state. In 1887 a
The Armenian haydouk
movement
One of the forms of the liberation struggle of Western Armenians was the haydouk movement. With the purpose of protecting the lives and property of
Western Armenian population
armed groups of haydouks (fedayeen) were created from among
the Armenian youth. The haydouk movement gained extensive
momentum in many areas of
Western Armenia: Sassoun, Taron, Van, Shapin-Garahissar and
39
ARMENIA
other locations. The fedayeen
enjoyed popular support, they
were familiar with the local terrain and were skilled in diverse
nian political parties failed to
lead the movement and, finally,
the forces were too unequal: the
entire state with its army and law
enforcement confronted the Armenian fedayeen.
The massacre
of Armenians in Turkey at
the end of the 19th century
Meanwhile the Turkish authorities were planning a reprisal
against the Armenian population,
preparing to put an end to its liberation struggle. In 18941896 the
Turkish authorities organised a
large-scale slaughter of Armenians in Western Armenia and in
other Armenian-populated areas
of Turkey. The slaughter was
marked by extreme cruelty. The
pogroms took place in Sassoun,
Constantinople, Trebizond,
Marash, Karin, Van and other locations. The total death toll was
not less than 300 thousand Armenians, hundreds of villages and
towns were razed. In some areas
the Armenian population came
up with resistance. But the forces
were too unequal. The addresses
of Western and Eastern Armenian
public to the European powers
requesting to protect the Arme-
The monument to the Armenian
fedayeen in the village of Oujan
(Aragatsotn province)
combat tactics in their fight
against the Turkish troops and
gendarmerie. Many heroes
emerged from within the haydouk movement, they were extremely popular with the people.
Gevorg Chavoush, Aghbyur
Serob, Andranik, Nikol Douman
and others were nimble and
brave leaders of haydouk formations. Still, their heroism and
selflessness notwithstanding, the
haydouk movement failed to succeed. The haydouk groups acted
without coordination, the Arme-
40
nians and force the government
of Sultan Abdul Hamid to stop
the massacre were to no avail.
nowned was the Nercissian school,
opened in 1824. Following the accession of Eastern Armenia to Russia
public district as well as private
schools were opened in Alexandropol, Yerevan, Shushi. In 1874 the
Gevorgian seminary was founded in
Armenian culture
of the 19th century
In the 19th century the Armenian
culture comprised three elements:
Eastern Armenian culture, Western
Armenian culture and the culture of
Armenian migratory settlements.
Each of these three directions developed under the influence of factors
that determined the lives of the respective segments of the people. Still
Armenian culture was essentially an
integrity that expressed the interests
of the nation.
The Gevorgian seminary
in Ejmiatsin
Ejmiatsin, it later became a centre of
Armenology.
Substantial shifts have taken place
in the domain of education. In the
first half of the 19th century a number of national schools were founded
in the Armenian migratory settlements. The most famous among
these were the Skyutari seminary and
the Nercissian school in Constantinople, the Mesrobian school in Smyrna, the Murad-Raphaelian Mekhitarist school in Venice, the Armenian
schools in Astrakhan, Nor Nakhijevan, Theodossia and other locations.
In 1815 the industrialists Lazarevs
founded a seminary in Moscow, that
later became the Lazarev Institute of
Oriental Languages. There were several public and private schools in
Tiflis, among which the most re-
In the 19th century the scope of
book printing expanded substantially. Within the 19th century there
were at least 130 Armenian printshops in Constantinople only.
There were Armenian printshops in
Vienna and Venice (at the Mekhitarist congregations), in Cairo, Alexandria, Tehran, Paris, Calcutta
and other places. In the first half of
the century printshops were
founded in Moscow (the most famous was at the Lazarian seminary), in Tiflis, in Eastern Armenia
the biggest printshop was a t
Ejmiatsin, founded by the end of
the 18th century. 15 thousand books
(textbooks, dictionaries, fiction,
41
ARMENIA
The natural sciences were represented by scholars working in Europe and Russia. These include the
prominent geologist Andreas
Artsruni, who worked in Russia and
Germany, chemist Giacomo (Hakob)
Chamchian, who worked in Italy,
geologist Leonid Spendiarian, who
worked in Russia.
academic publications) and over
1,300 periodicals were printed in
the course of the 19th century.
Within the Armenian academia
in the 19th century armenology was
still the leading discipline. A multitude of Armenological problems
were dealt with in the Vienna and
Venice Mekhitarist congregations, in
the Moscow Lazarev Institute of
Oriental Languages, in the Ejmiatsin Gevorgian seminary.
Notable scholars like Mikael
Chamchian, Ghukas Inchinian,
Ghevond Alishan (Venice) stood at
the cradle of Armenian historiography of modern times. A group of
historians and armenologists worked in Russia: Mkrtich Emin,
Kerovbe Patkanian, Karapet Yezian
(Ezov), Grigor Khalatian, they made a great contribution to the study
of the history of ancient Armenia,
the historical Armeno-Russian relations, they translated into Russian
and published medieval Armenian
sources.
Armenian linguistics was also
quite successful in the 19th century.
The scholars of the Vienna Mekhitarist congregation elaborated works
on the history and grammar of the
Armenian language.
The most significant accomplishment in the study of folklore was the
recording by Garegin Srvandztian
and publication of the national epic
David of Sassoun.
During the 19th century Armenian literature went through a productive development process,
marked with periods of classicism,
romanticism and, finally, realism.
The literature played a major role in
the establishment of the national
conscience, in educating the people
in a patriotic freedom-loving spirit.
The monument to
Khachatour Abovian in Kanaker,
next to his memorial house
42
work became the epitome of Armenian romanticism. The work of novelists Perj Proshian, Ghazaros Aghayan, playwright Gabriel Soundoukian and others played a major role
in the development of Armenian literature. Hakob Paronian was an unsurpassed master of satire.
The emergence of the Armenian
professional theatre is dated by the
second half of the 19th century
(Constantinople, 1861). Two years
later a professional theatre company
was created in Tiflis. The first generation of Armenian actors included
brilliant masters such as Petros
Adamian, Siranouysh, Azniv Hrachia, Gevorg Chmshkian et al.
The monument to
Mikael Nalbandian in Yerevan
The great Armenian author Khachatour Abovian is rightfully considered to be the progenitor of new Armenian literature. His work had predetermined to a great extent the
prospects of further development of
Armenian literature. Armenian literature underwent a new rise in the
185060s, when the writers began to
address problems of popular concern more frequently: the fate of the
fatherland and the nation, social and
national liberation. These motifs
appeared in the works of poets Mikael Nalbandian, Smbat Shahaziz,
Petros Durian, Mkrtich Peshiktashlian, Raphael Patkanian. From the
1870s onwards prose writing assumed the leading role in Armenian
literature. Novelist Raffi came center stage of the literary process, his
The establishment of new Armenian music of a European level pertains to the work of composer Tigran
Chukhajian, who worked in Constantinople. Eastern Armenian music
was represented by notable composers Khristofor Kara-Murza, Makar
Yekmalian. The gussan art continued to develop, it enjoyed wide
popularity among general public.
In the 19th century the diversity
of genres in Armenian fine arts expanded: highly praised works included landscape and portrait paintings, drawings, still-lifes. Hakob
Hovnatanian became the founder of
the school of realistic portraits, he
descended from a famous Hovnatanian family of artists that created
43
ARMENIA
The first World War and
the Armenians
since the 17th century. The founder
of the genre-painting was Stepanos
Nercissian, who worked in Tiflis and
Shushi. The great sea painter
In August, 1914, the first World
War began. The German-Austrian
bloc that also included Turkey
unleashed the war against the Entente countries (England, France,
Russia). The war became an insurmountable disaster for the Armenian people. Eastern Armenians,
who were Russian nationals, were
drafted into the Russian army.
Western Armenians, being Turkish nationals, had to serve in the
Turkish army contrary to their interests. The Turkish authorities
did not trust the Armenians and
put the Armenian servicemen together into engineering regiments
that did not receive arms. Shortly
thereafter the Armenians that
were drafted into the Turkish
army were exterminated upon the
orders of the Turkish high command. This act essentially marked
the beginning of the genocide of
Armenians in Turkey.
The portrait of Natalia Teumian.
Hakob Hovnatanian, 1840s
Hovhannes (Ivan) Aivazovsky made
his own contribution to the development of Armenian painting.
Apart from widely known seascapes
he also painted a number of works
depicting scenes from Armenian history. The apex of Armenian historical painting was the work of Vardges
Surenyants.
Thus in the 19th century all sectors of Armenian culture underwent
qualitative changes that raised the
spiritual life of the people to a new
dimension. Culture became an important factor of self-affirmation of
the Armenian people, preservation
of its national integrity.
With the beginning of the war in
the Transcaucasus a movement
emerged in the Armenian settlements
of Russia to put together Armenian
volunteer groups. Armenians cherished hopes that with the victory of
Russia in the war against Turkey Western Armenians would be liberated
44
that the plans for the extermination of the Western Armenian
population had been in preparation even before the beginning of
the World War. After the liquidation of the Armenian conscripts
in the Turkish army (February,
1915) the Turkish authorities issued an order in April of 1915 on
the deportation and extermination of Armenians in all regions
of the empire. On the evening of
April 24th arrests began of the
Armenian intellectuals in
Constantinople. The detained,
over 800 writers, journalists, doctors and clergymen were deported into the sticks of Anatolia.
Many of the deportees were
killed along the way, the remaining were killed upon arrival.
Since then April 24th is commemorated by Armenians all
over the world as the day of remembrance of the victims of
genocide.
In 19151916 the destruction
en masse of the Armenian population of Western Armenia took
place (in the vilayets of Van,
Erzeroum, Bitlis, Kharberd,
Sebastia, Diarbekir, Trebizond),
as well as of Cilicia, Western
Anatolia and other locations.
The deportation of Armenians
from the Turkish yoke. The volunteer
movement legitimately picked up the
centuries-old tradition of the nationalliberation struggle of the Armenian
people. Seven Armenian volunteer
corps were formed within a short
time-frame, they were lead by
Andranik (A. Ozanian), Dro (D.
Kanayan), Hamazasp (H. Srvandztian), Keri (A. Gavafian), Vardan (V.
Meghrabian), A. Janpoladian (later H.
Bjshkian) and H. Argoutian. The total manpower of the Armenian volunteer corps was 10 thousand men. The
Armenian volunteer corps took an active participation in combat.
During military action on the
Caucasian front between 1914
1917 the Russian troops defeated
the Turks and liberated a substantial part of Western Armenia.
This situation was maintained at
the time of conclusion of armistice on the Caucasian front, following the withdrawal of Russia
from the war.
The genocide of Armenians
of 19151916
Taking advantage of the outbreak of war, the Turkish authorities set out to implement the
long-planned programme of extermination of the Armenian
population of Turkey. Documentary evidence irrefutably attests
45
ARMENIA
iles and dispersed over the
world, adding to the existing Armenian communities and establishing new ones. Tremendous
damage was done to the material
and spiritual culture of Armenians. The intellectual potential
of the nation suffered irrecover-
pursued the final objective of
their liquidation. There were
concentration camps for Armenians created in Mesopotamia
and in Syria, only a part of the
deportees made it there and the
massacres carried on in the
camps as well. The actions of the
The Memorial to victims of the Genocide of 1915. Yerevan
Turkish villains were marked by
unrivalled cruelty. There are
many eyewitness accounts preserved that describe the unprecedented suffering borne by the
Armenian population. The total
number of victims reaches 1.5
million people, approximately
800,000 Armenians became ex-
able loss. Famous authors and
poets Grigor Zohrab, Varoujan,
Siamanto, Rouben Sevak and
others, many columnists, painters, actors, scholars fell victim to
the atrocities. Unable to withstand the mental overload the
great composer Komitas went
mad. Hundreds of historical and
46
architectural monuments and
thousands of manuscripts were
destroyed, many sanctuaries of
the people were desecrated.
since they had fled the country immediately upon its defeat. The capital punishment of some of them
(Talaat, Bekhaeddin Sakir, Jemal
Azim, Said Khalim et al) was executed later by Armenian avengers.
In some locations the Armenian
population came up with stubborn
resistance against Turkish villains.
The Armenians of Van resorted to
self-defence in the Spring of 1915,
they succeeded in fencing off the attacks of the enemy and kept the city
in their hands until the arrival of
Russian troops and Armenian volunteers. The Armenians of ShapinGarahissar, Moush, Sassoun, Fintichag also came up with steadfast
resistance against the overwhelming
forces of the enemy. The epic of the
defenders of Mousa Dagh in Suetia
lasted for forty days.
The Republic of Armenia
(19181920)
In February 1917, at the height
of the World War, Russia underwent a bourgeois-democratic
revolution, as a result of which
monarchy was overthrown and a
Provisional Government was
formed. Russia embarked on a
path of democratic development.
Unfortunately democratic Russia
did not have long to live. In October of 1917 the Bolshevik party,
taking advantage of the continuing economic crisis and of the
popular dissatisfaction with war,
toppled the Provisional Government and took the power in
Petrograd and, later, in Moscow
and a number of other regions of
Russia. The Bolshevik government headed by Vladimir Lenin
declared its withdrawal from the
war. In December, 1917, a separate armistice was signed between
Russia and Germany with its allies. The Russian troops began
evacuating the Caucasian front.
Progressive mankind condemned the atrocities of Turkish
pogroms. Public figures, politicians, scholars and intellectuals in
many countries stigmatized the
genocide and participated in extending humanitarian assistance
to the Armenian people.
After the defeat of Turkey in the
first World War the leaders of the
Young Turks were accused of leading Turkey into the disastrous war
and were taken to court. They were
also accused in the perpetration of
the genocide of Armenians. But the
verdict against the former heads of
Turkey was passed in absentiam,
47
ARMENIA
tween the members of the
Transcaucasian Republic Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan. It
became apparent, in particular,
that Azerbaijan had assumed a
pro-Turkish orientation and
would not impede with the entry
of Turkish troops into the Transcaucasus. As for Armenians, the
Turkish invasion loomed with the
recurrence of genocide, this time
in Eastern Armenia. The controversies turned out to be insurmountable and on May 26, 1918,
the Transcaucasian Sejm recorded the fact of the breakdown
of the Transcaucasian Republic.
On May 26, 1918, the independence of Georgia was pro claimed, this was followed on
May 27 by the proclamation of
independence of Azerbaijan and
on May 28, 1919, Armenia proclaimed its independence. The
restoration of Armenian statehood became possible in view of
the fact that in those very days
of May the Armenian people
stood up in a united drive in defence of the fatherland and in the
battles of Sardarapat, Karaklis
and Bash-Aparan succeeded in
halting the advancement of
Turkish troops and preventing
their invasion into the Ararat
The national political parties
of the Transcaucasus assumed a
hostile attitude towards the October coup in Russia and took the
orientation of detaching the
Transcaucasus from Russia. They
created their own governance entities in the Transcaucasus, initially it was the Transcaucasian
Commissariat and later, in February 1918, the Transcaucasian
Sejm (diet).
In January 1918 the Turkish
troops in breach of the armistice
undertook an attack on the Caucasian front. Without encountering serious resistance, since the
front line by that time was de
facto denuded, the Turks shortly
took over Western Armenia, the
Kars region and Batum. The aggression was accompanied with a
massacre of the Armenian population. In April 1918 the Transcaucasian Sejm adopted a resolution on the separation of the region from Russia and the formation of a Transcaucasian Democratic Federal Republic. Following that negotiations commenced
between the Transcaucasian Republic and Turkey on the conclusion of peace, which failed to yield
positive results. The negotiations
revealed serious controversies be-
48
Hovhannes Kajaznouni: most of the
portfolios went to the representatives of the Dashnaktsoutyun party.
In August 1919 Alexandre Khatissian became the prime-minister (until May 1920) followed by A.
Ohanjanian (until November 28,
1920). The last prime-minister was
Simon Vratsian (from November 28,
1920 to December 2, 1920). The Parliament of the Republic of Armenia
began its work on August 1, 1918, it
was formed on a multi-party basis.
In June 1919 elections were held for
plain. In the beginning of July of
1918 a peace treaty was signed in
Batum with Turkey, pursuant to
which the latter recognized the
sovereignty of Armenia within a
notably curtailed territory that remained under the disposition of
the government of Armenia.
The Republic of Armenia existed
for two and a half years in conditions of dire domestic and international crisis. In July of 1918 the first
cabinet was formed headed by
The Memorial to the heroes of the Sardarapat battle of 1918
49
ARMENIA
conference resolved to grant the
U.S.A. a mandate over Armenia. Armenia endorsed this decision but the
U.S.A. Senate, upon lengthy deliberation over the issue, declined the
offer.
In August, 1920, the winning
countries concluded the Sevres
peace treaty with defeated Turkey.
The terms of the treaty were quite
advantageous for Armenia: the
Turkish party recognized the sovereignty of Armenia, the borders between Armenia and Turkey were to
be drawn by the government of the
U.S.A. Armenia received access to
the Black Sea and the overall territory of Armenia added up to 160
thousand square kilometers. The
treaty of Sevres remained on paper,
it was not recognized by the new
government of Turkey headed by
Mustafa Kemal. A decisive role was
played here by the rapprochement
between Bolshevik Russia and kemalist Turkey. Wary of the fact that
Turkey may fall under the control of
Soviet Russia, the European powers
made concessions and did not insist
on compliance of Turkey with the
terms of the treaty, whereas Armenia was not able to single-handedly
make Turkey respect the treaty of
Sevres. Thus failed another attempt
at the resolution of the Armenian
Question.
the new composition of the Parliament, the majority of the seats in
which still remained with the
Dashnaktsoutyun.
In domestic policies the government tried to overcome the economic
crisis that had overwhelmed the
country. In difficult conditions it became possible to receive food from
abroad and thus somewhat mitigate
the hunger. The economy livened up
a little. An army was created and decisions were taken in constructing a
state.The overall situation in the
country though continued to remain
exigent and the economy was undermined. The commencing process of
stabilization received a hard blow by
the May, 1920, uprising of the Bolsheviks and the concurrent revolts of
the local Turkic population.
The principal objective of the foreign policy of the government was,
above all, the liberation of the territories captured by the Turks. This
became possible following the defeat
of Turkey in the first World War. As
a result the borders of 1914 were almost completely restored. At the
same time the population of Artsakh
and Zangezour successfully repelled
the attempts of the Turko-Azerbaijani conquerors to take over the respective regions of Armenia.
Aspiring to bring up and resolve
the Armenian Question, Armenia
sent its delegation to the Paris peace
conference (19191920). The Paris
In September, 1920, Turkey
commenced a military offensive
50
accomplishments and deprivation, success and sacrifices. The
life of the Armenian people
evolved around the same axis as
that of the rest of the USSR.
During the first months of its
rule the Soviet power undertook
a number of measures to replicate
what had already been done in
Soviet Russia: the nationalization
of land, water, forests and mineral resources, major industries
and banks. This put an end to
private property, which was considered to represent the first step
towards socialism. Historical tradition and the peculiar features
of Armenia were ignored. By
their stringent policy of expropriation of wheat the Soviets
stirred popular discontent among
farmers, which outgrew into a
revolt by the beginning of 1921,
suppressed with the help of Red
Army regiments.
During the first years of Soviet power Armenia suffered sensible territorial losses. In violation of the national interests of
the Armenian people the government of Soviet Russia agreed to
yield to Turkey the region of
Kars, the district of Surmali, as
well as to transfer Nakhijevan to
Azerbaijan. Somewhat later
against the Republic of Armenia.
Armenians withdrew under the
onslaught, yielding the enemy
the lands so onerously returned.
The approaches of Armenia to
the allied powers and to the
League of Nations were useless.
Armenia surrendered and over
half of its territory was captured
by the Turks. On December 2,
1920, Turkey pressed Armenia to
conclude the treaty of Alexandropol, pursuant to which Armenia
shrank back to the borders provided by the Batum treaty, denounced the treaty of Sevres and
disarmed. On the same day in
Yerevan an agreement was concluded between Soviet Russia
and the Republic of Armenia, by
which the government of Simon
Vratsian laid down its powers and
Armenia was proclaimed a Soviet
Republic. The Republic of Armenia ceased to exist.
Armenia in the USSR.
The Armenian Soviet
Socialist Republic
In the seven decades that followed Armenia remained within
the USSR. Throughout this period Armenia followed a knotty
course of socio-economic and
political development, marked by
51
ARMENIA
Artsakh (Nagorno Karabagh)
was also attached to Azerbaijan.
Collectivization caused great
damage to the agriculture, which the
village never seemed to have recovered from. In general the agriculture
of Armenia was way behind the average world level. The rural areas
continued to lag behind the cities in
their social and cultural development.
The single-party system established in Armenia contributed to the
deterioration of democracy. As elsewhere in the USSR the elections in
Armenia to the soviets (councils) at
all levels became fictitious, since the
composition of the soviets was determined in advance by party instances. Violations of the law became
commonplace. In the second half of
1930s, in the conditions of the cult
of the personality tens of thousands
of people were unlawfully persecuted in Armenia. In 1949 thousands of families were illicitly exiled
from Armenia to the Altay region.
The party/state bureaucracy of the
republic obediently implemented all
instructions originating from the
centre.
During the years of Soviet domination major steps were taken in the
republic to develop the industry.
The creation of powerful industry
was deemed to be the cornerstone for
building socialism. Agriculture in
Armenia was sacrificed in favour of
this course: the forced collectivization of farms (end of 1920s beginning of 1930s) allowed the state to
dispose of agricultural revenue and
steer most of it towards the development of industry. As a result copper
mining, chemical industry, building
materials industry, light industry
and food processing developed in
Armenia. Serious mistakes were
made along the way in the positioning of industrial enterprises, environmental issues were ignored altogether etc. In view of the proactive
development of the energy sector
mostly energy-intensive industries
were created in the republic. Beginning from the 1960s multi-profile
machine tool production, instrument-making, production of automation devices, electronics etc. assumed leading positions among Armenian industries.
The development of industry
made Armenia a predominantly industrial country, it stimulated accelerated rates of urbanization as a result of which nowadays most of the
population is urban.
The Armenian people took an active part in the second World War.
During the years of war against fascist Germany (19411945) hundreds
of thousands of Armenians fought at
the front line, several Armenian national divisions were formed. Armenian military commanders earned
full fame, these included marshals
52
Ivan Baghramian, Hamazasp Babajanian, Sergey Khudyakov (A. Khanferiants), admiral Ivan Issakov and
others. Many Diaspora Armenians
fought within the ranks of allied
armies, took part in the Resistance
(France, Greece, Bulgaria).
country obviously began to fall
behind the world level of scientific and technological progress.
Corruption and theft of public
property, as well as other negative
trends became widespread. The
popular dissent began to grow.
The proclamation of
independence of Armenia.
The establishment of the
Third Republic
In the middle of the 1980s important changes took place in the
life of the USSR. The new leadership that came to power with
Mikhail Gorbachev declared a
course of perestroika. Initially
a certain amount of success was
registered in the establishment
of glasnost (transparency), the
democratization of social life,
real foundations were set for the
establishment of a multi-party
system.
The monument to the fallen in the
Great Patriotic War. Azat village
(Shirak province)
Following the second World War
a repatriation en masse of Diaspora
Armenians was carried out, as a result of which around 90 thousand
repatriates arrived in Armenia. Still,
from the middle of the 1970s, along
with the deterioration of the standard of living in the USSR, the outflow of Armenians to foreign countries began to increase.
The process of democratization
also unfolded in Armenia. The rethinking of many events of the past,
the return to ethical values that
were denied for decades by official
ideology, the perception of the Armenians of Armenia and the Diaspora as a single nation that faces the
same challenge of self-assertion, all
of the above were components in the
By the middle of the 1970s
negative trends emerged in the
development of the economy of
the USSR. Extensive methods
have exhausted themselves, the
53
ARMENIA
them. These atrocities did not receive a political assessment, its real
organizers were not revealed and remained unpunished. The commencing Karabagh movement was qualified by the centre as a provocation
underwritten by extremists and
nationalists.
The Karabagh movement received wide support of all strata of
the Armenian people. A committee
called Karabagh was formed, that
took the lead of the ever increasing
movement. In these conditions the
leadership of the communist party
of Armenia isolated itself from the
people and thus completely discredited itself. The Karabagh movement
continued to grow even after the disastrous earthquake of December,
1988, that struck the northern regions of the republic. The movement
outgrew into the Pan Armenian
Movement (PAN), that enjoyed wide
support by the population and pursued the objective of radical democratic transformations.
In January, 1990, with direct connivance of the centre, a new massacre of Armenians was organized in
Baku and the situation was aggravated further, turning into an ever
insoluble ethnic conflict. Over
300,000 Armenians vacated Azerbaijan, the Azeri population left Armenia. Clashes began in the NKAR,
along the Armenian-Azerbaijani
border, sometimes outgrowing into
real combat.
mainstream process of democratization. The Karabagh movement became a sort of catalyst for this process in Armenia.
Maintaining that perestroyka
should touch upon the domain of
ethnic relations, the Armenians of
Karabagh, who prior to that have
many times unsuccessfully brought
A rally in Yerevan in defence
of the demands of the Armenians of
Artsakh (Nagorno Karabagh). 1988
up the issue of attaching the Nagorno Karabagh Autonomous Region (NKAR) to Armenia, one more
time came up with the issue of uniting the two parts of a single nation.
This demand, voiced in February,
1988, through a resolution of the Regional Soviet (council) of peoples
deputies of NKAR, was met with
hostility not only in Azerbaijan, but
also in the centre. By the end of February pogroms of Armenians broke
out in Sumgait (Azerbaijan), dozens
of innocent people fell victim to
54
its independence, looking ahead
with hope. The reader will gain
exposure to the current situation
of the Republic of Armenia, its
state organization, economy, culture, foreign policy in the subsequent sections of this Guide.
In May, 1990, elections took place
to the Supreme Soviet of the republic, where the PAM won a landslide.
On August 23, 1990, the Supreme
Soviet of the republic adopted a declaration of independence of Armenia, that proclaimed the onset of the
process of establishment of independent statehood. The Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic was renamed
the Republic of Armenia. Later, following the breakup of the Soviet
Union, a national referendum was
held in September, 1991, whence the
overwhelming majority of the population of Armenia opted for the establishment of an independent state.
Levon Ter-Petrossian was elected
the first president (19911998) of
independent Armenia. In March,
1998, Robert Kocharian was elected
president of the country.
Armenian culture
in the 20th century
The first decades of the 20th century were marked by outstanding
accomplishments of Armenian culture. In all of its domains there were
brilliant masters, whose work became an ageless value in Armenian
Since the proclamation of independence of Armenia radical
transformations have been implemented in all walks of life: the
economy, state organization, social and political plains, culture,
relations with the external world.
In extremely grave conditions,
exacerbated by the collapse of the
Soviet Union, as well as the dire
economic crisis, aggravated by
the permanent blockade of land
communications and the gas
pipeline by Azerbaijan, the Armenian people continues to forge
The monument to Avetik Issahakian
in Gyumri
spiritual life. The poetry of these decades is represented by the works of
Hovhannes Toumanian, Avetik
Issahakian, Vahan Terian, the illustrious Pleiad of Western Armenian
poets Missak Metsarents, Daniel
Varoujan, Siamanto and others. The
55
ARMENIA
prose writing was enriched by the
input of Alexandre Shirvanzade,
Vrtanes Papazian, Grigor Zohrab et
al. A new step was outlined in the
development of Armenian music,
determined first and foremost by the
work of the great Komitas. Armenian stage art was also on the rise:
scores of theatre companies nurtured among them great masters of
Armenian stage: Hovhannes Abelian, Vahram Papazian, Hasmik,
Arous Voskanian, Hrachia Nercissian and others. Armenian fine arts
of the beginning of the 20th century
were represented by major masters
Armenia by Martiros Sarian, 1923
56
istic attitude towards the culture of
the past, all of these threatened to
cut the continuum of time that is
culture. The communist system suppressed the freedom of creation and
punished for slightest deviations
from the socialist realism canon.
The work of the great painter
Martiros Sarian was for a long time
declared to be outside of the mainstream of socialist realism; in the
second half of the 1940s the work of
the outstanding composer of our
time Aram Khachatourian was sub-
of the elder generation: Vardges
Sourenyants, Gevorg Bashinjaghian
as well as by painters, whose creative
potential bloomed through subsequent decades: Martiros Sarian,
Yeghishe Tadevossian, Hakob
Kojoyan, sculptor Hakob Gurjian.
The establishment of Soviet
power in Armenia had resulted in
serious transformations in the process of development of culture. The
exclusive domination of communist
ideology, the state policy that aimed
Jajour by Minas Avetissian, 1960
jected to unfair and scathing criticism; poets Hovhannes Shiraz and
Parouyr Sevak, novelist Hrant Matevossian have experienced to differing extents the pressure of the
at making culture a docile instrument of ideological brainwashing,
the establishment of the rules of notorious socialist realism that
hedged creative freedom, the nihil-
57
ARMENIA
to prepare workers of diverse specialities. Quite a wide network of
higher educational institutions allows to put out professionals in specialities demanded by the economy.
A wide scope of sciences has developed in the country. In 1943 the National Academy of Sciences was
founded. The institutes within its
structure promote fundamental research as well as Armenology. The
studies of the member of the Academy Victor Hambartsoumian (and
his school) in astrophysics have won
wide acclaim, the same is true of research in physics, chemistry, cybernetics etc. A number of R&D laboratories, institutes and bureaus work
on technological problems of production. Armenia is a recognized
world centre of Armenology. By virtue of a developed system of higher
education Armenia has become a
state with high intellectual potential.
system in their times. From the second half of the 1950s, following the
debunking of the cult of the personality, the erroneous approach to cultural heritage was to a greater extent
overcome, contemporary culture was
admitted to be the organic successor of the centuries-old culture of
the Armenian people. All the obstacles notwithstanding, the real talent always found its way. The best
works of authors Derenik Demirjian, Gourgen Mahari, Hrachia Kochar, Hamo Sahian, Sylva Kapoutikian, Moushegh Galshoyan, Vahagn Davtian, artists Minas Avetissian, Grigor Khanjian, Hakob Hakobian, architects Alexandre
Tamanian, Raphael Israelian and
others have rightfully claimed their
due place in the treasury of Armenian culture.
During the seven decades significant success has been reached in
Armenia in the development of science and education. Systems of mandatory elementary, then secondary
education have been consistently
implemented. A system of vocational schools has been put in place
Armenian culture treats its
centuries-old traditions with solicitude, it is perceptive to the accomplishments of world culture
and strives to keep the pace with
social progress.
58
THE ARMENIAN APOSTOLIC CHURCH
Since the proclamation of
Christianity a state religion (301
A.D.) and until the year 368 the
Armenian church was reporting
to the Cilician Metropolitan (in
The Armenian church is one
of the oldest Christian churches
in the world. Since Armenia is a
country where Christianity was
proclaimed an official state reli-
The Ejmiatsin Cathedral (Vagharshapat)
Cappadocia). Later by a decree of
the Armenian king Pap the Armenian Apostolic church was
proclaimed to be independent
within the ecumenical church.
gion earlier than in other countries, the Armenian Apostolic
church is considered to be the
elder among the worlds sister
Christian churches.
59
ARMENIA
menian church the sacraments of
Anointing with the myrrh and
the Eucharist are performed together with the Baptism. Only
their joint exertion makes the
sacrament of Baptism effective.
The Armenian Apostolic
church observes the Lords holidays dedicated to Jesus Christ;
the Lords holidays dedicated to
Virgin Mary; the Lords holidays
dedicated to the Holy Cross and
the Lords holidays dedicated to
the Holy church. Five among the
Lords holidays are called the
Great: Epiphany (Christmas and
Baptism), Easter, Transfiguration, Ascension, Exaltation of the
Cross. These are perceived not
only as religious, but also as popular holidays. Mondays immediately following the great holidays are the days for the remembrance of the dead.
The Armenian church calendar has 112 days for the commemoration of the saints. The Armenian church honours the memory of about 400 saints that
break down into three groups:
Biblical saints (forefathers, Apostles, prophets, Evangelists etc.),
Ecumenical saints (martyrs, prelates, fathers of the church and
others honoured by all Christian
In 303 in the capital of Armenia Vagharshapat the Cathedral of
St. Ejmiatsin was consecrated. St.
Ejmiatsin became the residence of
the Catholicos of all Armenians
and the religious centre for Armenians around the world. Subsequently in view of changing socioeconomic and political circumstances the residence of the
Catholicos of all Armenians had
been moved more than once to
other locations: to Dvin, Akhtamar, Argina, Ani. In 1066 the Catholicosate was moved to Cilicia,
where it shifted between different
towns of the Cilician Armenian
kingdom, including the capital
city of Sis (until 1441). In 1441
the Catholicosate was moved back
to St. Ejmiatsin in Vagharshapat,
where it remains until now. The
Cilician Catholicosate remained
after the fall of the Cilician Armenian kingdom and is currently in
Antilias (near Beirut in Lebanon).
The Armenian Apostolic
church recognizes the following
sacraments: Baptism, Anointing
of the sick, Penance, Eucharist,
Holy orders (Ordination) and
Marriage. Baptism is the first
sacrament. Those who are not
baptised may not share the remaining sacraments. In the Ar-
60
THE ARMENIAN APOSTOLIC CHURCH
relic of the Noahs Ark (kept in
St. Ejmiatsin), and others.
The Catholicosate of all Armenians comprises: the Armenian
Patriarchate of Jerusalem (established in the 7th century, the Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople (established in 1461) and
36 sees (8 of which cover the territory of the Republic of Armenia, one covers the territory of
Artsakh and the remaining cover
the countries of Europe, the
Americas, Asia, Africa and Australia where Armenians live).
The head of the Armenian Apostolic church is the Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of all Armenians, who is elected for life by
the Clerical/National Council
specially convened for the occasion. The council comprises representatives of the clergy as well
as laymen that are elected from all
sees and communities of the Armenian church around the world.
It was mentioned above that
the Armenian Apostolic church
has played a prodigious role in
the history of the Armenian
people. The development of education and national culture closely relate to the endeavors of the
church. The church was and remains to be an important factor
churches), Armenian saints
(about 50 of them, including:
martyrs Gayane, Hripsime and
others; Gregory the Illuminator,
the first Catholicos; king of Armenia Tiridates, who decreed
Christianity to be the state religion; Catholicos Nerses the Great
of the 4th century; catholicos
Sahak Partev, one of the translators of the Bible into the Armenian language; Mesrob Mashtots,
the creator of the Armenian alphabet; prince Vardan Mamikonian, the leader of the uprising
against Persians in the 5th century; Grigor Narekatsi, a great
poet; teachers of the church;
theologians Hovhan Vorotnetsi
and Grigor Tatevatsi and others).
The day of remembrance of each
saint is clearly defined in the Armenian church calendar.
The Armenian church preserves many relics, among which
the most significant are the following: the spearhead that had
pierced the rib of Jesus Christ (in
the Middle Ages it was kept at the
Geghard monastery, now it is in
St. Ejmiatsin), reliquary of the
right hand of Gregory the Illuminator (is the symbol of power
of the Catholicos of all Armenians, kept in St. Ejmiatsin), a
61
ARMENIA
vironment was put in place that
allows the people to live a spiritual life in accordance with the
principles that have been professed by them for centuries and
were consecrated by the teaching
of the Armenian Apostolic
church.
of unity for the Armenians of Armenia and Spiurk (the Diaspora),
of the preservation of ingeniousness of Armenians abroad. With
the proclamation of the Republic
of Armenia the impediments for
the operation of the church have
been completely removed, an en-
62
T H E R E P U B L I C O F A R M E N I A T O DAY
STATE ORGANIZATION
The Republic of Armenia is a sovereign, democratic, social, rule
of law state.
The power in the Republic of Armenia belongs to the people. The
people administer the power through free elections, referendums as
well as through state bodies, bodies of local administration and public officials provided by the Constitution.
The state power is administered pursuant to the Constitution and
the laws, based on the principle of separation of the legislative, executive and judicial branches.
THE CONSTITUTION OF THE REPUBLIC
OF ARMENIA
The Constitution of the Republic of Armenia was adopted on July
5, 1995, in the result of a popular referendum.
The Constitution is the basic law of the Republic of Armenia and
is the safeguard of independent democratic society in Armenia, based
on the supremacy of social justice and the law.
The Constitution affirms the following provisions:
the bases for constitutional order
the principal rights and freedoms of humans and citizens
the President of the Republic
the National Assembly (Parliament)
the Government
the judiciary
territorial administration and local self-governance
the adoption, amendment of the Constitution and referendum
transitional provisions.
THE PRESIDENT
The Republic of Armenia has a system of presidential rule. Pursuant to the Constitution the President ensures compliance with the
Constitution, the normal operation of the legislative, the executive
63
ARMENIA
The Chancery of the President of the Republic of Armenia in Yerevan
and the judiciary, is the guarantor of sovereignty, territorial integrity
and security of the Republic.
The president is elected by the citizens of the Republic of Armenia
for a term of five years.
Any person 35 years of age that has been a citizen of the Republic of
Armenia for the preceding ten years, has been a permanent resident of
the Republic of Armenia for the preceding ten years, and having a voting right may be elected President. The same person may not be elected
to the office of the President for more than two consecutive terms.
THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY (PARLIAMENT)
The National Assembly executes the legislative power in the Republic of Armenia.
The current composition of the National Assembly was formed in the
result of the elections on May 30, 1999, for a four year term. The elections were a mix between the majoritarian and proportional systems.
The National Assembly comprises 131 deputies. 75 deputies are
elected by the majoritarian system and 56 by the proportional system
64
T H E R E P U B L I C O F A R M E N I A T O DA Y
The building of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia in Yerevan
(party representation). Only the parties that have received at least
5% of the total votes in the proportional elections (by party lists)
may have factions in the parliament. Any 10 or more deputies may
form their own caucus.
THE GOVERNMENT OF THE REPUBLIC
OF ARMENIA
The government of the Republic of Armenia executes the executive power in the Republic of Armenia. It comprises the Prime Minister and the ministers.
The structure and the operating procedures of the government
are defined by a decree of the President of the Republic of Armenia
upon presentation by the Prime Minister.
The President of the Republic appoints the the Prime Minister
(the Varchapet) to head the Cabinet. The members of the Cabinet, the
ministers (nakharars) are appointed upon the nomination of the
Prime Minister.
The sessions of the Cabinet are convened and moderated by the
President of the Republic of Armenia or, upon delegation by the latter, by the Prime Minister.
65
ARMENIA
The resolutions of the government are signed by the Prime Minister and endorsed by the President of the Republic of Armenia.
The following ministers are members of the Cabinet (as of June, 1999):
of Agriculture
On Coordination of operation of production infrastructure
of Culture, youth issues and sport
Chief of staff of Government-Minister
of Defence
of Economics
of Education and science
of Energy
of Environmental protection
of Finance
of Foreign affairs
of Health
of Industry and trade
of Internal affairs
of Justice
The Government House of the Republic of Armenia on the Republic Square
in Yerevan
66
of National security
of Post and telecommunications
of Privatisation
of Public revenue
of Social security
of Statistics, state registry and analysis
of Territorial governance
of Transport
of Urban development.
THE CONSTITUTIONAL COURT
The Constitutional court of the Republic of Armenia comprises
nine members, five of whom are appointed by the National Assembly and another four by the President of the Republic of Armenia.
Members of the Constitutional court are appointed for a term that
expires upon their reaching the age of 70. Their powers cease only in
the cases and by the procedure defined by the Constitution and the
laws of the Republic of Armenia.
The Constitutional court, in a manner stipulated by law:
determines the conformity with the Constitution of laws, resolutions of the National Assembly, decrees, findings of the President of
the Republic of Armenia, resolutions of the Government
prior to ratification determines the conformity with the Constitution of the obligations stipulated by international agreements
offers opinion on the existence of grounds for the impeachment
of the President of the Republic of Armenia
offers opinion on the impossibility of further execution of powers by the President of the Republic of Armenia
adopts resolutions, in a manner stipulated by law, on suspension
or prohibition of the operation of political parties...
The following are reserved the right to apply to the Constitutional
court:
the President of the Republic of Armenia
no less than one third of the deputies
67
ARMENIA
presidential candidates of the Republic of Armenia over disputes
pertaining to the results of the elections
the Government in the event of impossibility for the President of
the Republic to execute his/her powers.
The Constitutional court hears cases only upon the existence of a
respective application.
ADMINISTRATIVE DIVISION. TERRITORIAL
GOVERNANCE AND LOCAL SELF-ADMINISTRATION
Provinces and communities are the administrative/territorial units
of the Republic of Armenia. The provinces comprise rural and urban
communities.
The communities execute local self-governance. The bodies of local self-governance are elected for a three year term with the purpose
68
of administering community property and resolving issues of community significance. These bodies are the council of elders of the
community comprising between five and fifteen members, the head
of the community: city mayor, village head.
The head of the community forms his/her administration.
The council of elders endorses the budget of the community, controls the execution of the budget, defines local taxes and payments.
State governance is administered in the provinces (marz). The central government appoints and relieves provincial governors (marzpets),
that administer the regional policies of the Cabinet, coordinate the
operation of provincial services of the republican executive.
The city of Yerevan possesses the status of a province. The mayor
of Yerevan is appointed by the President of the Republic upon the
nomination by the Prime Minister. Local self-governance within
Yerevan is administered in district communities.
THE PROVINCES OF ARMENIA
province
provincial
centre
1 Aragatsotn
Ashtarak
162.5
121
3
112
2 Ararat
Artashat
305.0
98
4
93
3 Armavir
Armavir
315.5
98
3
4
population
as of 1996
(thousands)
settlements
urban
rural
commu- communities
nities
4 Gegharkounik
Gavar
272.4
98
5
87
5 Kotayk
Hrazdan
325.9
69
7
60
6 Lori
Vanadzor
392.4
130
8
105
7 Shirak
Gyumri
358.3
131
3
116
8 Sunik
Kapan
161.9
135
7
106
9 Tavoush
Ijevan
154.8
65
4
58
68.3
55
3
41
1,249.4
1
12

3,766.4
1,001
59
872
10 Vayots Dzor
Yeghegnadzor
11 Yerevan
Yerevan
total
69
ARMENIA
THE COMMUNITIES OF THE CITY OF YEREVAN
1. Ajapniak
2. Arabkir
3. Avan
4. Centre
5. Davtashen
6. Erebouni
7. Kanaker-Zeytoun
8. Malatia-Sebastia
9. Nor Nork
10. Nork-Marash
11. Noubarashen
12. Shengavit
THE JUDICIARY
Justice is administered in the Republic of Armenia exclusively by
the courts of law in conformity with the Constitution and the laws. In
cases provided for by the law the legal proceedings involve the participation of a jury.
In the Republic of Armenia the courts of general jurisdiction are
the courts of the first instance, the review courts and the cassation
court.
Economic courts, military tribunals and other courts provided by
law also operate in the Republic of Armenia.
The establishment of extraordinary courts is prohibited.
The guarantor of the independence of the judiciary is the President of the Republic of Armenia. He/she is the head of the Council
of Justice.
The judges are appointed for a term that expires upon their reaching the age of 65. Their powers cease only in the cases and by the
procedure defined by the Constitution and the laws of the Republic
of Armenia.
In administering justice the judges are independent and are governed only by the law.
STATE HOLIDAYS AND REMEMBRANCE DAYS
The following are the state holidays and remembrance days in the
Republic of Armenia:
70
From December 31 to January 6 Christmas holidays. December 31, January 1, 2 (New Year) and 6 (Christmas and Epiphany)
are days off.
April 7 Day of motherhood and beauty (day off). On this day
men give presents to their mothers, wives, sisters and girlfriends.
April 24 Remembrance day of the victims of Armenian Genocide (day off).
May 9 Victory and peace day (day off). On this day Armenians
honour the memory of hundreds of thousands of their sons that fought
against fascism during the second World War in the ranks of the
Armed Forces of the Soviet Union and Allied Powers.
May 28 The day of the First Republic (day off).
July 5 Constitution day (day off).
September 21 Independence day (day off). On September 21,
1991, the free and independent Republic of Armenia was proclaimed
pursuant to the result of a national referendum.
December 7 Day of remembrance of the victims of the earthquake of 1988.
ARMENIA ON THE INTERNATIONAL SCENE
The basic principles of the foreign policy of the Republic of Armenia are affirmed in the Constitution:
The foreign policy of the Republic of Armenia is carried out in
conformity with the rules of international law with the purpose of
establishing good neighbourly and mutually beneficial relations with
all states.
The government of the Republic of Armenia is called upon to
implement this constitutional principles.
Presently (as of July, 1999) the Republic of Armenia has established
diplomatic relations with 125 countries.
71 states have accredited their ambassadors in the Republic of Armenia.
71
ARMENIA
Armenia has accredited its ambassadors and representatives in 42
states and 7 international organizations.
MEMBERSHIP TO INTERNATIONAL
ORGANIZATIONS (A SAMLING)
The United Nations Organization (UN)
The United Nations Organization on Education, Science and
Culture (UNESCO)
The Organization of Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE)
The World Health Organization (WHO)
The World Meteorological Organization (WMO)
The United Nations Organization of Industrial Development
(UNIDO)
The Universal Postal Union (UPU)
The International Telecommunications Union (ITU)
The International Labour Organization (ILO)
The International Civil Aeronautics Organization (ICAO)
The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)
The North Atlantic Co-operation Council (NACC)
Interpol (INTERPOL)
The International Organization for the Protection of Monuments
(ICOMOS)
The International Organization of Satellite Telecommunications
(INTELSAT)
The International Bank of Reconstruction and Development
(IBRD)
The International Monetary Foundation (IMF)
The United Nations Organization of Food and Agriculture (FAO)
The International Foundation for Agricultural Development
(IFAD)
The Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC)
The International Standardization Organization (ISO)
The International Organization of Migration (IOM)
72
The International Agency of Atomic Energy (IAEA)
The Convention on wetlands of international importance especially as waterfowl habitat (RAMSAR)
The International Road Traffic Organization (IRTO)
The UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia Pacific
(ESCAP)
DIPLOMATIC MISSIONS OF FOREIGN STATES
ACCREDITED IN THE REPUBLIC OF ARMENIA
(AS OF JULY, 1999)
COUNTRY
ADDRESS
TELEPHONE FACSIMILE
AFGHANISTAN
ALBANIA
ALGIERS
Moscow, 3/2 Sverchkov per.
Moscow, 3 Mytnaya str.
Moscow, 1a Krapivinskiy per.
ARE
Yerevan, Hrazdan hotel
9287278
2307732
2307875
9219563
2307635
2307635
AUSTRALIA
AUSTRIA
537304
AT&T
530153
151160
Moscow, 4/10
2991670
Sadovaya-Triumphalnaya str. 2990367
2004218
Moscow,13 Kropotkinskiy per. 9566070
9566170
Vienna, MFA
421-53115 431-5354530
BELGIUM
Moscow, 7 4 Stoloviy per.
BRAZIL
BURUNDI
Moscow, 54 Gertsen str.
Moscow,
1 Kalugskaya Pl. # 226, 227
CAMBODIA
Moscow,
16 Starokonyushenny per.
Moscow,
23 Starokonyushenny per.
ARGENTINA
CANADA
CZECH rep.
CROATIA
2910531
2916018
2304022
2302564
2916005
2014736
2012115
9566573
9566666
2495882
Honorary Consul
567903
Yerevan, 25/22 Demirjian str. 0-1-401238
Moscow, 12/14 Julius
Fuchik str.
2510540/45
Athens
73
2001285
2302009
2302012
ARMENIA
CUBA
9 Leontyevskiy per., Moscow
2902882
2906358
CYPRUS
Moscow, 51 Nikolskaya STreet 2902154
2913726
2001254
DENMARK
Kiev, 45 Vladimirovskaya str.
2293340
2294537
2291831
DPRK
72 Mosfilmovskaya Str.,
Moscow
1436249
9382195
ETHIOPIA
Moscow,
6 Orlovo-Davidovskiy per.
2881616
2801676
2806608
FINLAND
Vale-e Asr Ave,
Zip 14356, Tehran, Iran
8774985
8889107
FRANCE
Yerevan,
8 Grigor Loussavorich str.
561103
AT&T
151095
AT&T
151105
GABON
16 Denezhni Per., Moscow
2411585
2440694
GEORGIA
Yerevan, 42 Aram str.
564357
585511
GERMANY
Yerevan, 29 Charents Street
523279
569185
524581
AT&T
151112
GHANA
Moscow, 14 Skatertny per.
2021870/71
2021890
Yerevan, 28a Charents str.
533081
AT&T
151841/842
2022941
Yerevan, Hrazdan hotel
537103
530051
AT&T
151170
2013601
941305
2202138
293944
GREAT
BRITAIN
GREECE
GUINEA (rep. of) Moscow, 6 Pomerantsev per.
THE HOLY SEE Tbilissi, 40 Zhgenti str.
AT&T
151807
HUNGARY
Moscow,
62 Mosfilmovskaya str.
9382197
1438611/15
1434625
ICELAND
Moscow,
54 Mosfilmovskaya str.
9567604
9567605
9567612
INDIA
Yerevan
INDONESIA
Kiev, 14/12
Nikolsko-Botanicheskaya str.
74
2274643
IRAN
Yerevan, 1 Boudaghian str.
529830
280457
AT&T
151385
233991
IRELAND
Moscow, 5 Grokholsky per.
7420901
7420920
ISRAEL
Tbilissi,
61 David Amashenebeli str.
951709
ITALY
5 Denezhny per., Moscow
JAMAICA
Moscow, 7 Koroviy val, # 70-71
JAPAN
Moscow, 12 Kalashniy per.
JORDAN
Tashkent
KOREA (rep. of)
Moscow, 14 Golubkina str.
2411533
2411534
2539289
2372320
2302102
2918500/01
2023248
9382805/29
9562434
2035087
KYRGIZSTAN
Moscow,
64 Bolshaya Ordinka str.
2374601
2374882
LEBANON
Yerevan, 7 Vardanants str.
526450
561327
589874
AT&T
151128
MALAYSIA
Moscow, 50 Mosfilmovskaya str.
MALI
9566817
1471526
Moscow, 11 Novokuznetskaya str. 2310655
MEXICO
Moscow, Bolshoi Levchinskiy per. 2015631
2302889
2302042
MOLDOVA
Kiev
2952653
2956703
MOROCCO
Moscow, 8 Perechistensky per.
2017351
2017395
2017284
2302067
NEPAL
Moscow,
14/7 2nd Neopalimovskiy per.
2440215
2440000
NIGERIA
Moscow, 13 Kachalova str.
2903783/85
9562825
7972900
2028856
7972904
9562647
THE NETHERLANDS
Moscow, 6 Kalashniy per.
NORWAY
Moscow, 7 Vorovskiy str
9562005
PHILLIPINES
Moscow, 6 Karmanitskiy per.
2410563
2413870
PORTUGAL
Moscow, 1 Botanicheskiy per.
2803319
75
2809203
ARMENIA
PRC
Yerevan,
12 Marshal Baghramian ave.
560067
561234
AT&T
151125
AT&T
151143
567427
582463
576557
505237
582463
SLOVAKIA
Moscow, 17/19 Julius Fuchik str. 9564920
9732081
SLOVENIA
Athens
ROMANIA
Yerevan
RUSSIA
Yerevan,
13a Grigor Loussavorich str.
SAR
Kiev, 7 Chervonoarmeyskaya str.
SOVEREIGN MILITARY
ORDER OF MALTA
Yerevan
SPAIN
Moscow, 50/8 Gertsen str.
2022161
2881620
2001230
2881757
SWEDEN
Moscow, 60 Mosfilmovskaya str.
9561200
9561202
SWITZERLAND Moscow, 2/5 Ogorodnaya Sloboda 9583830
2001728
SYRIA
Yerevan,
14 Marshal Baghramian Ave.
569011/2
524028
507421
THAILAND
Moscow,
9 Bolshaya Spasskaya Str.
UKRAINE
Yerevan, 58 Yerznkian str.
URUGUAY
Moscow, 38 Lomonossovskiy ave. 1430401
2080817
2909659
226951
586856
507303
562436
1430404
Honorary consul
Yerevan, 26/9 Ghazar Parbetsi str. 583156
USA
Yerevan,
18 Marshal Baghramian ave.
524661
520791
AT&T 151144
ZAMBIA
Moscow, 52a Mira av.
76
2885001
2885083
583156
AT&T
151138
REPRESENTATIONS OF INTERNATIONAL
ORGANIZATIONS (A SAMLING AS OF JULY, 1999)
ORGANIZATION
ADDRESS
TELEPHONE
FACSIMILE
United Nations
Organization
Yerevan, 14 Liebknecht str.
566073
560212
151452
151453
UN Development
Programme
581394
560340
151451
151452
151453
UN Childrens
Fund/UNICEF
534783
566497
580174
151698
151727
UN Department
of Public information
560212
151647
151647
UN High
Commissioner for Refugees
530945
567643
151451
151450
UN Department
of Humanitarian Affairs
562355
151749
UN Population Fund Yerevan, 14 Liebknecht str.
583194
560340
151451
151452
151453
World Food
Programme
580538
532358
151572
151725
World Bank
Yerevan, 2 Khorhrdarani str.
520992
151686
151787
International
Yerevan,
Monetary Foundation 13 Melik-Adamyan str.
77
528960
528532
151704
ARMENIA
International
Yerevan, 96 Jrashat str.
Federation of Red Cross
522253
561889
151791
151791
International
Yerevan, 41 Orbeli str.
Committee of Red Cross
273152
262903
151092
151092
International
Organization of Migration
585692
151827
151827
World Health
Organization
564367
526977
Yerevan, 8 Toumanian str.
EMBASSIES OF THE REPUBLIC OF ARMENIA
ABROAD (AS OF JULY, 1999)
COUNTRY
ADDRESS
TELEPHONE
FACSIMILE
Albania
Chancery in Athens
Algiers
Chancery in Cairo
ARE
20 Mohammed Mozhar,
Cairo, Egypt
202-3424157
202-3424159
202-3424158
Argentina
570 Avda. Pte. Roque
Saenz Pena, Piso-3,
Buenos Aires 1035
541-345-2051
541-345-1882
541-345-2037
541-345-2467
Austria
12-14/1/6 Neubaugasse,
1070 Wien
431-522-7480
431-522-7479
421-522-7481
Belarus
Minsk, 17 Kirova str.
0172-257-153
0172-272-339
0172-223-072
0172-231-321
Belgium
157 France Merje,
1060 Bruxelles
322-346-5667
322-346-3058
322-345-7702
322-346-5667
Brazil
chancery in Buenos Aires
5511-2557707
5511-31594151
General Consulate
Av Sao Luiz
192-Conj. 1301 CEP
01046-913, Sao Paulo
78
Bulgaria
11 20 April str., 1606 Sofia
Canada
130 7 Delavaz Avenue,
Ottawa, Ontario K2POZ2
Croatia
chancery in Athens
Cyprus
chancery in Athens
France
9 rue Viete, 75017,
Paris, France
F.R. Yugoslavia
3592-526-046
3592-526-046
3592-457-970
3592-457-970
613-234-3710
613-234-2790
613-234-3444
613-234-2860
331-4212-9800
331-4212-9802
331-4212-9803
331-4212-9801
8832-951-723
8832-964286
8832-990-126
8832-985535
49228-9572610
49228-9572615
49228-9572625
chancery in Athens
Georgia
4 Tetelashvili str., Tbilissi
Germany
Viktoriasrtasse 15,
Bonn, 53173
Great Britain 25a Cheniston Gardens,
London W86TG
Greece
159 Syngrou Ave.,
1st floor. 17121
Nea Smyrni, Athens
44171-938-4514 44171-938-2595
44171-938-5435
301-934-5727
301-934-5727
Hungary
chancery in Vienna
India
A-153 New Frends, Colony 9111-683-6784
9111-683-3177
Honorary consul: New Delhi 110065
9111-684-7548
Iran
1 Ostad Shahriar (former
Arfa Street), Teheran
Israel
1 Vitron str.
9722-5833053
Atolot industrial
Honorary consul: Zone, Jerusalem, Israel
Italy
via dei Colli della
Farnesina 174 00194 Roma
Kazakhstan
480075, Almaty,
578 Seifulin str.
Kyrgizstan
chancery in Almaty
Lebanon
95 Mtayleb, Beirut
Luxemburg
chancery in Brussels
79
9821-6704838
9821-6704833
9821-6700657
9722-583053
396-329-6638
301-935-2187
396-329-7763
3272-692-932
3272-625-268
3272-692-908
96144-02952
96144-18860
ARMENIA
Moldova
chancery in Bucharest
Morocco
chancery in Cairo
The Netherlands
chancery in Brussels
Oman
chancery in Cairo
Poland
15 Ul Woziwody 02908,
Warszawa, Poland
4822-6420645
4899-6420643
PRC
4-1-61, Tayuan,
Diplomatic apartments,
Beijing, 100600, China
8610-65325677
8610-65325654
Romania
1 rue Caloesti, apt 5,
Bucharest
401-321-5679
401-321-5930
401-321-5679
Russia
2 Armyanskiy per.,
Moscow 10100
095-924-1269
095-924-4535
095-928-3384
Slovakia
chancery in Vienna
Slovenia
chancery in Athens
Syria
Adnan Maliki, Ibrahim
9631-13732992
Hananu, Damascus, Syria
9631-13711757
Thailand
28 B Lake Rujada
Office Complex
2640677
2640678
Honorary consul: 193/117
Rachadapisek Rd., Klong Toey, Prakanong
10110 Bangkok, Thailand
Turkmenistan 744012 Ashgabad,
14 Kyoroghly str.
3632-354418
3632-354418
Ukraine
51/50 Artema str., Kiev
044-2164996
044-2166004
Uruguay
chancery in Buenos Aires
USA
2225 R Street, NW,
Washingron D.C.
200008, USA
(202) 3191976
(202) 319-2983
(202)3192982
(202) 319-2984
Consulate General:
50 North La Clenga Blvd. 1-310-657-6102 1-310-657-7419
suite 210, Beverly Hills,
Los Angeles, California, 90211
Vatican
chancery in London
80
PERMANENT MISSIONS TO INTERNATIONAL
ORGANIZATIONS (AS OF JULY, 1999)
ADDRESS
TELEPHONE
FACSIMILE
UN
119 East 36th Street,
New-York, NY, 10016
1212-686-9079
1212-686-3934
UN (Geneva)
64 Route de Troinex,
CH-1256, Troinex,
Geneve, Suisse
4122-300-4500
4122-300-4515
OSCE
12-14/1/16 Neubaugasse, 431-522-7479
1070 Wien
431-522-7480
421-522-7481
European Union 157 Franz Merjay,
1060 Brussels
322-346-5667
322-346-3058
322-345-7702
322-346-5667
CIS
Minsk, 17 Kirova str.
0172-257-153
0172-293-072
0172-272-339
0172-261-944
NATO
157 Franz Merjay,
1060 Brussels
322-346-5667
322-346-3058
322-346-5667
Council of
Europe
Strasbourg
333-882-427-17 333-882-427-17
81
ECONOMY
The economic profile of Armenia had been forming through many
centuries. The country has gone through all respective stages of economic development: from handicraft manufacture to modern industry. By the time of proclamation of independence Armenia was predominantly an industrial republic with an advanced scientific and
technological potential. Following the acquisition of independence
Armenia embarked on a development phase that may be considered
transitional. Radical transformations are underway in the economy
that pursue the objective of establishment of market relations. Such
a transition would present quite a challenge for any country. In Armenia these natural problems are further aggravated by the consequences of the disastrous earthquake of 1988 and the complications
due to the regional tension: the blockade, armed conflict etc.
Industry
In these circumstances a need
emerged to identify new, predominantly local sources of raw
materials, take measures for the
mitigation of the energy crisis, to
reorient the production lines of
certain enterprises. At the same
time the process of privatisation
of the industry commenced. Efforts were undertaken to increase
the reliability of the Armenian
nuclear power plant, and in 1996
it was recommissioned. The government of the republic undertook measures to receive longterm loans from international financial and banking institutions.
Thanks to the measures taken, beginning from 1994 inspiring shifts
became noticeable in industry: the
After the collapse of the Soviet
Union the state of the Armenian
industry deteriorated drastically,
since the well-functioning economic links that had been in place
for decades no longer delivered.
It became obvious that the majority of Armenian industrial enterprises does not have a closed loop
production cycle and is dependant on imported materials or
components. In 199091 the industrial output plunged, a number of enterprises de facto stopped
and unemployment emerged.
The generation of electrical energy declined, since the Armenian nuclear power plant was shut
down following the earthquake.
82
E CO N O MY
expedient to promote those sectors
that have relatively low energy
consumption, can boost employment and take advantage of the
powerful scientific and technological potential of the country. Along
with the development of market
relations only those sectors will
prosper, whose products secure
themselves a niche in the world
market. The food processing industry (wines, cognacs, canned
food, mineral waters, pastries etc.),
the light industry (textiles, footwear) and building materials production all answer these criteria.
Machine tool production also has
good prospects for future development: lathes, instrument making,
electronics, computing machines
etc. The principal direction of the
development of the chemical industry should be the so called
small chemistry: the production
of household chemicals, paints etc.
The existence in the republic of an
academic potential allows to develop the pharmaceutical and
bioengineering industries.
volume of industrial output slowly
began to rise, part of the enterprises adjusted to the new environment and independently began
The Armenian nuclear power plant.
Control panel
looking for resources and markets,
steps were taken to introduce competitive product lines.
Taking into the account the
peculiarities of the development of
the republican industry and the
accumulated experience, as well as
the advanced level of the specialists and workers in the industry it
becomes apparent that it would be
Agriculture
The land in Armenia was
privatised immediately upon acquiring independence: the farmers regained possession of their
The cognac distillery in Yerevan
83
ARMENIA
necting to Russia through Georgia.
In these conditions the role of
highway and especially air routes
grew exponentially. Between
1991 and 1996 the Armenian authorities succeeded to maintain
the operating condition of the
main thoroughfares of the country, as well as to construct the
Goris-Stepanakert highway, to
upgrade the road leading from
Shirak to Javakhk in neighbouring Georgia, to build a bridge
across Arax river that connects
Armenia to Iran.
The air transport is used to
carry passengers to other countries, as well as to import most of
the freight into the country. Armenia is linked by air routes to a
number of cities in the FSU, Europe and Asia. The Yerevan
Zvartnots airport has become
an important international node.
Its significance shall grow further
with the commissioning of the
new cargo terminal. Yerevan has
another airport Erebouni, there
are airports in Gyumri, Goris etc.
lands. The livestock and a substantial part of agricultural equipment were privatised shortly
thereafter. First steps have been
taken towards the establishment
of agricultural farms. Nevertheless stalling with the privatisation
of food processing industry and
the sectors catering to farming
needs resulted in a situation
where the country still does not
have established adequate structures for technical servicing of
farms and the sale of produce.
The creation of such structures as
well as the resolution of an important problem in the Armenian
context: irrigation, shall allow to
increase the productivity of farmers and ensure a plethora of food.
Transport
Prior to the proclamation of
independence Armenia was
linked with countries near and far
by rail, highway and air traffic.
From the beginning of the 1990s,
in view of the tension in the region, the Republic of Armenia
found itself in a blockade: the rail
and highway communication between Armenia and Azerbaijan
ceased to operate, while the Georgian-Abkhaz conflict strangled
the traffic on the railway con-
Trade
After the acquisition of independence Armenia opened up to
a possibility to independently
84
E CO N O MY
times. An unwanted phenomenon emerged for the Armenian
people: emigration. In the period
mentioned approximately 600
thousand people left Armenia,
these were predominantly intellectuals who resettled in Russia,
the USA, other countries. Not all
of them succeeded in finding
employment adequate to their
profession and ensuring a proper
standard of living.
The unswerving Armenian
people, overcoming all hurdles,
remained faithful to the objective
it had chosen and carried on with
the construction of the new society. The republic received substantial material assistance from
various international foundations,
benevolent organizations, Diaspora institutions. This assistance has
substantially alleviated the condition of the most needy parts of the
population. Between 1995 and
1997 the emigration declined and
an inverse trend emerged: the return of Armenians to their homeland. The positive shifts in the
economy of these years inspire a
hope that the Republic of Armenia can overcome the precarious
circumstances, face the grave
challenges and ensure the prosperity of the people.
participate in world trade. A negative foreign trade balance has
emerged, since the republic is yet
unable to ensure the competitiveness of its products. The principal way to overcome this situation
is the development of the economy. For the population of Armenia that had for decades been accustomed to food and consumer
goods shortage, the abundance of
food in the post-independence
period was for some time unusual.
As in other countries that have
once undergone the period of initial accumulation of capital, in
Armenia too the first investments
were made into trade. Food and
consumer goods are imported into
Armenia from Russia, Iran, Syria,
the United Arab Emirates and
other countries.
The social sector
The transition period, calling
for radical transformations in the
economy and social relations domain, can not remain painless for
all strata of the population. The
society in Armenia became stratified, part of the population ended
up in dire social straits. Between
199194 the newly created republic went through a difficult
period, especially in winter
85
E D U C AT I O N
The modern educational system of the Republic of Armenia
allows to successfully resolve the
issues of education and upbringing of the growing generation,
the preparation of highly qualified specialists for the economy,
culture and management. Leaning on the accomplishments of
the preceding periods, the mandatory education of children and
a wide network of higher educational institutions, the current
target in the education sector is
to ensure the development of a
genuinely national school, to introduce in the schools and higher
educational institutions contemporary methods and materials, to
preserve the high intellectual potential characteristic of Armenia.
development. The search for new
ways of improvement of the system
of popular education carries on.
Tangible changes have taken
place in the higher education sector. The principles of university education are being introduced. In a
number of universities and institutes research centres and labs have
been established, thanks to which
the students now have an opportunity to pursue academic research.
The rights of higher educational institutions in the development of curricula have been expanded, the same
is true of the preparation of the faculty and the establishment of relations with foreign educational and
academic institutions.
The Yerevan State University is
the oldest contemporary higher educational institution of the republic.
It was founded in 1919. Through approximately eight decades of its existence the university has prepared
tens of thousands of highly qualified
specialists who had worked and still
work in the economy, the structures
of culture and state governance of
Armenia. Presently (1997) the university has 8.5 thousand students.
The university has 18 departments
preparing specialists in 100 professions. The university has a branch
in the town of Ijevan, a number of
research institutes and laboratories
including the centre of Armenology,
The principal unit of the secondary education is the ten-year school.
There are about 400 ten-year schools
with 584 thousand students in Armenia today. After the acquisition of
independence great work has been
done in revising the curricula and
compilation of new textbooks. A
number of schools have been transformed into gymnasiums and colleges with a professional slant, which
allows to establish a more comfortable environment for the identification of student inclinations and their
86
EDUCATION
A network of pedagogical education has been created and is in operation in the republic. It is represented by the Khachatour Abovian
Armenian state pedagogical institute
(Yerevan), the Yerevan Valeri
Bryusov state institute of foreign languages, the Gyumri Mikael Nal-
the chair of arts under the aegis of
UNESCO. The university maintains
links with the universities of a number of countries, exchanges faculty
and students with them.
The Yerevan State Engineering
University was founded in 1932.
Presently it has 4 thousand students
Yerevan State University. Central building
bandian state pedagogical institute
and the Vanadzor state pedagogical
institute. These institutes prepare
for the schools of the republic teachers of the mother language and literature, foreign languages, a wide
spectrum of humanities and natural
disciplines.
The Armenian state institute of
physical culture in Yerevan prepares
school teachers of physical training.
The Yerevan state institute of the
peoples economy and the Armenian
Agricultural Academy (the resulting
entity of a merger of the former
Yerevan Agricultural and Zooveterinary Institutes) prepare specialists for
in its 10 departments. The Engineering University was the first to embark on the reforms in higher education. It offers MA degrees and
courses in a number of social and
political disciplines. The University
has four branches: in Gyumri, Vanadzor, Goris and Kapan.
In 1989 two construction departments splintered from the Armenian
state engineering University and became the foundation for the establishment of the Yerevan Architectural
Construction University, that prepares
specialists in architecture, industrial
construction and civil engineering
and the technology of construction.
87
ARMENIA
students and graduates of the Institute of fine arts organize annual exhibitions of their work, they participate in various international competitions and exhibitions.
The American University of Armenia functions in Yerevan since
1991, it prepares specialists for the
economy in conditions of the development of market relations.
In the first half of the 1990s a
number of private universities and
institutes have been founded in the
republic, some of which (Hrachia
Ajarian, Gladzor, David Anhakht) already enjoy sustainable
reputation. Having relatively low enrollment, these institutions react
faster to the demands of the society,
they create new departments and divisions and in a number of cases they
prepare specialists in professions
that are unavailable in public educational institutions. In 199697
educational year there were 70 private universities and institutes in
Armenia with the enrollment of 20
thousand students.
different sectors of the economy of
the Republic of Armenia. The significance of these two institutions has
grown in view of the transition of the
country towards market relations.
The Institute of the peoples economy, in particular, has introduced the
disciplines of marketing and management. The striving of the youth to enroll in the Yerevan Mkhitar Heratsi
state medical university is strong as
usual. The university has GP, pediatric, dental, sanitary-hygienic and
pharmaceutical departments.
The culture and arts sectors are
catered to by the specialists prepared
in the Yerevan Komitas state conservatory (founded in 1923), the
Yerevan state institute of theatre
arts and the Yerevan state institute
of fine arts. The structure of the conservatory includes the Tchaikovsky
musical secondary school, the operatic studio and an amateur/folk music centre. Many students and graduates of the conservatory have successfully participated in international musical competitions. The
88
SCIENCE
Until the end of the 1980s the
development of different branches
of science in Armenia scored
most apparent successes and the
results of some lines of research
were of the world level.
was commissioned in Yerevan. This
branch of research was led by the
member of the academy Artem
Alikhanian. Thanks to the development of several new directions in
physics (radiation physics, quantum
electronics) it became possible to establish new sectors of industry: the
Research in theoretical and applied mathematics has resulted in
The building of the Praesidium of the National Academy of Sciences
in Yerevan
the creation of an Armenian mathematical school with its renowned
representatives Artashes Shahinian,
Mkhitar Jrbashian, Sergey Mergelian. Their findings contributed to
the development of cybernetics in
Armenia and the establishment of a
new line of production of computing machines.
Substantial success has been recorded in the physics of elementary
particles. In 1967 a particle collider
radiotechnical and the electronics
industries.
Research in astrophysics has won
world acclaim. The Byurakan astrophysical observatory, headed for
many years by the member of the
academy Victor Hambartsoumian,
became a recognized centre of the
astrophysical science. The Armenian astrophysicists have discovered new stellar systems: the stellar associations, they have proven
89
ARMENIA
that the formation of stars is an ongoing process in our days.
Research in chemistry and biology has to a certain extent contributed to the creation in Armenia of
tries, that were called upon to resolve specific technical and technological issues, to contribute towards
scientific and technical progress.
Substantial success has been
achieved in Armenology. The multifarious problems of Armenology
are studied at a number of institutes
of the National Academy of Science:
of History, Archaeology and Ethnography, Oriental studies, Literature, Language, Philosophy and
Law, as well as in the Matenadaran,
The Historical Museum, the Museum of literature and arts, at the
social science chairs of higher educational institutions.
The Armenian historians have
identified and introduced into academic circulation a huge body of factual material pertaining to all periods
of the history of the Armenian people,
these materials possess immutable
objective value. The axial problems of
the history of the Armenian people
became the subject of fundamental
studies: the ethnogenesis of the Armenian people, the patterns and peculiarities of its historical development,
the history of the national liberation
struggle, of the Armenian Question,
of Armenian migratory settlements
and the Diaspora. The critical texts of
the works of Armenian medieval historians have been published, as well
as of foreign sources that contain information on Armenia and the Armenians.
The Great telescope of the Byurakan
observatory
new sectors of industry: the pharmaceutics and microbiology.
There are several agricultural scientific research labs in the republic:
of Viticulture, winemaking and fruitgrowing, of Agrochemistry and hydroponics, of Economics and organization of agriculture and a few others. Significant experience has been
accumulated in increasing the fertility of grapes and fruits cultivated in
Armenia, in the creation of new varieties, improvement of the technology
of winemaking, development of new
methods of land cultivation.
Between the 1960s and the 1980s
a great number of scientific research
institutes, research and development
laboratories, design and technological bureaus were created within the
structure of machine building, chemical and electrotechnical indus-
90
SCIENCE
Presently a search is underway
in the republic for new forms of
organization of science. There is
a tendency to increase the role of
higher educational institutions in
the development of academic research. The National Academy of
science and its institutes have received the right to independently
determine the directions of research, to prepare and train personnel, the establish new academic divisions etc. Two line
academies have been established:
the Engineering and the Agricultural Academies. The links with
the scientific community of the
Diaspora have expanded. A number of renowned foreign Armenian scholars have been elected to
the National Academy of science.
The consolidation of the academic potential of the entire nation becomes a possibility of the
future. The notable positive shifts
allow to accelerate the development of the national programme
for the advancement of science in
Armenia.
The results of archaeological excavations carried out in Armenia
have won international academic
recognition, these include monuments of the Urartian, Hellenistic
and early medieval periods.
The centuries old history of Armenian literature, its mainstream literary schools, literary liaisons and
other problems are dealt with in the
studies of literary historians. The
legacy of the classical Armenian authors has been studied, their works
have been published, the place of Armenian literature within the world
literary process has been defined.
Leaning on the prolific traditions
of the past the study of the development patterns of the Armenian language was carried on. Works have
been elaborated on the grammar,
dialectology, lexicography and other
problems, a great number of various
dictionaries have been published.
In the domain of art history and
criticism works have been created
that are dedicated to Armenian music, theatre, fine arts, architecture
etc. The interest of the world scientific community towards the heritage of the Armenian people in arts
has increased significantly.
91
C U LT U R E A N D S P O R T S
Armenian culture is deeply
rooted in the depth of millennia,
many of the values it has created
have enriched the civilization of
the world. Since times immemorial Armenian culture has come
into contact with both Western
and Eastern cultures, getting exposure to the social progress. The
Armenian national culture has
accommodated Christian ethics
and the criteria of spiritual values that have determined the
general makeup of the Armenian
nation. Along with religion and
the mother tongue the Armenian
national culture is an important
factor in the survival of the Armenian people, its assertion in
the contemporary world.
ways received wide public response, they have contributed to
the formation of the national-liberation mentality of Armenians.
The historical events that have
taken place in Armenia in the
1990s have mostly been reflected
in the Armenian periodicals. Armenian literature has yet to compass what had transpired, the ascent in the national-liberation
movement that culminated with
the acquisition of independence
and the liberation of Artsakh.
There are a number of literary
museums and memorial houses
functioning in Armenia.
The Yeghishe Charents Museum
of literature and Arts (1 Aram
Street, Yerevan) was founded in
1953. The museum preserves manuscripts, letters and documents of
Armenian authors and artists. The
museum organizes exhibitions and
academic sessions.
Literature
With the creation of the Armenian script in the 5th century
the literature that possessed rich
oral tradition prior to that embarked on a new stage of its development. Within the past centuries Armenian literature has
gone a long way, reflecting in its
works the historical events in the
life of the Armenian people. The
best works of Armenian literature of different periods have al-
The museum has several
branches:
in Yerevan the Memorial house
of novelist Derenik Demirjian
(Abovian Str. 29).
in Gyumri the Memorial house
of poet Avetik Issahakian,
the Museum of poet Hovhannes
Shiraz.
92
house of the authors father. A new
building was erected for it in 1978,
which houses the main exposition.
The authors sculpture (by P. TerManoukian, 1913) is in the courtyard of the museum.
The Memorial house of poet
Hovhannes Toumanian (40 Moskovian Str., Yerevan) was founded in
The Hovhannes Toumanian
memorial house
in Vagharshapat the Memorial
house of poet Hovhannes Hovhannesian,
in Goris the Memorial house of
novelist Axel Bakunts,
in Ashtarak the Memorial
house of novelist Perj Proshian,
in the village of Dsekh the Memorial house of poet Hovhannes
Toumanian.
The Yeghishe Charents memorial
house. The poets study
1953. The first floor of the museum
houses a recreation of the poets
apartment in Tiflis, where he had
lived the last years of his life.
The Avetik Issahakian
memorial house
Avetik Issahakian (32 Zarobian Str.,
Yerevan) opened in 1963 in the
house where the poet had spent the
years between 1947 and 1957. The
The Memorial house of novelist
Khachatour Abovian (Yerevan,
Kanaker) was founded in 1938 in the
93
ARMENIA
study, the bedroom and the living
room have been preserved.
to the world thanks to the works
of Komitas, Alexandre Spendiarian, Aram Khachatourian, Arno
Babajanian and other composers,
as well as the performances of the
best orchestras and performers of
Armenia: the State Choir of Armenia, the Komitas Quartet, the
Tagharan ancient music orchestra, the Armenian Folk Song and
Dance Ensemble and others. The
many hardships suffered by the
republic in the transition period
notwithstanding, the musical
scene of the country is thriving.
Even in the hardest winter
months of 19911993 the symphony orchestra of the National
Philharmonium carried on with
its concerts, new performances
were staged at the Alexandre
Spendiarian Opera and Ballet
Theatre, the Paronian Musical
Comedy Theatre, renowned singers went on tours etc.
Yeghishe Charents (17 Mashtots Ave.,
Yerevan) opened in 1964 in the apartment where the poet had spent the
last years of his life. The study of
Yeghishe Charents has been recreated. The museum maintains a permanent memorial room in the city of
Charentsavan named after the poet.
The Memorial house of novelist
Stefan Zorian (24 Zorian Str., Vanadzor) opened in 1988 in the house
where the writer had lived from 1964
to 1967.
Parooyr Sevak (the village of
Zangakatoun, province of Ararat)
was founded in the poets native
settlement. Every year on the poets
birthday, July 17, the museum holds
a Sevak poetry day. The tombstone
of the poet is in the courtyard of the
house.
All of the memorial houses preserve the manuscripts, letters,
memorabilia, documents and photographs pertaining to the lives and
work of the authors concerned.
There are several major musical
centres in Armenia, including:
The Alexandre Spendiarian
State Academic Opera and Ballet
Theatre (36 Toumanian Str.,
Yerevan) opened in 1933. Through
more than six decades a great number of operas and ballets from the
Armenian and European repertoire
were staged in this theatre.
Music
Armenian music has gone a
long way from musical folklore to
the different genres of contemporary music. The accomplishments
of Armenian music were exposed
94
The building of the Alexandre Spendiarian Opera and Ballet Theatre
fully participated in international
competitions and festivals, toured in
foreign countries. The Philharmonium has a branch in Gyumri (since
1938).
The A. Paronian State Musical
Comedy Theatre (4 Khorhrdaranain
Str., Yerevan) opened in 1942. The
repertoire includes national and
European vaudevilles. In 1992 the
theatre received a new building.
The following are the principal
concert halls of the country:
The Armenian State Philharmonium was established in 1932. It is a
blanket organization for a number
of entities: the State Choir of Armenia, the Armenian Folk Song and
Dance Ensemble, the Symphony
Orchestra of Armenia, the Popular
Music Orchestra of Armenia, The
Armenian Folk Instruments Orchestra, the Komitas Quartet, the
Goossan Song Ensemble and others.
Many orchestras as well as soloists
of the Philharmonium have success-
The Small concert hall of the
Philharmonium (2 Abovian Str.,
Yerevan) operates since 1921. It has
been the principal concert hall of the
country for many decades.
The Aram Khachatourian Great
concert hall of the Armenian
Philharmonium (46 Mashtots
Ave., Yerevan) operates since 1953.
It is the principal concert hall of
the country.
95
ARMENIA
The Memorial House of Alexandre Spendiarian (21 Nalbandian
Str., Yerevan) opened in 1967 in the
building where the composer had
spent the last years of his life. The
museum houses the study of the
composer, his personal items, many
documents etc. The museum organizes concerts on its premises.
The Sports and Concert Complex (1 Leningradian Str., Yerevan)
operates since 1984. The complex is
The Memorial House of Aram
Khachatourian (3 Zarobian Str.,
Yerevan) opened in 1984. The museum includes the house itself (built
in 1947), the exhibition hall, a resource centre and a concert hall.
Materials are exhibited that reflect
the life and work of the composer.
The Aram Khachatourian Great
concert Hall during a concert
predominantly used for popular
music concerts.
The Komitas Chamber Music
House (1 Issahakian Str., Yerevan)
operates since 1977. The cosy auditorium of this building is loved by
Yerevanians. It is used for the performances of chamber orchestras,
quartets, soloists as well as pipe organ concerts.
The halls of the Union of Composers and Musicologists of Armenia (25 Demirjian Str., Yerevan) and
the Memorial House of Aram
Khachatourian are also used for solo
performances.
The concert hall of the Retreat
of the Union of Composers of Armenia (Dilijan) is in operation
since 1978.
The Komitas Chamber music
House. Tagharan ensemble
performing
There are several memorial
houses of renowned composers in
the Republic of Armenia.
96
Fine arts
permanent exposition the Gallery
holds provisional exhibitions (thematic, personal etc.). The National
Art Gallery has branches in Gyumri,
Gavar, Hrazdan, Martouni, Yeghegnadzor and Jermuk.
Throughout centuries immutable values have been created by
Armenians in fine arts: ancient
sculptures, frescoes, brilliant
samples of medieval illuminated
manuscripts, paintings of the
contemporary period. The world
famous artist Martiros Sarian has
left a great impact on the development of modern Armenian
painting. Within the last decades
the following have created their
best works: painters Minas Avetissian, Hakob Hakobian, Grigor
Khanjian and others, sculptors
Nikoghos Nikoghossian, Levon
Tokmajian, Artashes Hovsepian,
Ara Haroutiounian and others.
Armenian visual arts were always
characterized by a diversity of
styles and directions, perceptiveness towards most recent world
trends, boldness of approaches.
The Museum of Modern Armenian Art (7 Mashtots Str., Yerevan)
was founded in 1972. The works of
Armenian painters and sculptors of
different generations and directions
are exhibited here.
The Museum of Folk Art (64
Abovian str., Yerevan) was founded
in 1978. Its exposition offers an understanding of the different sectors
of Armenian folk art from the oldest times to our days. It exhibits
jewellery, carpets, woodwork, ceramics, bone carvings, works of naif
painters etc. The museum has
branches in Dilijan (province of
Tavoush) and Vardenis (province of
Gegharkounik).
The Museum of Russian Art (38
Issahakian str., Yerevan) was founded
in 1984. It houses the collection of the
famous doctor A. Abrahamian (Moscow), donated by him to Armenia.
There is a number of art galleries
and museums in Armenia that preserve and exhibit rich collections of
fine art.
The Childrens Art Gallery (13
Abovian str., Yerevan) is a structural
unit of the Republican Centre of
Aesthetic Education of Children. It
was founded in 1970. It is a unique
museum type institution that contributes greatly to the aesthetic education of the growing generation.
The National Art Gallery of Armenia (2 Abovian Str., Yerevan) was
founded in 1921. It has sections of
Armenian, Russian and Western European art. The Armenian art collection exhibited in the Gallery is the
richest in the world. Apart from its
97
ARMENIA
Yerevan) is in operation since 1977.
The exhibition mostly covers the
works of the last years of the artists
life. There is also a museum of
Minas Avetissian in the native village of the artist, Jajour (province of
Shirak). A dedicated building was
constructed to house it.
The Memorial Studio of Artist
Gevorg Grigorian (Giotto) (45a
Mashtots Ave., Yerevan) is in operation since 1990. The museum exhibits a substantial part of the paintings
of the artist of the Tiflis and Yerevan
periods.
One of the halls of the National
Gallery of Armenia
The Martiros Sarian Memorial
House (3 Sarian str., Yerevan) is in
operation since 1967 and was built
next to the studio of the artist. The
studio is presently incorporated into
the exposition.
The Museum of Sculptor
Yervand Kochar (39/12 Mashtots
Ave., Yerevan) was opened in 1984.
The museum exhibits the paintings
created by Yervand Kochar in different periods, as well as scale models of his monumental sculptures
and other materials.
The interior of the Martiros Sarian
memorial house
The Memorial House of Artist
Hakob Kojoyan (62/7 Pushkin str.,
The artists studio is a part of the
museum.
The Museum of sculptor Khoren
Ter Haroutian (Vagharshapat) is in
operation since 1995. It exhibits the
works of different years donated by
the USA-resident sculptor.
The Memorial House of Sculptor
Ara Sargsian (62/7 Pushkin str.,
The works of the sculptor pertaining
to different periods are exhibited.
Theatre
Theatre is known in Armenia
since times immemorial. Folk
pageants, open air spectacles, exposure to classical drama, the
The Studio of Artist Minas
Avetissian (29, Nalbandian Str.,
98
The
Yerevan
Hrachia
Ghaplanian Drama Company (28
Avetik Issahakian Str., Yerevan) was
founded in 1967 upon the initiative
of director Hrachia Ghaplanian, after whom it is now named. The theatre has staged many plays of the
classical and modern Armenian repertoire, as well as of contemporary
European playwrights. Through
three decades of its existence the theatre has secured itself a place among
the leading companies of Armenia.
first amateur companies and, finally, the creation of a professional theatre these are the
milestone of the development of
Armenian theatre. Today, the
countrys great difficulties of general socio-economic nature notwithstanding, the theatrical life
of Armenia is still vibrant. Presently over three dozen theatres
operate in Armenia, and the following are the most significant
among them:
The Yerevan Chamber Theatre
(58 Mashtots Str., Yerevan) opened
in 1982. Its repertoire includes predominantly plays of contemporary
Armenian authors, mostly comedies.
The Armenian Soundoukian
State Academic Drama Theatre (6
Grigor Loussavorich Str., Yerevan)
is the oldest contemporary theatre in
Armenia. It opened in 1922. Within
the last three quarters of a century
the theatre has staged almost all classical Armenian plays as well as many
plays of Russian and West European
authors. The theatre is widely acclaimed as one of the best interpreters of Shakespearean tragedies.
Throughout the existence of the theatre several generations of actors
have succeeded each other, the best
among them have left their mark in
the history of Armenian stage. The
Armenian school of directing was
hatched in this theatre. There are
two sculptures at the entrance of the
theatre: of playwright Gabriel
Soundoukian and of Pepo, the protagonist of his play Pepo.
The Yerevan Konstantin Stanislavskiy Russian Drama Theatre (7
Abovian Str., Yerevan) opened in
1937. In six decades Russian classical and contemporary plays, as well
as those from Armenian and European repertoire were staged in this
theatre.
The Yerevan Young Spectator
Theatre (3 Moskovian Str., Yerevan)
opened in 1929. It stages plays by Armenian and European authors.
The Yerevan Hovhannes Toumanian State Puppet Theatre (4 SayatNova Str., Yerevan) opened in 1935.
It has stages numerous childrens
plays that enjoy steady success.
The Gyumri Vardan Ajemian
State Drama Theatre was founded in
1928. It is named after its director
99
ARMENIA
Vardan Ajemian, who has worked in
the theatre for almost two decades.
Many outstanding actors have begun their careers in this theatre and
subsequently moved to the capital.
The repertory includes plays by Armenian and European authors.
The Gyumri S. Alikhanian State
Puppet Theatre was founded in
1935. It is the first contemporary
puppet theatre in Armenia. In 1984
it was the first in Armenia to stage a
marionette performance.
There are state drama companies
in a number of other cities of Armenia: Vanadzor, Artashat, Kapan,
Goris and elsewhere.
Within the recent years several
private theatres were created in Armenia, the most popular among
which are the following:
The Hamazgain Theatre opened
in 1991 in Yerevan upon the initiative of actor Sos Sargsian, who became the artistic director of the new
company.
The Metro Theatre opened in
1992 in Yerevan.
The Nork Youth Theatre opened
in 1987 in Yerevan.
The Arion Theatre opened in
1994 in Yerevan.
These companies mostly consist
of young actors and directors that
boldly address contemporary themes
and look for new ways of artistic expression.
Cinematography
In the beginning of the 1920s
the Armenfilm film studio was
created in the country, Hamo
Beknazarian became its leading director. The most successful among
the movies of different years were
Pepo (the first Armenian sound
film, director Hamo Beknazarian,
1935), The Triangle (1967, director Henrik Malian), We and our
mountains (1969, director Henrik
Malian), The colour of pomegranate (1969, director Sergey Parajanov), Our childhood tango
(1985, director Albert Mkrtchian)
and others. In the first half of the
1990s, the significant difficulties of
the country-wide economic crisis
notwithstanding, the Armenian
moviemakers have created a few
successful films. The films of director Vigen Chaldranian The
voice of one crying out (1991) and
director Arman Manarian Comrade Panjouni (1993) have won
international prizes. Among documentaries the films of Artavazd
Peleshian Life and The End
filmed in 1993 stand out, as well as
the serial of director Hovik
Hakhverdian Matenadaran (project commenced in 1983) and others. The recently acquired creative
100
freedom is the safeguard of new accomplishments of Armenian cinematography.
The interior of the Sergey Parajanov
museum
The Museum of Sergey Parajanov
(1516 Dzoragyugh, Yerevan) opened
in 1991. The collection includes
drawings and sketches of the wonderful film director, documents and materials pertaining to Parajanovs
films, clippings from the world press
on his art, recounting the hard life
and work of the master.
Sports
Sport is loved in Armenia, although only a fraction of the
population goes in for it. Almost
everybody else is an ardent fan
that jealously follows the appearances of Armenian athletes at different competitions or cheers (at
the arenas or by their TV sets)
during football matches. The annals of Armenian sport contain
many bright pages pertaining to
major accomplishments of the
representatives of Armenia at the
most prestigious competitions.
The names of famous olympic
champions of different years:
gymnasts Hrant Shahinian,
Albert Azarian, boxer Vladimir
Yengibarian, pentathlonist Igor
Novikov, weightlifter Youri
Vardanian and others are known
not only to the fans of the elder
generation, but also to young athletes that hone their skills in the
schools headed by these masters.
The Yerevan Chess House is
named after the twice world
champion chess player Tigran
Petrossian, the statue of this
grand master is next to the entrance of the Chess House. The
feat of the Yerevan Ararat football
team in 1973 became a legend,
they took the USSR football cup
and won the national champions
title within the same year.
Sports in Armenia is not only
history to look back at. With the creation of sovereign Armenia the Armenian athletes now have an opportunity to independently participate
in major international events. In
1996 the Armenian national team for
the first time ever appeared at the
Summer Olympics in Atlanta (USA)
and won two medals (gold and silver), sharing the 4145th ranking as
101
ARMENIA
a team. This is incontestable success,
especially when one considers the
total number of participating coun-
The Chess House in Yerevan
tries: 197. In the same year the Armenian male team shared the 57th
places (among 114 national teams) at
the World Chess Olympiad in
Yerevan, affirming its reputation as
one of the strongest chess teams of
the world. Armenias womens chess
team took the 20th place (from
among 71 teams). The Armenian
national football team participates in
the World and European Cups and,
although it so far has not registered
great success, its faithful fans like to
believe that the former glory of Armenian football shall once again
come center stage.
The republic has the necessary
premises for the development of different sports: over 20 stadiums, 100
football fields, around 80 swimming
pools, 800 basketball and 1,000 volleyball courts, over 1,300 intramural arenas. The major sports facilities are the Hrazdan stadium in
Yerevan (seats 70,000), the Republican stadium in Yerevan, which is
The Hrazdan stadium in Yerevan
102
YEREVAN LANDMARKS
1. Monument Mother Armenia
in the Victory park
2. Memorial complex Armenia
(Cascade)
3. The Youth Palace
4. Zoological gardens
5. The Mesrob Mashtots
Matenadaran
6. Mesrob Mashtots monument
7. The American University of
Armenia
8. The sports and concert complex
9. The museum of the Armenian
Genocide
10. The monument to the victims
of Genocide
11. The Chancery of the President
of the Republic
12. The Praesidium of the National
Academy of Science
13. The memorial house of poet
Avetik Issahakian
14. The memorial house of
composer Aram Khachatourian
15. The National Assembly of the
Republic of Armenia
16. Museum of Russian art
17. Armenian cognac store
18. The Yerevan Drama Company
19. Nairi hotel
20. Lower station of cable road
21. Monument to Avetik Issahakian
22. Museum of sculptor Yervand
Kochar
23. Monument to architect
Alexandre Tamanian
24. Museum of poet Hovhannes
Toumanian
25. Sourb Hovhannes church
(18th century)
26. Dvin hotel
27. Central post office
28. The memorial house of painter
Martiros Sarian
29. Sourb Astvatsatsin church
(Zoravor, 7th17th centuries)
30. Museum of history of Yerevan
31. Monument to Martiros Sarian
32. Monument to Hovhannes
Toumanian
33. A. Spendiarian opera and ballet
theatre and the A. Khachatourian Great concert hall
34. Monument to composer
Alexandre Spendiarian
35. Monument to composer
Komitas
36. Katoghike church (13th century)
37. Museum-studio of painter
Minas Avetissian
38. Monument to poet Mikael
Nalbandian
39. Monument to 5th century
historian Movses Khorenatsi
103
YEREVAN LANDMARKS
PAGE 104
YEREVAN LANDMARKS
PAGE 104
ARMENIA
40. Yerevan State University
41. Tigran Petrossian Chess House
42. Monument to poet Yeghishe
Charents
43. Ani hotel
44. Childrens Aesthetic Centre
45. Art salon
46. Memorial house of Yeghishe
Charents
47. Childrens railway
48. Museum of film director Sergey
Parajanov
49. Hrazdan central stadium
50. Yerevan cognac distillery
51. Sourb Sargis church
(15th20th centuries)
52. Central farmers market
53. Modern Art Museum
54. Old Yerevan quarter
(20th century)
55. K. Stanislavsky Russian drama
theatre
56. Memorial house of Alexandre
Spendiarian
57. Hamazgain theatre
58. National Art Gallery of
Armenia
59. Government house
60. State history museum of
Armenia
61. Small concert hall of the
philharmonium
62. Armenia hotel
63. A. Paronian musical comedy
theatre
64. Sevan hotel
65. Monument to revolutionary
Stepan Shahoumian
66. Shirak hotel
67. Gay Jami mosque
(18th century)
68. Central bus terminal
69. Monument to statesman
Alexandre Miasnikian
70. G. Soundoukian Armenian state
drama theatre
71. Erebouni hotel
72. Monument to composer Armen
Tigranian
73. The republican stadium
74. Monument to the hero of the
national liberation struggle
Vardan Mamikonian
75. Monument to Russian author
Alexandre Griboyedov
76. Central department store
77. Ayrarat film theatre
78. Circus
79. Komitas park. The national
Pantheon
106
The Sports and concert complex in Yerevan
now under reconstruction and will
become the first roofed stadium in
Armenia, the Sports and Concert
Complex in Yerevan, where a diversity of major athletic events may be
held. There is a big sports facility in
Tsaghkadzor including training halls
and swimming pools, this alpine lo-
cation is also used for winter skiing.
Water sports develop on lake Sevan
and a number of major reservoirs.
The Republic of Armenia has acceded to a number of international
sports federations. Links are being
established with the sports clubs and
unions of the Armenian Diaspora.
107
T H E C A P I TA L O F T H E R E P U B L I C
O F A R M E N I A Y E R E VA N
The exposure of our guests to Armenia usually begins with the
capital city of Yerevan. We shall help them along by providing essential information on the history, the present and the sights of the capital city of the Republic of Armenia.
Some background
Yerevan is one of the oldest cities
of the world, a peer of Rome, Carthage and Samarkand. Unlike many
other cities, the date of the foundation of which is moot or, in the best
doubt. During archaeological excavations in the 1950s on the Arin Berd
hill within Yerevan city limits a cuneiform inscription was uncovered,
carved on a rock slate upon the orders of king Argishti I in 782 B.C.
The inscription affirms that king
A panoramic view of the capital of the Republic of Armenia Yerevan
case, is obscured by myths and legends and thus subject to guesswork,
Yerevan has a birth certificate, the
authenticity of which is beyond
Argishti I ...built this mighty fortress and called it Erebouni...
Yerevan derives its name from the
fortress Erebouni.
108
YERAVAN
Within subsequent centuries
Yerevan was seldom referred to in
Armenian and foreign sources, although it is known that the city was
became the capital of the Republic
of Armenia.
Modern day Yerevan takes up 210
square kilometers, its population is
1.249 thousand people, that is over
one third of the countrys total population lives in the capital. Yerevan is
a major industrial city, a centre of
social, political and cultural life of
the Republic of Armenia.
Relatively few buildings have
survived in Yerevan that date back
farther than the 20th century, many
Old buildings in Yerevan
(19th century)
on a trade roads junction and played
a visible role in the economy of the
country. The significance of Yerevan
began to increase when in the beginning of the 16th century it became
the seat of the Iranian governor-general (of the khanate since 17th century). Following the accession of
Eastern Armenia to Russia Yerevan
became the centre of the newly
formed Armenian Oblast, later the
Yerevan Province. Since becoming a
provincial centre Yerevans development accelerated and it acquired
European features. In 1918 Yerevan
Old buildings in Yerevan
(19th century)
of the older structures were of no
architectural relevance and were demolished in the course of the reconstruction of the city. Several two or
three storeyed houses in downtown
109
ARMENIA
Yerevan are an exception, particularly on Abovian (former Astafian,
the main street of old Yerevan) and
Hanrapetoutyan (Republic) streets.
The capital developed along the
master plan of the city, elaborated in
the 1920s by the outstanding Armenian architect Alexandre Tamanian.
And although the city has long outgrown the limits prescribed by the
developer, the principal ideas of
Alexandre Tamanian were treated
with respect in all subsequent master plans of development of Yerevan.
Tamanian planned the downtown to
follow a radial-circular pattern, the
existing main streets were preserved
and the centre of the city was defined
to be the Republic square (former
Lenin square). The Government
building designed by Tamanian was
erected on this square, it became the
dominant structure of the architectural ensemble of the square. During
subsequent decades the buildings of
the second government block, hotel
Armenia and the Trade Unions
Council were added and, along with
the reconstruction of the Historical
museum this completed the formation of the architectural ensemble of
Yerevans main square.
Several more buildings were
erected in Yerevan by Tamanians
designs including, first of all, the
Opera and Ballet Theatre. It was
planned by the architect to have two
great auditoriums: an opera hall and
a concert hall. The opera section was
completed by 1939 while the concert
section (the Aram Khachatourian
great philharmonic hall) was inaugurated in 1963. The magnificent
building of the Opera and Ballet
Theatre is on the Theatre square
surrounded by parks. With the inception of the democratic movement
in Artsakh and Armenia the Theatre
square was used for the multitudinous rallies where the people ventilated their attitudes. Since then the
square received the popular moniker
Liberty Square.
Tamanians master plan of Yerevan allocated the Northern part of
the city to student campuses. The
Tamanian designed first building
of the present-day Engineering university and the building of the
present-day Institute of the Peoples
Economy laid the foundations for the
development of this part of Yerevan.
The buildings of the Medical University, the Agricultural Academy and
several new buildings of the Engineering university were added on
later. The campus of the Yerevan
State University (architect E. Tigranian) is next hand (between Charents
and Alex Manookian streets). The
student district also houses the National Library of Armenia, also designed by Alexandre Tamanian.
Overhanging the student district
on the slope of the Kanaker plateau
is an original high-rise that never
110
YEREVAN
fails to attract the attention of the
guests of Yerevan. It is the Youth
Palace (architects A. Tarkhanian, S.
Khachikian, G. Poghossian, M.
Zakarian). The building houses a
movie and concert auditorium, a
wedding hall, lounges, restaurants,
cafes, a 500 bed hotel, several studios
and an indoor swimming pool.
There are several sports grounds behind the Youth Palace followed by
the green massif of the Victory Park.
Across Marshal Baghramian avenue the complexes of the National
Academy of Science (architects S.
Safarian and M. Manvelian) and the
National Assembly (architect M.
Grigorian) face each other. The National Academy of Science complex
includes the buildings of the Praesidium of the Academy, the Fundamental Library and a number of institutes (of history, arts, oriental
studies, geology and mechanics).
The building of the National Assembly is auspiciously placed on a
hilltop within a park. It has session
halls, rooms for standing committees of the National Assembly and a
multitude of other functional rooms.
The Sports and Concert Complex
(architects A. Tarkhanian, G. Poghossian, S. Khachikian, K. Hakobian
and G. Mousheghian) stands out by
its original architectural solutions. It
is a huge building standing on the
Tsitsernakaberd hill. The complex
has two auditoriums: big (seats 5
thousand spectators) and small (seats
1,300). A rotating platform in-between allows to expand either of the
auditoriums by another 1,000 seats.
The spacious lobby with a refined interior may be used for different ceremonies. Two flights of stairs lead up
from street level to the main entrance
of the complex, between them there
is a cascade of fountains that add a
solemn air to the structure.
The high level of architecture is
characteristic not only of structures
of social or cultural significance, but
also of certain industrial enterprises
and many residential buildings of
Yerevan. Upon entering the city
from the direction of the Zvartnots
airport our guests will most probably
pay attention to two structures separated by the Victory bridge over the
Hrazdan river. On a small hilltop on
the right embankment is the rigid
building of the Cognac distillery (architect N. Markarian) built of red
tuff stone. Across the river right
past the bridge on the left embankment is the monumental building of
111
Ararat winery
ARMENIA
the Wine factory (architects R.
Israelian and H. Kochar) erected on
the site of the former fortress of
Yerevan. The high walls of grey basalt are resembling fortress walls.
The buildings of the Cognac distillery and the Wine factory make up
the architectural ensemble by the
Victory bridge built in 1945, the
year of the victorious completion of
the World War.
Today the architectural profile of
the capital is hard to imagine without the surface pavilions of some of
the Yerevan subway stations. From
among the downtown stations the
Republic square and Yeritasardakan (Youth) stand out. The surface part of the Republic square
The surface pavilion of the
Yeritasardakan (Youth) subway
station
station (architects J. Torossian and
R. Minassian) is on two levels. The
lower level is a cosy patio in front
of the main entrance, there is a
fountain in the centre whose jets
reach the upper level of the station.
The surface pavilion of the
Yeritasardakan station (architects
S. Kyurkchian) is an original structure. The escalator tunnel emerges
through the lobby of the station to
the surface in the form of a wide
tube aiming at heavens and
crowned with a skylight. The tube
adds a dynamic dimension to the
whole structure.
The Churches of Yerevan
Only four churches have survived
within the centre of the capital. The
oldest among these is the Katoghike
church (of Virgin Mary), built in the
13th century. This church once had
a nave flanked by two side-chapels
as well as an atrium of which only
the apse with the altar have survived, the rest was demolished in the
1940s during the development of
downtown Yerevan. These surviving
fragments, badly in need of restoration, are now within the courtyard
of the building of the Language Institute of the National Academy of
Science (the corner of Abovian street
and Sayat-Nova avenue).
Hidden among tall residential
buildings between Martiros Sarian
and Pushkin streets is the church of
St. Apostle Anania, also called the
Zoravor church. According to lore
the church was founded in the 7th
century by apostle Anania. In 1679
it collapsed during an earthquake
but was rebuilt in 1694. Today it is
112
YEREVAN
The Zoravor
church
one of the most frequented churches
of Yerevan.
At the beginning of Mashtots avenue is the Sourb (Saint) Sargis,
built in the middle of the 15th century. It suffered damage during an
earthquake in 1679 but was restored
five years after. The next reconstruction of the church took place be-
tween the 30s and 40s of the last century and it was rebuilt one more last
time in 1969, assuming its current
look. The chancery of the archbishop of the Ararat See of the Armenian Apostolic church is built
next to the church.
Apart from those mentioned the
following churches have survived:
The Sourb
Sarkis church
113
ARMENIA
Sourb Hovhannes in Avan (6th century, partly destroyed), Sourb
Astvatsatsin and Sourb Hakob in
Kanaker (1695) as well as Sourb
Hovhannes in Kond (1710).
In the year 2001 the Armenian
people shall commemorate the
1700th anniversary of adoption of the
Christian faith in Armenia. On this
occasion the Armenian Apostolic
church has decided to erect a Cathedral of St. Gregory the Illuminator in
Yerevan, it will be the biggest church
in Armenia. The Cathedral will be
built at the end of the Circular boulevard on a small hill across the
Zoravar Andranik subway station.
Parks, boulevards and
plazas
of Yerevan make up the green
zone of the city. The Circular boulevard, which is rather a horseshoe
than a closed loop, encircles downtown Yerevan. One end of the horseshoe points at Ayrarat film theatre
(Tigran Mets street), while the other
reaches the Theatre square and the
plaza with the sculpture of the
painter Martiros Sarian across it.
Along the entire length of the Circular boulevard (5 kilometers) there
are beautiful fountains and ponds,
dozens of cafes, small restaurants
and cosy shaded corners. By virtue
of all this the Circular boulevard is
one of the recreation areas most
loved by Yerevanians.
The oldest boulevard of Yerevan
is between the Republic and Shahoumian squares. There is a fountain
with 2,750 small jets here, built in
1968 to celebrate the 2,750th anniver-
A part of the Circular Boulevard
with the sculpture Hands, given
to the city of Yerevan by the population of the Italian city of Carrara
sary of the foundation of Yerevan.
There is a green massif between
Shahoumian square and Grigor
Loussavorich street that is split in
two by Shahoumian street. The left
hand side of the park (with ones back
to Shahoumian square) is called the
English Gardens (oldest in town)
where the building of the Armenian
Soundoukian Drama Theatre is. The
right hand side is the Childrens park
with many attractions.
The Main Avenue boulevard is
another recreation zone in downtown Yerevan, pursuant to the master plan it should cross the centre
of the city from Sarian street (the
Main Post Office) to Khanjian
street. Two sections of the boulevard
114
YEREVAN
are already in place: stretching from
Sarian street to Terian street and
from Nalbandian street to Khanjian
street. There are lawns, fountains
and ponds along the boulevard, the
pedestrian lanes are paved with basalt.
The recreation zone in the
Hrazdan river canyon includes the
Khachatour Abovian park with the
childrens railroad on the left bank
of the river and a section of both
embankments almost 15 kilometers
long. The zone comprises a system
of parks, and the shallow dams along
the river flow have increased the
space of water. The zone culminates
with the artificial Yerevan lake that
fills a dilation of the Hrazdan canyon. The Hrazdan river canyon is
one of the most popular rest areas for
Yerevanians in the Summer months.
The park on the Tsitsernakaberd
hill, the Hakhtanak (Victory) park
with the monument to Mother Armenia, the Botanical Gardens and
the Zoo in the Avan pass, the
Komitas park with the national Pantheon and others also cover a lot of
green ground.
The Armenia Memorial-Architectural complex (better known as the
Cascade, architects J. Torossian, S.
Gourzadian et al) is currently in the
final stage of its construction. The
guests of Yerevan will no doubt pay
due attention to this original structure, since it is visible from many lo-
cations in the capital. It is built on
the slope of the Kanaker hill and
comprises a cascade of five tiers of
roofed halls, courtyards and plazas,
fountains and cafes flanked on two
sides by flights of stairs. The left hand
side houses a system of escalators.
The stairs or the escalators can be
used to access the scenic view opening from the top, where there is also
a monument symbolizing the state
power of Armenia. The spacious halls
on all five tiers shall be used for different exhibitions. The first tier shall
house three grand frescoes by artist
Grigor Khanjian; The Armenian
Alphabet, Vardanank (dedicated
to the Avarayr Battle of 451) and
Renaissance (dedicated to the restoration of Armenian independence). There is a stele on the level
of the fourth tier, dedicated to the
adoption of Christianity by the Armenian people. The memorial complex as a whole is called upon to perpetuate the most significant events
in the history and culture of the Armenian people. It is built of white
stone that highlights it on the background of the green hill. The complex connects the centre of the city
(the district of the Opera and Ballet
Theatre) to the Hakhtanak park.
The absolute height (vertical span of
the structure from top to bottom) is
100 meters, the total length is approximately 500 meters and the
width is 50 meters.
115
ARMENIA
Apart from the museums described in the preceding sections
of this guide, there are several
others in Yerevan that are a must
in our guests itinerary.
The State History Museum of Armenia (the Republic square), the
oldest among Armenian museums,
was founded in 1921. Its permanent
exposition covers the entire history
of the Armenian people from primitive society to our days. Artifacts
from the excavations of monuments
of different eras are on display.
These include the tools of primitive
man, weapons and utensils representing the Urartian period, other
Armenian states, as well as sculptures, ornaments and handiworks
from different historical provinces
of Armenia. The halls dedicated to
modern and contemporary Armenian history display documents, in-
State History Museum
of Armenia. Urartian carriages
dustrial samples, books and materials pertaining to the state-building,
socio-economic and cultural devel-
Erebouni museum
at the foot of the Arin-Berd
hill
opment of Armenia. The museum
has one big advantage: genuine
items prevail among its exhibits.
The museum also organizes thematic exhibitions dedicated to various prominent dates of Armenian
history and culture.
The museum of the history of the
foundation of Yerevan is called the
Erebouni Museum and was built in
1968 in the Southwestern part of the
capital at the foot of the Arin-Berd
hill. The Urartian citadel Erebouni
is on the top of the hill. The museum
is within the structure of a memorial reserve that includes, apart from
Arin-Berd, the archaeological monuments of Karmir Blour and
Shengavit. The Erebouni museum
116
YEREVAN
displays exhibits pertaining to the
Urartian period: weapons, armour,
cuneiform inscriptions. A visit to the
museum includes an uphill tour of
the restored sections of the Erebouni
fortress.
The Museum of the Armenian
Genocide opened in 1995 during the
commemoration of the 80th anniversary of the genocide of the Armenian
population of Western Armenia and
Turkey, perpetrated between 1915
1916. The building of the museum
is on the hilltop of Tsitsernakaberd
(Fortress of Swallows) within the
territory of the Memorial to Genocide Victims. The two-storeyed
structure is placed in the slope of the
hill in such a way as not to obstruct
the view of the Memorial. The top
floor houses three semi-circular halls
with exhibits of documents and photographs disclosing the history of the
preparation and perpetration of the
Armenian Genocide by the Turkish
authorities. Materials of various international organizations and states
condemning the genocide are also
on display. The lower floor houses
the library, the document depository,
a conference hall and other rooms,
since the museum is also the Armenian genocide research centre.
The Matenadaran is the
Mesrob Mashtots Research Institute of Ancient Manuscripts. It has
Matenadaran, the Mesrob Mashtots Institute of ancient manuscripts
117
ARMENIA
a permanent exhibition which allows
it to be classified with the museums.
The imposing building of the Matenadaran (architect Mark Grigorian)
crowns the upper part of Mashtots
avenue that leads to the foot of the
Kanaker plateau. A visit to the
Matenadaran shall expose our guests
to the richest legacy of the Armenian
people in manuscripts, most of which
is preserved in the Matenadaran. The
exposition displays fragments of ancient manuscripts dated by the 5th to
6th centuries, medieval manuscripts
of different content: copies of the
Bible, historical works, theological
and philosophical treatises, discourses on natural sciences etc. The
exhibition allows to appreciate the
the mastery of Armenian miniature
painters that have created marvellous
samples of manuscript illuminations.
A monument to the creator of the
Armenian alphabet St. Mesrob
Mashtots (sculptor Ghoukas Choubarian) is in front of the Matenadaran. On both sides of the entrance
there are sculptures of outstanding
figures of medieval Armenian culture: historian Movses Khorenatsi,
mathematician Anania Shirakatsi,
poet Frik, jurist Mkhitar Gosh, philosopher Grigor Tatevatsi, artist Toros Roslin. The interior of the building is decorated by a mosaic panel
and frescoes depicting scenes from
Armenian history (painter Van Khachatour).
Monuments of Yerevan
There are quite a few monuments erected in Yerevan. Most
of them are in memory of Armenian cultural figures, thus expressing the appreciation the Armenian people feels for its outstanding sons and daughters.
We shall begin our outline of the
most significant monuments of the
capital from the monument to
David of Sassoun, the hero of the
Armenian folk epic. The monument (sculptor Yervand Kochar) is
on the railway station square in the
middle of a pond. The horse and the
rider are sculpted in dynamic unity.
The sculptor has succeeded in expressing the virile appearance of
David, the defender of the fatherland from foes. According to the
opinion of experts from many countries the monument to David of
Sassoun is one of the best modern
equestrian statues in the world.
This monument has long become
the symbol of Yerevan, and this is
the best tribute to the sculptor.
By walking along the Circular
boulevard from one end to the other
one may observe several monuments
to outstanding figures of Armenian
culture. The monument to composer Armen Tigranian (sculptor
Ara Hovsepian) is quite unorthodox in its form. The monument to
poet Yeghishe Charents (sculptor
118
YEREVAN
The monument to David of Sassoun
Nikoghos Nikoghossian) is a complex ensemble. The same sculptor
has authored the monument to poet
Mikael Nalbandian: the statue of
the poet is standing freely on a wide
stone slab without the usual pedestal. The monument to poet Avetik
Issahakian (sculptor S. Baghdassarian) is more traditional: the figure
of the poet/philosopher is on a pedestal in a meditative pose that is well
remembered by all who have seen
him in his lifetime. The monument
to poet Sayat-Nova (sculptor A.
Haroutiunian) is interesting: the
fine bust of the poet is built into a
wall of white marble. There is a basrelief of dancing girls on the face of
the wall, reminding us that the great
gussan (minstrel) was also a musician. Quite close to him, in a plaza
by the conservatory building, is a
monument to composer Komitas, the
author of which is also A. Haroutiunian. The composition of the
monument to architect Alexandre
Tamanian (sculptor A. Hovsepian)
is also quite interesting, the architect is leaning over a table with the
master plan of the development of
Yerevan, the entire Cascade may
be seen in the background. The
monument to Alexandre Tamanian
is one of the very few monuments to
architects in the world. The sculpture gallery of the great figures of Armenian art is closed by the monument to painter Martiros Sarian
(sculptor Levon Tokmajian). The
figure of the artist, carved out of
white marble, is in drastic contrast
with the surrounding trees.
119
The monument to Armen Tigranian
ARMENIA
The monument to Yeghishe Charents
There are also several monuments to historical figures. The
monument to the hero of national
liberation struggle of Armenians
Vardan Mamikonian (sculptor
Yervand Kochar) is in the Southern
sector of the Circular boulevard. The
monuments to revolutionaries and
statesmen Stepan Shahoumian
(sculptor Sergey Merkourov) and
Alexandre Miasnikian (sculptor Ara
Shiraz) are set aside by their
monumentalism, these are standing
on squares named after them.
Every year on April 24, on the
day of remembrance of the Armenian genocide of 19151916 hundreds of thousands of Yerevanians
come to the Tsitsernakaberd hill, to
the Memorial complex of the victims of the genocide (architects S.
Kalashian and A. Tarkhanian). The
memorial comprises a Remembrance atrium, the Resurrection
obelisk and a Memorial wall. The
Remembrance atrium is the centre
of the ensemble, it is a depressed
circular space with an eternal flame
burning in the centre surrounded
by twelve staunch basalt pylons
leaning towards the flame. The
cleaved obelisk is rising next to it,
it is faced with metal and symbolizes the rebirth of the people that
has survived the tragedy. The complex has austere lines and is devoid
of ornaments. The memorial wall
has inscriptions carved on it with
the names of the locations and
settlements whose population was
subjected to massacres, as well as of
The monument to Alexandre
Tamanian
the places where the Armenians
have come up with resistance to the
ravagers. The Memorial is emotionally charged and leaves a strong impression on the visitors.
120
YEREVAN
next of kin in memory of their dead
loved ones. All of these combined
add a special decorative touch to the
city of Yerevan.
The monument to Martiros Sarian
There are many samples of small
architectural forms in Yerevan.
These are khachkars, memorial
drinking fountains, decorative figures, stelae. More often than not
these are erected in lieu of memorial
plaques and the like. Such items may
be encountered in the citys parks,
boulevards, sidewalks etc. Apart
from these there are also memorial
drinking fountains erected by the
The sculpture of a flower vendor in
Yerevan. The flower vendor was a
colourful person well known to
Yerevanians, he was the citys living
attraction for a long time. The lore
has it that he did not sell flowers to
beautiful girls, he gave them away
The principal museums, churches, theatres, concert halls, important buildings, monuments, parks, boulevards and plazas are marked on the map of
downtown Yerevan, that will help our guests to better orient in the city and
select the routes of their promenades.
121
HISTORICAL AND ARCHITECTURAL
MONUMENTS OF ARMENIA
Armenian is an open air museum however trite the phrase may
be, it still holds true. Armenia has historical and architectural monuments of all ages and periods: from the primitive communal society
to modern times. It would be an insurmountable task to try and tell,
even in a nutshell, about all of them. Therefore this section of the
guide presents only the most remarkable monuments of the past and
the present.
We shall travel through all ten provinces (marzes) of the country,
beginning with those closest to Yerevan.
Armavir province
The province of Armavir borders on Yerevan from the West.
The administrative centre of the
province is the town of Armavir,
48 kilometers away from Yerevan.
The historical and cultural centre of the province is the city of
Vagharshapat. It was founded by
king of Armenia Vagharsh (117140
A.D.), who named the city after himself. In 163 A.D. Vagharshapat was
made the capital of Armenia. The
main attraction of Vagharshapat is
the monastery of St. Ejmiatsin.
St. Ejmiatsin monastery spans
the territory of 80 thousand square
meters in the centre of Vagharshapat. The Sourb Ejmiatsin Cathedral, the residence and chancery of
the Catholicos of all Armenians,
the Seminary, the Alex and Marie
Manookian Museum, the printing
house and editorial offices of the
Ejmiatsin monthly, a hotel, the
congregations chambers are all located on this territory. The Cathedral is the oldest Christian church
in Armenia. Its building began in
the 4th century immediately upon
the adoption of Christianit y.
122
The residence
of the Catholicos of all Armenians
in St. Ejmiatsin
According to a church legend, the
site of the Cathedral was indicated
to Gregory the Illuminator (Loussavorich) by Jesus Christ himself in a
revelation. During the centuries that
passed the Cathedral was rebuilt
many times. Even laymen not versed
in the finer aspects of architecture
may identify the masonry distinctive
of different periods. In the beginning of the 19th century the interior
of the Cathedral was decorated by
the painter Naghash Hovnatanian,
the latters work was restored for the
last time in the 50s of this century.
St. Ejmiatsin is currently the biggest
cathedral of the Armenian Apostolic
church. It is especially crowded during religious festivals when the mass
is offered by the Catholicos of all
Armenians.
In the second half of the 19th century an annex (sacristy) was attached
to the Cathedral from the East,
which housed the museum of St.
Ejmiatsin. The museum premises
eventually became too crammed for
the numerous relics as well as gifts
given by the believers from many
countries of the world. In the 1980s
a special building for the museum
was erected next to the residence of
the Catholicos, underwritten by the
famous benefactor Alex Manookian
(USA) and named after the benefactor and his spouse. The Alex and
Marie Manookian Museum preserves highly praised ritual utensils,
crosses, staffs, jewellery, vestments,
painting etc.
The chancery of the Catholicos
has a small matenadaran (library)
with approximately 1,200 manuscripts.
Outside of the monastery of St.
Ejmiatsin there are other famous architectural monuments in Vagharshapat. The magnificent church of St.
Hripsime may be seen upon entering
the city from the Yerevan highway. It
was built in 618 A.D. by Catholicos
Komitas on the site of the legendary
martyrdom of virgin Hripsime that
had fled to Armenia from Rome with
her girlfriends. Turning down the
courtship of the heathen Armenian
king she had remained faithful to the
Christian religion and was therefore
killed. The relics of St. Hripsime are
contained in a tomb under the
church. The St. Hripsime church
stands out by its stern and monumental forms, solemn and monolithic
composition, its is rightfully considered one of the masterworks of Armenian architecture.
The St. Gayane church is South
of St. Ejmiatsin. It was built in 630
over a chapel that had stood on the
site of the martyrdom of Gayane, the
leader of Christian virgins who had
fled Rome to Armenia. The church
of St. Gayane has clear forms and a
solemn interior.
The Shoghakat church is West of
St. Hripsime and was built much
123
ARMENIA
The St. Hripsime church
later by the end of the 17th century
over a 4th century chapel. According to lore this was the location of a
winery where Gayane, Hripsime and
their girlfriend hid. The church of
Shoghakat follows the centraldomed plan widely used in medieval
Armenian church architecture.
Five kilometers towards Yerevan
from Vagharshapat there are the ruins of the temple of Zvartnots (the
temple of Vigilant Forces or of Heavenly Angels). The temple was built
between 643652 A.D. by the design
of Catholicos Nerses III, who was
called thereafter the Builder
(Nerses III the Builder) for this feat.
The temple collapsed from an earth-
quake in the 10th century. In the
beginning of the 20th century, having studied what remained of the
ruins of the temple, the outstanding
specialist in the history of Armenian
architecture Toros Toramanian put
forth his own hypothesis of the reconstruction of the temple. According to his reconstruction the temple
124
The ruins of the temple of Zvartnots
of Zvartnots was a three tiered central-dome structure that astounded
with its magnificence. The reconstruction of Toros Toramanian was
not accepted by his contemporaries
unchallenged, but soon thereafter
during excavations in the capital city
of the Bagratid kingdom Ani a
scaled model of the Zvartnots temple was uncovered that confirmed the
reconstruction of Toramanian. The
surviving fragments allow to form
an opinion about the ornaments that
lavishly decorated the temple, many
motifs of the Zvartnots ornaments
are used in Armenian architecture
up until our days. According to the
opinion of European specialists the
temple of Zvartnots may be ranked
with the greatest monuments of ancient architecture.
The modest Zvartnots museum on the territory of the temple
allows to shed more light on the architectural features and principles of
reconstruction of the temple, its influence on the further development
of Armenian architecture.
The Armavir province has
memorials dedicated to heroic
events in the history of the Armenian people.
The Monument to the Defenders
of Mousa Dagh. The village of
Mousaler is approximately halfway
between Yerevan and Vagharshapat,
it was founded by the natives of Armenian villages around Mousa
mountain in Cilicia. In 1915 the inhabitants of these villages stood up
against deportation orders by the
Turkish authorities, went up the
Mousa mountain, set a fortified
camp on the summit and defended
it for the duration of forty days. The
monument is dedicated to the heroic
exploits of the defenders of Mousa
The monument to the defenders
of Mousa mountain in the village
of Mousaler (Armavir province)
Dagh and is built on a hilltop next
to the village of Mousaler. Built by
the design of Raphael Israelian the
monument resembles a fortress turret of red tuff stone. It houses a museum of the defence of Mousa Dagh.
Every year on the last Sunday in
September the descendants of the
valiant defenders of the mountain
hold celebrations at the foot of the
125
ARMENIA
monument and pay their tribute to
the memory of the heroes of the national liberation struggle. The Austrian author Franz Werfel wrote a
novel dedicated to the epic of Mousa
mountain. It is called The forty
days of Mousa Dagh and has been
translated into many languages.
The Memorial Complex of the
Heroes of the Sardarapat Battle
opened in 1968 ten kilometers away
from the town of Armavir. This is
the site where the Armenians won a
The State ethnographical museum
in Sardarapat. One of the halls
nassian et al) in expressing the dominant idea of the ensemble.
The State Ethnographical Museum of Armenia (architect Raphael
Israelian) is within the territory of
the Memorial. The building of the
museum is a marvellous accomplishment of modern Armenian architecture. It conforms with all the
requirements presented to museum
premises, it is monumental, innovative and at the same time embodies
traditional architectural forms.
The exposition of the museum is
quite rich. It presents a multitude of
materials from many historical and
ethnographic regions of Armenia
that allow to form an idea about the
development of crafts, the peculiarities of the lifestyles of the Armenian
people in different periods.
Ararat province
victory over Turkish aggressors in
1918. The complex includes a big
park and a high bell tower (symbolizing the tocsin calling the people to
arms), an alley with figures of eagles
that leads up to a wall with a triumphal arch. Behind the wall there are
the buildings of a refectory and the
Ethnographical museum. The Memorial astounds with its scale, the
adroit use of the landscape, the allegorical allusions made by the architect (Raphael Israelian) and the
sculptors (A. Haroutiunian, S. Mi-
The province of Ararat adjoins
Yerevan from the Southeast. The
administrative centre of the province is the town of Artashat, 39
kilometers away from Yerevan.
The most significant historical
and architectural monument of the
province is the monastery of Khor
Virap, situated on a hill next to the
village of Pokr Vedi. The monastery
is one of the sanctuaries of the Armenian Apostolic church and a pilgrimage site. According to church lore this
is the location of the municipal gaol
126
Khor Virap
of the capital of Armenia Artashat,
where, upon the orders of king
Tiridates III, they threw Grigor, one
of the associates of the king accused
of professing Christianity. Grigor, depending on the source, spent 13 or 15
years in gaol. The story about the
tribulations of Grigor intertwines
with the legend of Gayane, Hripsime
and their girlfriends. Following the
execution of the Christian virgins
(300 A.D.) upon the kings orders the
latter fell gravely ill. The people
called the kings ailment swines illness, since his head began to resemble a pigs snout. The kings sister Khosrovdoukht saw several
dreams to the effect that the king can
only be cured by Grigor, then suffering in gaol. Khosrovdoukht managed to get Grigor out of the gaol.
The latter buried the remains of the
martyred virgins and then cured the
king. Following that the king and his
court adopted Christianity and
Grigor soon became the first Catholicos of Armenians (Gregory the Illuminator).
In 642 Catholicos Nerses III built
a chapel over the gaol. In 1662 the
chapel was replaced by a new one
that still stands. The gaol where
Grigor suffered is preserved under
the chapel. The monastery also includes the church of Sourb Astvatsatsin (Virgin Mary) built in the
127
ARMENIA
end of the 17th century, fragments
of the wall that once surrounded the
monastery, the refectory, the cells of
the monks etc. A most magnificent
view of mount Ararat opens from
the hilltop of the monastery.
Kotayk province
The province of Kotayk is
North of Yerevan. The administrative centre of the province is
the town of Hrazdan, 50 kilometers away from Yerevan. The
province has many monuments
of different historical periods.
The heathen temple in Garni is
the only surviving monument of the
Hellenistic period in Armenia. The
temple is dedicated to the god of the
sun Mithra and was built in the second half of the 1st century B.C., during the reign of king Tiridates I.
Most probably it had survived the
adoption of Christianity by virtue of
being within the territory of the
summer residence of Armenian royalty. The temple collapsed during
the earthquake of 1679.
Today the heathen temple in
Garni may be seen in its former
splendour on the background of one
of the most beautiful spots of Armenia. The temple was restored in the
1970s, using the surviving fragments
and carving the missing ones anew.
The temple is built of basalt
stone. The walls of the shrine and
the 24 columns of the portico rest on
a podium (length 15 meters, width
11 meters). The facade and the rear
have six columns each, while the
flanks have eight each. The portal
has wide stairs leading up to it. The
capitals of the columns and the
frieze are decorated with ornaments.
The fortress of Garni. The heathen temple is on the territory of the
fortress of Garni. It was impregnable
by virtue of the steep rocks of the
ravine of the Azat river, as well as
the strength of the fortress walls
The Garni canyon in winter
built of immense basalt blocks. The
territory of the fortress, that was
used as the Summer residence of Armenian royalty, included the palace,
the garrison barracks and other
structures that did not survive. The
royal bath is of great interest, it is
arguably the oldest utility structure
in Armenia (3rd century). The mosaic on the floor of the dressing room
has survived, it is made of local
gems. The subject of the mosaic is
borrowed from Greek mythology
and depicts the inception of life in
128
the seas. The fortress of Garni allows
to form an opinion about the fortifications of ancient Armenia and the
structure of royal residences.
The monastery of Geghard. Seven
kilometers away from Garni in the
Northeast of the province of Kotayk
is a unique monument, the monastery of Geghard. According to the information of Armenian historians as
early as in the 4th century there already was a monastery called
Ayrivank (the Cave monastery) in
this inaccessible corner of the Azat
river ravine. The monastery was located in caves that abound in the
nearby rocks. Later the monastery
was renamed Geghard (the word
geghard means spear). According to lore the monastery was the
depository of one of the relics of the
Armenian Apostolic church: the
spear that one of the Roman guards
had used to pierce the rib of crucified Christ. The spearhead is presently preserved in the museum of St.
Ejmiatsin.
The monastic complex of Geghard has been preserved and operates to our days. It was built in the
13th century and comprises the principal church (the Cathedral), the
Katoghike church (built in 1215 by
the Zacharid princes) and two tiers
of churches carved inside the rock
(built at the end of the 13th century
by prince Prosh who bought
Geghard from the Zacharids) and
the living quarters with auxiliary
structures. Although the Katoghike
church is a marvellous example of
the cross-domed churches characteristic of Armenian architecture, the
visitors of Geghard are most impressed by the rock carved churches.
Access to these churches (two small
churches and an atrium on the lower
level and a chapel/burial vault on
the upper) is possible straight from
the principal church, the Northern
wall of which leans against the rock.
The adroit and precise design of the
builders is amazing: they have removed a great amount of rock and
carved the cave churches immediately next to the existing Katoghike
church. What is even more stunning
is that these churches possess all of
the features of conventional churches: domes, arcs, semi-columns, altars, ornaments etc.
Having visited Geghard one may
observe the cells of the monks in the
natural and carved caves. There was
a time when the monastery was a famous cultural centre with its own
school and a matenadaran (library).
The Kecharis monastery in
Tsakhkadzor. The Tsakhkadzor resort is on the Eastern slope of the
Teghenis mountain, 52 kilometers
North of Yerevan. Tsakhkadzor is famous for its numerous pensions,
lodges and sports facilities. There is a
ski lift leading to the top of the Teghenis mountain. The skiing season on
129
ARMENIA
The monastery of Geghard
the mountain slopes lasts for most
part of the year. The marvellous
monastery complex of Kecharis is in
the Northwestern part of the town.
The Kecharis monastery (11th to
13th centuries) comprises three
churches and two chapels. Its territory has many khachkars of the 12th
to 14th centuries that organically
augment the ensemble of the monastery. The principal church of
Sourb Grigor Loussavorich is of the
central-domed type (built in 1033),
although the drum has not been preserved, it collapsed during the earthquake of 1828. Nevertheless, even
130
without the drum the church is an
impressive structure thanks to its
stern style and clear-cut lines. South
of the principal church is the little
church of Sourb Nshan (it is believed
to have been built in 1031). Next to
it is the Katoghike church built later
in the 13th century following the traditional cross-domed pattern. The
fourth church of the monastic complex is the Sourb Haroutiun church
(Holy Resurrection) built in 1220, it
is somewhat distanced from the others. The monastery has a small
chapel (11th century) with the tomb
of the founder of the monastery, a
major medieval theologian and
statesman Grigor Magistros
Pahlavouni.
The Kecharis monastery used to
be a well-known religious and cultural centre of medieval Armenia, it
is the place of creation of many important works in theology and other
disciplines, as well as of numerous
manuscripts.
The Orbeli Brothers Museum.
The little museum of Orbeli brothers is situated in the centre of
Tsakhkadzor, it displays materials
that shed light on the lives and work
of three outstanding scientists: the
member of the academy physiologist
Levon Orbeli, the member of the
academy orientalist Iossiph Orbeli
(the first president of the National
Academy of Science of Armenia) and
the jurist, the founder of underwa-
ter archaeology Rouben Orbeli.
There is a monument to Orbeli
brothers right next to the museum
(sculptor A. Hovsepian).
A panoramic view of Tsakhkadzor
The churches of Yeghvard. The
town of Yeghvard is 15 kilometers
Northwest of Yerevan. There are
references to Yeghvard in sources of
the 7th century and it has valuable
architectural monuments pre served. Three kilometers Northeast
of Yeghvard there is the church of
Zoravor, built in the end of the 7th
century. It is of the central-domed
131
The monastery of Kecharis
ARMENIA
type. The drum and the Southern
section of this two tiered church
are gone, but even its present look
allows to rank the church of
Zoravor with the significant
monuments of medieval Armenian
architecture.
The two storeyed church of Sourb
Astvatsatsin has slim proportions
and wonderful decorations on the
exterior. This very beautiful church
is also a tomb and was built in 1301.
It was twice restored: in the 17th and
18th centuries.
There are ruins of even older
structures preserved in Yeghvard:
that of a single-nave church and of
a big three-naved basilica (5th century).
The village of Bjni (referred to
earliest in sources of the 5th century) has two churches preserved.
The small church of Sourb Sarkis
(7th century) is built of pink tuff
on a high rock. It is the smallest
among cross-domed type churches.
In 1970 the church underwent restoration.
The church of Sourb Astvatsatsin
is rising in the centre of the village
(sources refer to it as a monastery),
it was built in 1031 by Grigor
Magistros. Its construction follows
the domed hall pattern. It is assumed that the church was used to
preserve the manuscripts copied in
the monastery. The church was restored in 1947.
Aragatsotn province
The province of Aragatsotn
adjoins Yerevan from the Northwest. The name of the province
prompts that it lies in the foot of
the Aragats mountain. The ad-
The old bridge in Ashtarak
(beginning of the 18th century)
ministrative centre of the province is the town of Ashtarak, 20
kilometers away from Yerevan.
The province of Aragatsotn has a
great number of historical and
architectural monuments.
The churches of Ashtarak. The
provincial centre has several historical and architectural monuments.
The most famous among them is the
church of Karmravor (middle of the
7th century) in the Northeastern sector of the town. It is of the crossdomed type, fragments of murals
have been preserved in the interior.
The shingled roof is well-preserved.
The small dimensions of the church
(6 by 7.5 meters) allow to consider it
a familial chapel.
132
The Tsiranavor church is an
older structure (a three naved basilica of the 5th century). The
church was built on cliffs overhanging the Kassakh river and resembles
a fortified bastion. In the beginning
of the 19th century it was really used
as a fortification. The two other
churches of the town, the church of
Spitakavor and the church of Marine are dated by the 13th century.
The first is poorly preserved.
The road from Ashtarak goes
uphill to the village of Byurakan on
the Southeastern slope of Aragats
mountain. Byurakan is an old village
first mentioned in a source of the
10th century. The Byurakan church
of Sourb Hovhannes is of the same
age. The Summer residence of the
Catholicoi as well as the complex of
The Karmravor church
buildings of the Byurakan astrophysical observatory of the National
Academy of Science of Armenia are
also in Byurakan.
Amberd. By going from Byurakan
up the Aragats mountain one may see
the impressive walls of a fortress on
the left hand side. This is the Amberd
fortress and castle (1013th centuries) and was the familial estate of the
Amberd
Pahlavouni princes. It is one of the
few feudal castles of Armenian that
has been more or less preserved to our
days. The location for it has been selected quite skillfully, the builders
took advantage of the mountainous
terrain and put the fortress on a cape
surrounded on three sides by ravines.
Beyond the fortress walls built of
massive basalt blocks there was a
three storeyed castle (presently in ruins). Fragments of the water supply
system of the castle, as well as the
baths and the secret passage to the
canyon are preserved. In 1206 a crossdomed type church was built on the
territory of the fortress. It was commissioned by the famous Armenian
133
ARMENIA
warlord Vahram Pahlavouni and is
one of the most beautiful churches of
its type in Armenia.
Another highway from Ashtarak
takes us to Ejmiatsin. Five kilometers away from Ashtarak along this
road is the village of Oshakan, one
of the oldest villages of Armenia
(there are references to it since the
4th century). There is a unique
monument upon entry to Oshakan,
an obelisk dedicated to the Armenian alphabet. The obelisk (architect Jim Torossian) was built in 1962
during the festivities of the 1,600th
anniversary of the creation of Armenian script. The obelisk comprises
two high stelae at an angle to each
other, resembling an open book. The
left hand stele has Mesrobian letters
carved in stone, the right hand stele
bears an inscription. The location of
the obelisk, the only monument in
the world to an alphabet, is not random, the grave of Mesrob Mashtots
is in Oshakan.
The church of Sourb Mesrob
Mashtots in Oshakan. The creator
of the Armenian alphabet Mesrob
Mashtots died in 440 A.D. and was
buried in Oshakan. A small chapel
was built over his grave, replaced in
the second half of the 19th century
by a single nave basilica. The relics
of St. Mesrob Mashtots and his
church are sanctuaries of the Armenian Apostolic church and a site of
pilgrimage.
The province of Aragatsotn has
monasteries that were once famous
cultural centres of medieval Armenia. The monastery of Hovhannavank is in the village of Hovhannavank. The monastic complex includes a single-nave church of the
5th century, the oldest in the monastery and the principal church of
Sourb Karapet of the cross-domed
type built in 1216. Its Southern wall
and the dome have been restored.
The church is richly decorated with
vegetative ornaments, it has a basrelief with the depiction of Christ on
a throne.
North of Ashtarak in the village
of Artashavan is the monastery of
Saghmosavank. The principal
church of the monastic complex is
Sourb Sargis, built in 1215 by prince
Vache Vachoutian. There was a
scriptorium built North of the
church, where they not only preserved but also copied manuscripts.
Among other architectural
monuments of the province of
Aragatsotn the following merit attention: the church of Sourb Grigor
in the village of Arouch (7th century), the Tegher monastery (13th
century) on the slope of the Aragats
mountain Northwest of Ashtarak,
the architectural complex of the 7th
century in Talin, the church of
Sourb Hovhannes in Mastara (6th
century, a fragment of a caravansary of the 14th century has also been
134
preserved close to the village of
Arouch.
Having completed the acquaintance with the monuments
in the provinces adjacent to
Yerevan, we shall proceed with
our exposure to Armenia first
with the Northern regions, to be
followed by the Southern ones.
built of reddish tuff and have been
preserved along the entire perimeter
almost up to the level of the cornice.
The Yererouyk basilica is one of the
Shirak province
The province of Shirak is on
the Northwest of the country.
The administrative centre is the
city of Gyumri, the second in
size in Armenia, 116 kilometers
away from Yerevan.
The oldest architectural monument on the territory of the Shirak
province is the single-nave church
in the village of Karnout (in ruins,
4th century). The composition of the
church is characteristic of the earliest Armenian basilicas. It is assumed
that the church of Karnout was initially a heathen temple.
The basilica of Yererouyk
oldest churches of Armenia and it is
a source of admiration even in the
condition it is in now.
In the village of Marmashen, 10
kilometers Northwest of the provincial centre, there is a well-preserved monastery of Marmashen
(10th13th centuries). The principal church of the monastery is the
d o m e d h a l l t y p e Ka t o g h i k e
church, built by prince Vahram
Within the village limits of a modern settlement of Anipemza is the
semi-ruined three-naved basilica,
known as the Yererouyk Basilica (it
was built in the ancient village of
Yererouyk between the 4th and 5th
centuries). According to a source of
the 10th century this basilica was
called the church of Sourb Karapet.
The external walls of the church are
135
The monastery of Marmashen
THE REPUBLIC OF ARMENIA
HISTORICAL ARCHITECTURAL MONUMENTS
PAGE 136
THE REPUBLIC OF ARMENIA
HISTORICAL ARCHITECTURAL MONUMENTS
PAGE 136
ARMENIA
Pahlavouni in 9881029. According to the opinion of specialists the
Katoghike church is one of the best
structures of the Bagratid period.
The monastic complex includes
three more churches, one of them
contains the tomb of Vahram Pahlavouni. The monastery of Marmashen was an outstanding religious
and cultural centre of medieval Armenia.
The monastery of Harij is in a
village by the same name that is
known to exist since the 2nd century B.C. The monastery is much
younger, it is dated by the 7th century A.D., when the church of
Sourb Grigor was built (of the
domed type). Later, in 1201, the
rulers of Armenia brothers Zakare
and Ivane Zakarians built the
church of Sourb Astvatsatsin that
became the principal structure of
the complex. The monastery was expanded in the 19th century and was
used for some time as the residence
of Catholicoi.
Other monuments of the province include the semi-ruined
churches of Sourb Astvatsatsin
(5th century) and Sourb Gevorg
(7th century) in the town of Artik,
and 2 kilometers away from Artik
there is the monastery of Lmbatavank (the church of Sourb Stepanos, 7th century). This church is
one of the few where frescoes have
survived.
Lori province
The province of Lori is in the
North of the country. The administrative centre is the city of
Vanadzor, 145 kilometers away
from Yerevan.
The best known monuments of
the Lori province are the church in
Odzoun, as well as the monasteries
in Sanahin and Haghpat.
The church in Odzoun is a
domed basilica. We lack reliable information on the dating of the
church, but the general composition, decoration and other architectural features allow the specialists
to date it by the 6th century. Later
The Odzoun church
the church was reconstructed and
has reached our days in a relatively
good condition.
North of the church is the famous
memorial monument. A lofty podium supports three high pylons
with stelae in between. The stelae
are covered with ornate carvings:
138
religious bas-reliefs, images of the
apostles. The Odzoun monument is
one of the best samples of medieval
memorial structures in Armenia.
The monastery of Sanahin was
founded in the 10th century in a village by the same name, and is presently within city limits of Alaverdi.
The oldest in the monastery is the
church of Sourb Astvatsatsin, dated
by 951 A.D. The monastery expanded in the course of several subsequent centuries, new buildings
were added on. These include the
church of Amenaprkich, the chapel
of Sourb Grigor (10th century), the
Academy of Grigor Magistros (beginning of the 11th century), the
scriptorium (middle of the 11th century) between the churches of Sourb
Astvatsatsin and Amenaprkich. The
scriptorium of the Sanahin monastery was the biggest medieval structure of its type.
The monastery of Sanahin was a
major religious and cultural centre
of medieval Armenia. Between the
10th and 11th centuries its congregation counted several hundred
monks and in the academy that enjoyed wide popularity young men
were taught to become servants of
the Armenian Apostolic Church.
The faculty included famous theologians and scholars.
The monastery of Hakhpat. The
village of Hakhpat, 6 kilometers
away from the city of Alaverdi, is the
location of the biggest monastic
complex of medieval Armenia. The
monastery was founded in 976 during the reign of king Ashot III
Bagratouni. The oldest structure of
The monastery of Haghpat
the monastery is the church of Sourb
Nshan (Holy Sign). It is of the
domed hall type and was consecrated
in 991. Two side chapels were added
to it later, the big one (built in the
beginning of the 13th century) and
the second, known as The
Hamazasp House (built in 1257). In
1245 a stand alone three storeyed
belfry was built. The church has
reached our days without substantial
alterations.
The monastic complex also includes: a small domed church of
Sourb Grigor (1005 A.D.), the chapel
of Sourb Astvatsatsin (13th century),
the scriptorium (13th century), the
big refectory (13th century) which is
outside of the monastery limits. A
139
ARMENIA
number of splendid khachkars of the
11th13th centuries are standing on
the territory of the monastery, the
best known among them is the
Amenaprkich (All-Savior) khachkar with a sculpted crucifix.
Mongols an razed to the ground. In
the course of subsequent centuries
the town and the fortress were more
than once hit and plundered by foreign invaders, eventually they were
abandoned by the inhabitants. Archaeological excavations began on
the site of the fortress and the town
since 1960s.
Among other monuments of the
Lori province the following should
be noted: the Sourb Astvatsatsin
church in the village of Kourtan
(single-nave), the fortress and monastery in Akhtala.
Tavoush province
The Sanahin bridge
Similar to the monastery of
Sanahin, the monastery of Hakhpat
used to be a major religious and cultural hub of medieval Armenia.
Many manuscripts have been preserved in the scriptorium of the
Hakhpat monastery, including some
very well known monuments of Armenian scripture.
Not far from the town of Stepanavan on the Dzoraget river the ruins of the medieval fortress and
town of Lore (Loriberd) have been
preserved. In the period of feudal
fragmentation of Armenia between
the 10th and 13th centuries it was
the capital of the Lori kingdom. In
1238 the fortress was seized by the
The province of Tavoush is in
the Northeast of the country.
city of Ijevan, 137 kilometers
away from Yerevan.
Two famous monasteries of medieval Armenia are on the territory
of the province of Tavoush:
Haghartsin and Goshavank.
The monastery of Haghartsin
(10th13th centuries) is 18 kilometers
North of the town of Dilijan in the
canyon of Haghartsin river. Similar
to most of Armenian monasteries
Haghartsin is built in a picturesque
location, concealed in a forest. The
monastery was founded in the 10th
century, when the Sourb Grigor
church was built. This cross-domed
church has side chapels in all four
140
corners and stands out as a white spot
against the background of the forest
(it is built of white limestone). The
principal church of the monastery is
the Sourb Astvatsatsin church built
in 1281 by the domed hall pattern.
Another church, Sourb Stepanos,
was built in 1244. The main attraction of the monastery is the refectory
(1248) that has two halls. The
Haghartsin refectory is one of the two
surviving structures of it type in Armenia (the other refectory is in the
monastery of Haghpat).
The Haghartsin monastery was
one of the leading cultural centres of
medieval Armenia.
The monastery of Goshavank
(Nor Getik) was founded on the
right bank of the Getik river in 1188
by the renowned Armenian scholar,
jurist and fabulist Mkhitar Gosh.
The monastery of Goshavank includes the churches of Sourb
Astvatsatsin (1196), Sourb Grigor
(1231), Sourb Grigor Loussavorich
(1241), a scriptorium (1291) and a
school (13th century). Many beautiful khachkars have been preserved
in Goshavank. Historical sources
mention the existence of a university
and a seminary in this monastery
where many manuscripts were created and preserved.
The monastery of Haghartsin
141
ARMENIA
There is another monastery in
the Tavoush province, the monastery
of Kirants (13th century) in a village
by the same name. It comprises three
churches, side halls, a refectory, residential and auxiliary structures.
Attractions of Dilijan. One of the
better known resorts of the Republic
of Armenia Dilijan (106 kilometers
from Yerevan) is in the territory of the
Tavoush province. Dilijan is an al-
A panoramic view of Dilijan
pine spa: its clear forest air (pine), the
warm sun and the Dilijan mineral
water possess therapeutic powers.
Several sanatoriums (Alpine Armenia, Dilijan etc.), lodges and pensions operate in Dilijan. The retreats
of composers and cinematographers
are also in Dilijan. A historical district of the 19th century has been restored in the downtown. The town
itself is a part of the Dilijan Public
Reserve, established in 1958 and covering 24 thousand hectares of mostly
forests.
There are many monuments in
the environs of Dilijan: ruins of
medieval fortresses and monasteries,
caravanserays, khachkars etc. Three
kilometers North of Dilijan on a forested slope is the monastery of
Joukhtak Vank (12th13th centuries) comprising two churches
(hence the name of the monastery
since joukht means a pair). The
church of Sourb Astvatsatsin was
built in 1201 (domed hall). The second church of Sourb Grigor is of the
same type (the drum is not preserved). It is maintained that the
church of Sourb Grigor was built
earlier than the church of Sourb
Astvatsatsin. Both churches are
built of light yellow felsite.
Many historical and architectural monuments of the Northern
regions of the Republic of Armenia have suffered damage from
the Spitak earthquake of 1988
and are in need of restoration.
Gegharkounik province
The province of Gegharkounik is in the East of the country,
including the Sevan basin. The
administrative centre is the city
of Gavar, 98 kilometers away
from Yerevan.
The Gegharkounik province
has many historical and architectural monuments pertaining to
different periods.
142
Ljashen. We shall begin our exposure to the historical and architectural monuments of the province
with a monument of the Urartian
period. The remains of a cyclopean
fortress (3rd1st millennia B.C.)
have been preserved next to the village of Ljashen on the shore of lake
Sevan. The walls of the fortress are
built of crude basalt rocks 3 to 4
meters thick.
In the middle of the 1950s the
water of lake Sevan was depleted for
the needs of the Sevan-Hrazdan cascade hydropower plants, baring the
site of an ancient settlement and its
burial grounds. Archaeological excavations of the site revealed a cuneiform inscription of the Urartian
king Argishti, recounting his conquests of the cities of Ishtiuni and
Kiekhuni. There are sufficient
grounds to believe that the city of
Kiekhuni was where contemporary
Ljashen is. Archaeological excavations have revealed a plethora of
material: wooden carriages, ceramics, various ornaments and decorations etc. This material allows to
state that the ancient culture of Armenia contained a Ljashen age. Remains of Urartian fortresses are also
found in the environs of the provincial centre, the city of Gavar, in the
village of Lanjaghbyur and other
locations.
The monastery of Sevan (9th century). The Sevan monastery is on the
present-day Sevan peninsula (prior
to depletion of the lake it was an island). The congregation settled on
the island at the end of the 8th century and undertook the construction
of a monastery in the last quarter of
the century that followed. Three
churches were built, as well as the
cells of the monks and auxiliary
structures. Only two of these
churches have survived: the church
of Sourb Arakelots (Saint Apostles)
and the church of Sourb Astvatsatsin. Both were built in 874 following the cross-shaped pattern. The
churches are sufficiently well preserved. Two carved wooden doors
from the Sevan monastery (of the
12th and 16th centuries), exemplifying the advanced art of woodwork,
are presently preserved at the State
Historical Museum of Armenia.
The Sevan island is relevant to
an important episode of the liberation struggle of the Armenian
people against Arab domination.
Prince Ashot Bagratouni (the future king Ashot Yerkat) was on the
Sevan island with his regiment in
925. He landed on the shore and
won a decisive victory that resulted
in the restoration of Armenian independence.
Noratous. Monuments of different periods have been preserved in
the village of Noratous 5 kilometers
Southeast of the provincial centre.
The archaeologists have found
143
ARMENIA
The monastery of Sevan
weapons, ceramics and ornaments in
the burial ground pertaining to the
Bronze Age.
rises in the centre of the village. It
was built at the end of the 9th century and is of the domed hall type.
In the 14th century the church was
destroyed by the Persians but was
rebuilt in the 15th century. The roof
is fragmented and the drum is damaged.
The big cemetery of Noratous is
widely known thanks to its great number of khachkars mostly of the 13th to
17th centuries. Many of these khachkars are set on special foundations.
A small church of Sourb Grigor
(10th century) is on the Southeastern end of the village. It is of the
domed hall type.
144
Noratous. Khachkars
Gegharkounik province the following
should be noted: the monastery of
Ayrivank (9th12th centuries) in the
village by the same name on the shore
of Sevan, the churches of Sourb
Hovannes (9th century), Sourb
Karapet (10th century) and Sourb
Astvatsatsin (middle of the 19th century) in the city of Gavar etc.
cathedral of the bishops of Syunik.
The oldest structure of the monastery, the church of Sourb Karapet
(9th10th centuries) has not survived. The principal church of the
monastery, also called Sourb Karapet,
was built in 12211227. The church
had an atrium (1261), which was rebuilt by the famous architect and
Vayots Dzor province
The province of Vayots Dzor
is in the South of the country.
city of Yeghegnadzor, 122 kilometers away from Yerevan.
The monastery of Noravank. The
following statement is not in the
least exaggerated: the monastery of
Noravank is one of the most splendid monuments of medieval Armenia. Noravank is built in an inaccessible location amongst stunning nature five kilometers away from the
village of Amaghou. In the beginning of 1980s an adequate road was
built leading to Noravank along a
tributary of the Arpa river. The
monastery is overhanging the gorge
of the river. Thanks to the new road
the monastery is no longer inaccessible and the guests of Armenia,
once they are in Vayots Dzor, pay a
mandatory visit to the monastery.
Between the 12th and 14th centuries the Noravank monastery was the
Noravank
sculptor Momik following the earthquake of 1321. The atrium is decorated with bas-reliefs on religious
themes: Mother of God with the infant, Father God and others. Momik
also built the two-storeyed church/
sepulcher Sourb Astvatsatsin, stunning in its perfection and richness of
decoration. A number of marvellous
khachkars are preserved on the territory of the monastery, one of which
is the gravestone of Momik the architect himself.
Gladzor. Not far away from
Noravank is one of the biggest
145
ARMENIA
educational centres of medieval Armenia, the Gladzor university. Its
premises have not survived. There
is a theory according to which the
university had occupied the territory
A landscape in Vayots Dzor
of the monastery of Tanadeh Vank
(referred to in sources since the 7th
century, the principal structures
built in the 13th century), which is
7 kilometers Southeast of the village
of Vernashen. The university was
founded in 1282 and operated
through 1338, having won wide acclaim within the fifty or so years.
Renowned theologians and scholars
of the time taught and worked in it,
they have prepared the total of over
350 vardapets. Manuscripts were
written in the university, the illuminators that worked there established
the Gladzor school of Armenian
book miniature.
in Areni. The village of Areni is on
the Arpa river. On the Eastern end of
the village on a hilltop is the church
of Sourb Astvatsatsin, built in 1231
by Momik the architect. The church
is of the central dome type, it has basreliefs of the Mother of God with the
infant and the symbols of the Evangelists, all carved by Momik. The
drum of the church has not survived.
Perfect architectural forms and
the propitious location, as well as the
artful decoration have made the
church of Sourb Astvatsatsin in
Areni one of the best architectural
monuments of medieval Armenian
architecture.
Gegharkounik province the monastery of Sourb Sion (referred to since
the 8th century) in the village of
Herher should be noted. The monastery comprises two churches:
Sourb Sion and Sourb Astvatsatsin
(end of the 13th century) and a small
chapel. The remains of a small fortress called Kapooyt have survived
close to the village.
Siunik province
The province of Siunik adheres to the Southern border of
the country. The administrative
centre of the province is the city
of Kapan, 316 kilometers away
from Yerevan.
The monastery of Tatev. The
most prominent historical and
146
architectural monument of the
Siunik province is the monastery of
Tatev in the village by the same name.
The monastery was founded in the
9th century on the site of an ancient
shrine. The oldest structure of the
monastery is the church of Sourb
Poghos-Petros (895906) of the
domed basilica type. The interior of
the church had frescoes that have not
survived. South of this church a
vaulted church was built in 1285
called the church of Sourb Grigor.
The visitors to the monastery
shall pay attention to an interesting
monument: the rocking stele Gavazan (Staff ) in the courtyard of the
monastery. The height of the stele is
8 meters, it is octagonal, made of
small stone bricks and crowned with
a traceried cross.
The University of Tatev operated
in the monastery between 1390 and
1453, picking up the traditions of the
university of Gladzor. Famous scholars and theologians worked in the
university. The University of Tatev
was a major educational centre in
medieval Armenia.
In the 17th18th centuries defensive structures were added to the
monastery, it was surrounded with
fortified walls (presently mostly ruined), underground passages were
dug and auxiliary buildings added.
The monastery of Tatev suffered
substantial damage from the earthquake of 1931, but has been mostly
rebuilt since.
Khndzoresk. The province of
Suinik has a very remarkable monument 8 kilometers away from Goris
the cave village of Khndzoresk.
The presently abandoned village is
on the left and right faces of a hill
crisscrossed with ravines. Since the
slopes have no flat spaces fit for
building, the people have dug terraces in the rock in such a manner,
that the roof of the lower house
served as the courtyard floor for the
one above it and so forth. Apart from
The Shaki waterfall
that the inhabitants of Khndzoresk
put to good use the many caves
along the slopes. These features of
construction and the terrain contributed to strengthen the impregnability of the settlement. The inhabitants of Khndzoresk took active
part in the national liberation
struggle of the 18th century under
the leadership of David Bek. The
tomb of Mkhitar Sparapet, a confederate of David Bek, is in Khndzoresk.
147
ARMENIA
Presently the Old Khndzoresk possesses the status of a historical landmark under public protection.
The tomb in Aghitu. The picture
of this original monument may be encountered in almost all studies of the
Aghitu adheres to the monument in
Odzoun (5th6th centuries).
The church of Sisavan. In the
Northern end of the town of Sissian
is the church of Sisavan (Sourb
Grigor). The church was built in the
The monastery of Tatev
history of Armenian architecture. It
was built in the village of Aghitu
(called Aghuti prior to 1995) next to
the town of Sissian. The monument
is quite high (10 meters), it has two
pylons rising from a rectangular podium that covers two crypts. The pylons and a column between them are
joined together by an arch. Three
smaller arches complete the composition. The monument is richly ornamented. By its significance and architectural design the monument in
last quarter of the 7th century and is
of the cross-domed type. The main
specific feature of the church is the
shape of the drum. It has 12 faces and
is decorated with sculpted figures of
the three persons that commissioned
the church: the prince, the spiritual
leader and the parish priest. The
Sisavan church is the oldest among
the surviving churches of Siunik.
The monasteries of Yeritsavank
(5th11th centuries, next to the village of Artsvanik), Vorotnavank
148
(9th12th centuries, next to the village of Vaghatin) and Vahanavank
(10th11th centuries, next to the vil-
lage of Shkharjik) and other monuments are also in the territory of the
province of Siunik.
We have described above only some of the prominent historical and
architectural monuments of Armenia. Most of them have remained outside of the territory of our present day Republic, in Western Armenia occupied by Turkey. It is important not only to know these monuments but
also to do everything to ensure their preservation for the enjoyment of the
generations to come.
149
ARMENIANS IN THE CONTEMPORARY WORLD
The historical fate of the Armenian people is such that since
the early Middle Ages Armenians
had to leave their homeland in
search for adequate livelihood in
alien lands. The loss of national
statehood, the occupation of Armenia by foreign conquerors and
the oppression reigning in the
country, the ethnic and religious
persecution these are all the
main reasons making the Armenian quit the motherland and resettle in other countries. The radius of dispersion of Armenians,
gradually increasing, covered not
only neighbouring Georgia and
Byzantium, but also farther countries: Bulgaria, Crimea, Poland,
Hungary, The Kiev Russia,
Moldova, the Ukraine and then
India and certain countries of the
Near East. After the fall of the
Cilician Armenian kingdom (end
of the 14th century) a substantial
number of Armenians settled in
Cyprus and then Italy, France and
other countries. At the turn of the
18th century there were Armenian migratory settlements in
many countries of Asia and Europe.
Armenians in alien lands were
staunch: they maintained their
identity, religion, contributed to
the development of the national
culture. The public and political
circles of the Armenian colonies
strived to preserve their links
with the motherland, to help with
the national-liberation struggle of
the native people.
The contemporary Armenian
Diaspora (Spyurk) was formed
in the first decades of the 20th
century when, because of the
Genocide of Armenians perpetrated by the Turkish authorities
in Western Armenia, Cilicia and
Armenian-populated regions of
Turkey, approximately 800 thousand Armenians were dispersed
over many countries of the world,
augmenting the already existing
communities and establishing
new ones. The numbers of Armenians rose in Russia, Greece, Bulgaria, Romania, Egypt, Lebanon,
Syria, France, the USA, a number of Latin American countries.
The migration of Armenians
over the world continues to our
days. Because of political upheavals of the second half of the
20th century in the Near Eastern countries: the nationalist
forces taking over in Egypt, the
prolonged war in Lebanon, the
150
ARMENIANS IN THE CONTEMPORARY WORLD
Islamic revolution in Iran, the
Iran-Iraq war, the numbers of
Armenians in these countries
dwindled, since many have emigrated to the USA, Canada, Great
Britain, Germany, Sweden, Australia, New Zealand. Following
the massacre of the Armenian
population in Azerbaijan in the
end of the 1980s, beginning of the
1990s the flow of refugees gushed
not only into Armenia, but into
Russia, Central Asia, the USA,
certain countries of Europe. In
the beginning of the 1990s the
emigration of Armenians also began out of Armenia, a country
that was struck by the disastrous
earthquake of 1988, landlocked by
the blockade and suffering
through an economic crisis.
The Armenians of the Diaspora
adjusted to the new conditions of life
relatively quickly, they established
themselves in the economic, social
and cultural structures of host countries, created the conditions necessary for the preservation of their
identity. It is said that wherever at
least three Armenians settle, they
build a church, open a school and
begin considering the publication of
a daily paper. Let us leave this apparent exaggeration aside, but the
truth of the matter is that the activity of the Armenian Apostolic
church, the development of the national school, the operation of various ethnic organizations and the
publication of national newspapers
are truly the principal factors ensuring the ongoing identity of Armenians.
The onset of the Karabagh
movement and the proclamation
of independence of Armenia provided powerful incentives for the
awakening of Armenians in the
Diaspora. History has now presented a unique window of opportunity for attaining the unity
of the entire Armenian nation
through the consolidation of its
three constituent entities: the
Republic of Armenia, the Republic of Nagorno-Karabagh and the
Spiurk.
The question on the number of
Armenians in the modern world defies an exact answer. The absence of
reliable information on the numbers
of Armenians in individual countries makes us revert to approximate
estimations mostly available in the
printed media. These estimations
allow us to believe that the total
number of Armenians in the modern world is between 8 and 8.5
millions.The most populous Armenian communities are in Russia (up
to 1.8 mln), the USA (up to 1 mln),
Georgia (430 thousand), France (400
thousand), Iran (180 thousand),
151
ARMENIA
Syria (between 120 and 130 thousand), Lebanon (120 thousand),
Canada (65 thousand), Argentina
(80 thousand) and other countries.
There is a multitude of social, political, benevolent, cultural, sports
and compatriotic organizations in
operation in the Armenian Diaspora.
The organizations of the Armenian
political parties Ramkavar-Azatakan,
Social-Democratic Hnchakian and
the Armenian Revolutionary Federation Dashnaktsoutyun are active in
some of the foreign Armenian communities. Almost all communities
have chapters of the Armenian General Benevolent Union (founded in
1906), the most authoritative organization of the Spiurk. It maintains
schools, university chairs of Armenian studies, academic centres in
many communities of the Armenian
Diaspora. The leading among cultural associations are the National
cultural union (Hamazgain) and
the Tekeyan cultural association. The
many compatriotic societies continue
to do significant work, the earliest
among these emerged by the turn of
the last century. The divisions of the
Pan-Armenian Hayastan Fund operate in many communities of the
Armenian Diaspora. It is a fundraising organization trying to attract foreign Armenians to the implementation of economic and charity programmes of the Fund in Armenia as
well as in Artsakh.
With the sovereign Republic
of Armenia coming to existence
the Fatherland/Spiurk relations
have embarked on a qualitatively
new stage. The re-establishment
of an independent state was a
source of satisfaction for all layers of the Armenian Spiurk, they
understood that new opportunities are opening up for attaining
the unity of the entire nation, resolving national issues. The certain inevitable discrepancy in attitudes and the assessment of
events transpiring in Armenia
does not prevent the Diaspora
circles from coming up in unison in what matters most: the establishment of sovereign Armenia is viewed as the axial event
of the modern history of the nation, the rightful conclusion of
the national liberation struggle.
Our account of Armenia is over. Of course no narrative can substitute
personal exposure to Armenia, an eternally young and at the same time
ancient country that cherishes its centuries-old traditions and looks ahead
with ambition.
152
M I S C E L LA N E O U S DATA A N D
USEFUL TIDBITS
THE RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS OF FOREIGN
NATIONALS IN THE REPUBLIC OF ARMENIA,
THE PROCEDURE FOR ENTRY AND EXIT,
RESIDENCE PERMITS
Pursuant to the Law of the Republic of Armenia of 17/06/1994
On the legal status of foreign citizens in the Republic of Armenia
foreign nationals in the Republic of Armenia enjoy the rights and
freedoms stipulated by the rules of international law and the legislation of the Republic of Armenia. They must comply with the laws of
the Republic of Armenia, respect the customs and national traditions of its people.
Entry and exit
The entry into the Republic of
Armenia is exercised on the basis of
an entry visa issued by relevant bodies of the Ministry of foreign affairs
of the Republic of Armenia and, on
border checkpoints (and in the airports) by the relevant bodies of the
Ministry of interior of the Republic
of Armenia or, alternatively, pursuant to a procedure defined by international agreements of the Republic of Armenia.
In order to receive an entry visa
to the Republic of Armenia it is necessary to fill out a questionnaire of a
stipulated format and submit the
required documents.
The following types of entry visas may be issued:
a) transit for a period of up to
three days
b) tourist for a period of up to
twenty one days
c) long-term for a period of up
to three months
d) diplomatic for the period of
service (posting).
The diplomatic and tourist visas are single entry, while the transit and long-term visas are multiple entry permits. The expiry
date of an entry visa may be extended on the territory of the Republic of Armenia by the relevant
bodies of the Ministry of interior
(MI) of the Republic of Armenia
or, outside of Armenia, by the relevant bodies of the Ministry of foreign affairs (MFA) of the Republic of Armenia not more than twice
153
ARMENIA
for the duration of one third of the
initial period each time.
The issuance of an entry visa may
be denied, of which the applicant
shall be notified.
Upon entering the Republic of
Armenia a foreign national should
present on a border guard checkpoint
the entry visa, an internationally recognized travel document (passport),
fill in a customs declaration and comply with the customs requirements.
The exit of a foreign national
from the Republic of Armenia may
be prevented in the following cases:
a) until the completion of inquest
if a criminal case that has been instigated against him/her
b) until the sentence is served or
waived if he/she is convicted of an
offence
c) until the execution of the court
verdict or ruling or a waiver thereof
if a court verdict or ruling exists
with respect to him/her.
The registration of a foreign national by the latters domicile is carried out by the bodies of the MI on
the basis of documents affirming
his/her right of residence in the Republic of Armenia as well as the
right to take up residential space.
The registration of a foreign national residing in a hotel, retreat,
spa, sanatorium or a tourist or similar lodge shall be carried out by respective institutions.
The Republic of Armenia has
concluded mutual no-visa entry re-
gime agreements with the CIS countries (with no invitations required),
Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania, Cuba
(invitations required: official from
institutions and private processed
by the MFA of the Republic of Armenia).
Rights and obligations of
foreign nationals
A foreign national in the Republic of Armenia is entitled to:
freedom of speech, conscience
and profession
preserve his/her national language, culture and customs
the same protection of law
against illicit violation of privacy
and intrusion into family life, same
recourse to a court of law against attempts at the inviolability of a person and a home, privacy of correspondence, honor and dignity, personal freedom and property as an
Armenian national
to possess property, to work an
engage in entrepreneurial operations
according to a procedure stipulated
by the legislation of the Republic of
Armenia.
A foreign national in the Republic of Armenia may consummate or
dissolve a marriage in a procedure
stipulated by the legislation of the
Republic of Armenia and is entitled
to the same rights and subject to the
same obligations in matrimony as an
Armenian national.
154
M I S C E L L A N E O U S DATA A N D U S E F U L T I D B I T S
A foreign national in the Republic of Armenia:
pays taxes, duties and other
mandatory payments
is denied suffrage, may not be a
member to any social political organization of the Republic of Armenia,
may not be elected or appointed to
posts or engage in activities for
which the legislation of the Republic of Armenia requires the possession of Armenian nationality
is not subject to conscription to
serve in the armed forces of the Republic of Armenia
in the exercise of his/her rights
enjoys all guarantees stipulated for
the exercise of the rights of the nationals of the Republic of Armenia.
The exercise of their rights and
freedoms by foreign nationals
should not harm the rights and freedoms of the nationals of the Republic of Armenia, other persons, the
public order, general well-being, national security of the Republic of
Armenia.
A foreign national in the Republic of Armenia is responsible against
the law in the same manner as a national of the Republic of Armenia
with the exception of cases stipulated in the international agreements
and the legislation of the Republic
of Armenia.
In the event of violation of the
stipulated order of sojourn at the
Republic of Armenia, a stay without
documents affirming the right of
residence or with void documents,
the violation of the stipulated procedure for registration, failure to exit
the Republic of Armenia upon the
expiry of a residence permit or an
entry visa, failure to comply with
customs regulations a foreign national shall bear the responsibility
defined by the legislation of the Republic of Armenia.
A foreign national possessing a
residence permit in the Republic
of Armenia is entitled, in the same
manner as a national of the Republic of Armenia, to inherit, to bequeath or give his/her property, to
avail himself/herself of insurance
and other services, to be a member
to charity, cultural, union, sports
and other non-governmental organizations, unless such membership is
contrary to the charters of organizations in question, without the right
to hold office in their management,
may be a member to international
organizations operating in the Republic of Armenia.
The residence permit entitles a
foreign national to enter and exit the
Republic of Armenia.
A foreign national possessing a
temporary, common or special residence permit is entitled to invite his/
her immediate relatives to the Republic of Armenia.
The right of a foreign national
possessing a special residence permit
155
ARMENIA
to invite other persons to the Republic of Armenia shall be regulated by
international agreement.
Residence permits, the
procedure of receipt thereof in
the Republic of Armenia
There are four types of residence
permits: temporary, common, special and particular.
1. The temporary residence
permit is granted to foreign nationals that enter the Republic of Armenia on a contractual basis or with
private motivation, to students enrolled in public and religious educational institutions of the Republic of Armenia, to persons possessing a refugee status, as well as to foreign journalists, researchers and persons invited to perform social or religious service.
Temporary residence permits are
issued for a period of up to one year,
to be renewed each time for a period
not to exceed one year.
Temporary residence permits are
processed by the MI of the Republic
of Armenia pursuant to a procedure
defined by the government of the
A foreign national having a temporary residence permit is reserved
the right to work. The number of
entries and exits is unlimited. Upon
each exit the foreign national pays
the fee against an entry permit on a
border checkpoint of the Republic
of Armenia. The entry permit fee is
waived for foreign students.
the right once during his/her stay to
import a vehicle for personal use. A
foreign national having a temporary
residence permit may not default on
or alter the purpose of his/her sojourn without the permission of the
MI of the Republic of Armenia.
2. The common residence permit may be granted to foreign nationals upon their application. The
following foreign nationals enjoy
priority in acquiring it:
a) those who have legitimately
resided in the Republic of Armenia
for more than three years
b) former nationals of the Republic of Armenia or immediate relatives (spouse, child, father, mother,
sister, brother) of a national of the
Republic of Armenia
c) graduates of public or licensed
private higher educational institutions of the Republic of Armenia
d) those possessing a refugee
status.
A common residence permit is
granted for a period of up to three
years, which may be extended.
A common residence permit is
processed by the MI of the Republic
of Armenia pursuant to a procedure
defined by the government of the
156
the right to work, to receive social
insurance, engage in entrepreneurial
operations, avail himself/herself of insurance services. He/she works on
contract. His/her term of work expires along with the expiry of the period of sojourn. Within three months
following the receipt of a common
residence permit its holder may import into the Republic of Armenia
free of duty personal articles, one vehicle for personal use, household
items. In the event of importing other
property customs duty shall be levied in a stipulated manner. A holder
of a common residence permit must
undergo annual re-registration, may
not be absent from the Republic of
Armenia for more than six months
within every year without a written
permission from the MI of the Republic of Armenia, provided such
absence does not exceed the period
of one continual year.
A foreign national who has resided in the Republic of Armenia for
more than three years with a common residence permit may apply to
receive citizenship of the Republic
of Armenia.
3. The special residence permit
is granted to foreign nationals of
Armenian origin. It may be also
granted to other foreign nationals
engaging in economic or cultural
activity in the Republic of Armenia.
The special residence permit is
granted for a period of ten years. It
may be granted more than once.
Foreign nationals soliciting a special residence permit shall submit to
the diplomatic or consular missions
of the Republic of Armenia abroad
and, in Armenia, to the MI of the
Republic of Armenia, an application
to the President of the Republic of
Armenia, they fill out a questionnaire of a stipulated format and submit the required documents.
The recipient of a special residence permit is issued a special passport of the Republic of Armenia. A
fee is charged against such a passport in the amount determined by
the government of the Republic of
Armenia.
A foreign national may reapply
for a special residence permit upon
the expiry of a period of one year
from the date of rejection of his/her
preceding application.
A person with a special residence
permit in the Republic of Armenia
is reserved the right to work, engage
in entrepreneurial operations according to a procedure stipulated
by the legislation of the Republic of
Armenia for holders of common
residence permits. He/she receives
a waiver of the entry visa fee, must
undergo annual re-registration with
the diplomatic or consular missions
of the Republic of Armenia abroad
and, on the territory of the Republic of Armenia, with the respective
body of the MI of the Republic of
Armenia.
157
ARMENIA
4. The particular residence
permit is granted to foreign national that are employees of diplomatic or consular missions of foreign states in the Republic of Armenia and to their family members
for the period of their posting, as
well as to foreign nationals that are
employees of international organizations.
The rights and obligations of foreign nationals holding particular
residence permits are defined by the
international agreements of the Republic of Armenia, the laws of the
Republic of Armenia and the resolutions of the government of the
The foreign national holding a
particular residence permit is entitled to personal immunity pursuant to the international agreements
and the legislation of the Republic
of Armenia.
BUSINESS INFORMATION
During the almost 70 years
preceding the establishment of
independence in 1991, the economy of the Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic was integrated
with the market of the USSR and
was based on developed industry.
Following 1991 in view of a number of reasons (the shrinking of
traditional markets because of
the collapse of the USSR, the introduction of market economy
etc.) the economy of the country
underwent a sharp decline. Trying to stabilize the situation in
the economy and ensure its rehabilitation and further growth, the
government of the young republic developed a program of mac-
roeconomic stabilization and
structural transformations, that
received the endorsement of foreign donors.
Structural transformations in
the banking and finance sectors
were asked for to ensure the transition to market economy. In
April, 1993, the Parliament adopted the laws On the Central
Bank of the Republic of Armenia and On banks and banking
operations, which began to regulate the operation of the Central
Bank and commercial banks and
set the foundations for an independent banking system.
With the breakdown of the financial markets of the former
158
USSR the need for independent
financial and loan policies increased. An important step in
this direction was taken in 1993
with the introduction of the national currency: the dram.
The exchange rate of the dram
to the US dollar was initially set
at 14.3. In March, 1994, it had
climbed to 230 drams and was
400 drams by the end of the year.
The exchange rate of the dram
has remained relatively stable
thereafter, fluctuating within the
range of 400 to 410 drams for a
US dollar in 1995, 410450 drams
in 1996, 450500 drams in 1997,
500 drams in 1998 (as of May)
and 540 drams in July 1999.
The system of taxation is
regulated pursuant to the law
On taxes and duties in the Republic of Armenia. The following taxes and duties apply: the
profit (corporation) tax, levied
on the income of legal persons;
the income tax, levied on the the
income of natural persons; the
excise tax, levied on the sale of
certain goods; the value added
tax, levied on the sale turnover
of goods and services; the social
tax, levied on wages and income
deemed to be the same as wages;
the land tax, levied on propri-
etors of land; the profession tax,
levied on individuals who engage
in certain professions; the property tax, levied on certain types
of property; the environmental
tax, levied against the use of natural resources and pollution of the
environment. There are state duties payable against legal and
other services, customs duties on
exporting and importing goods,
as well as other duties and payments.
Enterprises with foreign investment participation and local
enterprises are subject to taxation
by the same schedule, with the
exception of the profit tax, on
which foreign investors are
granted preferences.
The profit tax is levied on the
profit of enterprises that possess the
status of a legal person. The tax
schedule is set at 12, 18, 25 and 30
percent of the profit depending on
the annual amount of taxable profit
(TP) to be calculated in the following manner: TP = gross income less
the value added tax (VAT), less the
excise tax, less expenses and other
taxes.
Newly created enterprises including foreign ones are freed from the
payment of the profit tax within the
two years immediately succeeding
their state registration. The profit
159
ARMENIA
tax on enterprises with foreign investment is levied at reduced rates
from the beginning of the third
through the tenth year following
their registration.
In the event of the liquidation of
the enterprise prior to the expiry of
the three year period, the amount of
the profit tax shall be levied in full
for that period. In the event of the
liquidation of the enterprise prior to
the expiry of the fifth year, the
amount of the profit tax shall be
back levied in full for the entire period of its operation.
The income tax is levied on the
income of natural persons. The object of taxation is income received
from the execution of labour and
civil-legal contracts, entrepreneurial
operations, lease of property, share
participation, securities, deposits,
authors royalties, receipt of gifts
and assistance etc.
The monthly tax schedule is set
at 15, 25 and 30 percent depending
on the amount of income. A deduction is allowed from the tax payable
in Armenia in the amount of the tax
paid in another country. Foreign nationals permanently residing in Armenia (for over 183 days within a
calendar year) are subject to taxation
by the same schedule as Armenian
nationals.
The excise tax is an indirect tax
included in the price of goods and
services. it is payed by enterprises,
institutions, organizations and individuals that produce and sell liquor,
tobacco, jewellery, costume jewellery,
furs, fur and leather garments, tires,
crystal and china, hand-woven carpets. The tax is also levied on those
importing these goods into the Republic of Armenia from countries
that are not members of the former
USSR.
The value added tax (VAT).
Added value is the balance between
the value of sold goods, performed
work and rendered services and the
value of material resources, fuel,
work and services, fixed assets and
intangibles that is recorded as production and turnover cost. The VAT
rate is 20 percent. The VAT shall be
waived for the following: financial
mediation; sale of pharmaceuticals,
orthopaedic and prosthetic devices;
construction work performed by
foreign and international NGOs or
religious organizations or on the expense of the communities of the Armenian Diaspora; operations pertaining to the turnover of foreign
currency, cash, banknotes, securities (with the exception of broker
and other mediation securities);
sale of agricultural produce; operations of insurance and reinsurance
as well as those pertaining to deposits of funds, settlement, current and
other accounts; school textbooks,
copy-books and sale thereof; operations pertaining to the receipt and
160
issuance of patents, copyright and licenses; publicly funded R&D and
related academic work as well as a
number of other types of goods, services and work.
Along with the stabilization of
the countrys economy conditions were established by the end
of 1994 for conducting liberal
foreign trade policy. The restrictions imposed on it before were
lifted, export duties were recalled and import tariffs were
lowered.
The Harmonised System of
Tariff Classification is in effect in
Armenia. Customs tariffs are
charged ad valorem applied to
CIF. The tariffs are either 0 or
10%. The 10% tariff rate is predominantly applied to consumer
goods and luxury items.
License requirements, import
quotas and bans are waived for
most of the imports. With the
purpose of protecting the security,
health and the environment restrictions exist on licensing the
importation of weapons and components for the production thereof, explosives and radioactive substances, poisons, narcotics, pornographic materials, strong hallucinogenic and narcotic substances and devices. A permission
of the Ministry of health is required for the importation of
pharmaceuticals, and a permission of the Ministry of agriculture
is required for the importation of
agricultural chemicals.
As a member of the World
Customs Organization Armenia
uses the customs valuation methodology based on the provisions
of the GATT agreement of 1994.
Customs payments against
imports and exports are charged
at the rate of one thousand AMD
per metric ton of freight. The
payments are waived for temporary imports, supplies in the
framework of governmental
loans, clearing operations pursuant to international agreements,
importation of building materials for construction pursuant to
bilateral agreements wit the CIS
countries, goods purchased at the
expense of the state budget, and
humanitarian assistance.
Exportation out of the territory
of the Republic of Armenia by
individuals of goods and other
items is free from customs duties.
Individuals may import into the
customs territory of the Republic of
Armenia duty free personal articles,
as well as goods and other items of
the total cost equivalent to 500 US
161
ARMENIA
dollars, with the exception of alcoholic beverages, limited by 2 litres,
and tobacco, limited by 50 packs.
The amount of individually imported goods and items in excess of
the value or quantity stated above
shall be taxed by customs duty pursuant to the norms defined by law.
Individuals arriving in the Republic of Armenia for permanent
residence may import their property
duty free.
Nationals of the Republic of Armenia may import into the Republic of Armenia duty free property
inherited abroad. No supporting
documents are required for individually taking out of the country
the amount up to 10 thousand US
dollars. The importation of currency is unlimited.
The Parliament of the Republic of Armenia has adopted a
number of laws that regulate the
development of the private sector and establishing a market
oriented business environment.
The Civil Code of RA (adepted by the National Assembly on
May 5, 1998, effective as of June
17, 1998) outlines the forms of
business organisation and regulates entrepreneurial operations
on the territory of the country.
The privatisation and denationalization of state-owned en-
terprises and unfinished construction sites is in process since
1991. The respective law allows
the foreigners the right to participate in the process of privatisation. As of January, 1988, 65% of
medium and large enterprises and
90% of small facilities have been
privatised in Armenia.
In 1991, in the result of the
privatisation of land the preceding system of collective and public farms was liquidated. By the
end of 1994 69% of cultivable
land, 79.6% of perennial plantations and 44.1% of hayfields was
disbursed to the new owners.
20% of the land is still controlled
by the state for further disbursement. 350 thousand heads of
cattle was sold to private owners.
30% of the remaining property
was also privatised (immovables,
vehicles, machines and equipment).
The law on foreign investment defines the legal rules,
guarantees and incentives for
foreign investors. This law also
regulates the terms of investments by Armenian nationals
permanently residing abroad.
The law stipulates the following
incentives and guarantees for
foreign investors:
162
the legal regime for foreign
investors and its implementation
may not be less favourable than
the same regime for locals
in the event of changes in
the legislation in effect at the
time of the investment, foreign
investors shall be granted a five
year grace period
foreign investors are re-
served the right to repatriate
their profit, their property and
other legitimately accrued assets
foreign investors are free
from the payment of customs
duties on property imported for
use in their production
other incentives and guarantees exist.
163
ARMENIA
TRANSPORT AND COMMUNICATIONS
Air transport
Air transport is the most convenient medium for arriving to
Armenia. International flights
operate from the airports of
Zvartnots and Erebouni in
Yerevan and Shirak in Gyumri.
The international Zvartnots
airport of Yerevan is the hub for
most of the planes arriving to Ar-
means the airport can accept and
release aircraft under any
weather conditions. The upgrading of the technical capacity and
the quality of service at the
Zvartnots airport carries on.
The construction of a modern
cargo terminal with the capacity
of 80 thousand metric tons of
freight has just been completed.
The Zvartnots airport of Yerevan
menia, it has been granted a certificate of fitness for operation
in minimal meteorological conditions of the International
Civil Aeronautics Organization
(ICAO) of the 2nd category, this
Local airfields exist in all ten
major cities of Armenia. Domestic flights out of Yerevan take
place out of the Erebouni airport on helicopters or small
planes.
164
Distance in kilometers between Yerevan and
Aleppo
Amsterdam
Ankara
989
3,796
1,112
Delhi
Dublin
Hamburg
3,315
4,550
3,380
Rio de Janeiro 10,725
Rome
2,810
San Francisco 14,560
Antananarivo
Athens
Baghdad
Baku
6,650
1,850
845
550
Helsinki
Istanbul
Jakarta
Lisbon
2,860
1,715
8,190
4,745
Singapore
Sofia
St. Petersburg
Stepanakert
7,430
1,885
2,470
225
Beijing
Beirut
Belgrade
Berlin
Berne
6,240
1,105
2,210
2,990
3,315
London
Los Angeles
Madrid
Mexico city
Moscow
4,030
14,430
3,705
13,520
1,850
Stockholm
Tbilissi
Tehran
Tokyo
Varna
3,120
278
810
8,450
1,867
10,270
3,835
2,795
Vienna
Vladivostok
Warsaw
2,405
7,345
2,450
5.850
2,210
Washington
Wellington
10,465
14,690
Budapest
Buenos Aires
Cairo
2,405
12,545
1,625
Ottawa
Paris
Prague
Canberra
Damascus
12,870
1,040
Reykjavik
Riga
Armenia is connected by air routes to the following destinations:
(as of July, 1999)
Armenian Airlines (Zvartnots airport of Yerevan)
Aleppo
Kiev
Saint Petersburg
Amsterdam
Milan
Samara
Ashgabad
Minsk
Simferopol
Athens
Moscow
Sochi
Beirut
Nijni Novgorod
Sofia
Dubai
Novosibirsk
Tashkend
Frankfurt am Main
Odessa
Tbilissi
Istanbul
Paris
Tehran
Volgograd
165
ARMENIA
Armenian Airlines (Erebouni airport of Yerevan)
Anapa
Mineralniye Vodi
Stavropol
Kharkov
Rostov
Vladikavkaz
Krasnodar
Saratov
Armenian Airlines (Shirak airport of Gyumri)
Krasnodar
Moscow
Mineralniye Vodi
Rostov
Samara
Other airlines (Zvartnots airport of Yerevan)
Anapa
Lvov
Saint Petersburg
Astrakhan
Lugansk
Samara
Chelyabinsk
Maikop
Saratov
Dneprodzrzhinsk
Mineralniye Vodi
Simferopol
Donetsk
Minsk
Sochi
Ekaterinburg
Moscow
Stavropol
Izhevsk
Nijniy Novgorod
Tehran
Kharkov
Novosibirsk
Ufa
Kiev
Odessa
Volgograd
Krasnodar
Orenbourg
Voronezh
Krasnoyarsk
Perm
Zaporozhye
London
Rostov
Zürich
It should be noted that the Summer and Winter flight schedules are different. The local time is ahead of UTC/GMT by 5 hours in Summer and 4
hours in Winter.
Time zone chart
(The Summer time difference is noted in the parenthesis)
Algiers
Argentina
Armenia
Australia, Melbourne
Bahamas
+1
-3(-2)
+4(+5)
+10(+11)
-5(-4)
166
India
Indonesia, Jakarta
Iran
Ireland
Israel
+5.5
+7
+3.5(+4.5)
UTC(+1)
+2(+3)
Bermuda
-4(-3)
Bolivia
-4
Brazil, Rio
-3(-2)
Bulgaria
UTC(+1)
China, Beijing
+8(+9)
Chile
New Zealand
-5(-4)
Egypt
+2(+3)
Northern, Central
Georgia
Greece
+8
Romania
+2(+3)
Russia, Moscow
+3(+4)
+3
South Africa
+2
Thailand
+7
+1(+2)
Tunisia
+1
+2(+3)
Turkey
+2(+3)
+3(+4)
Great Britain
+12(+13)
Saudi Arabia
Europe, Western,
Finland
-6
UTC
Philippines
-5
Cuba
+8
Morocco
-4(-3)
Colombia
+9
Malaysia
Mexico, Mexico city
+2(+3)
Canary Islands
Japan
USA:
UTC(+1)
+2
New York
-5(-4)
San Francisco
-8(-7)
Railways
The total length of the Armenian railway network is 829 kilometers, 90% of it is electrified.
One rail line connects Armenia
with Georgia (to the Black Sea
ports of Batumi and Poti, as well
as to Russia and Europe), two
lines with Azerbaijan (to Russia
and Europe) and one line with
Turkey.
The rail lines to Azerbaijan
and Turkey are currently inoperational.
167
The Yerevan railway station
ARMENIA
Highways
The total length of Armenian
highways is 7,700 kilometers.
The length of interstate highways is 1,400 kilometers, of regional highways 2,520 kilometers, of local highways 3,720 kilometers. 98% of the interstate
and 77% of the remaining highways are paved. Practically all of
the countrys settlements are interconnected with asphalt roads.
Intercity bus lines operate out of
Yerevan, connecting it to all major cities of the country, to the
towns and villages of Nagorno
Karabagh, Georgia and Iran.
The road from Yerevan to the
capital of Nagorno Karabagh Stepanakert takes 7 hours, to the capital of Georgia Tbilissi up to 6
hours, to the Iranian border (the
town of Meghri) up to 9 hours.
The surface roads to Azerbaijan
and Turkey are currently inoperational.
The highway to Dilijan
The principal currently functioning
interstate highways are the following:
Yerevan-Ashtarak-Aparan-Spitak-Stepanavan-Tashir-the Georgian
border (to Tbilissi)
Ye r e v a n -A s h t a r a k- G y u m r i Ashotsk-the Georgian border (to the
Black Sea ports of Batumi and Poti)
Yerevan-Yeraskh-Vaik- GorisKapan-Meghri-the Iranian border
(to Iran and the Middle East).
European traffic regulations are
in effect in Armenia. The traffic is
right-sided.
Highway mileage from Yerevan to
Abovian
16
Alaverdi
191
Vagharshapat
21
Vanadzor
145
168
Kapan
320
Martouni
130
Aparan
59
Vardenis
Meghri
393
Ararat
48
Gavar
98
Noyemberian
191
Armavir
48
Geghard
31
Hrazdan
168
50
Artashat
Goris
250
Sevan
66
105
Gyumri
120
Sissian
217
Ashtarak
20
Jermuk
173
Spitak
100
Ashotsk
165
Dilijan
109
Stepanavan
157
350
Artik
29
Berd
211
Yeghegnadzor
122
Stepanakert
Vaik
139
Ijevan
142
Talin
Tbilissi
Yerevan City transport
Almost all types of city transport operate in Yerevan: bus, trolley bus, streetcar, subway, cable
car, taxi service. Almost 90% of
the population uses the city transport, up to 250 thousand people
use the subway every year.
The tariff rate (as of December,
1998) for one trip on municipal or
public transport (bus, trolley bus,
streetcar, subway, cable car) irrespective of distance travelled is 30 to 50
drams, on taxivan (minibus) 75
drams. The rates for private service
are: buses up to 50 drams, taxivan
(minibus) up to 100 drams. Depending on the route the time interval between service on individual
74
270
stops varies between 15 minutes in
daytime and 30 minutes late in the
evening.
The subway in Yerevan operates
since 1981, there are 10 stations, two
more are under construction. The
subway operates between 06:30 and
23:00.
The fare is paid directly to the
driver upon exit or to the conductor
upon entry. The subway and cable
car tokens and tickets are sold at the
entrance to the stations.
TAXI: The fare is between 100
and 200 drams per 1 kilometer, depending on the direction, the make
of the vehicle and the time of the
day. The taxi stops have free cabs
available almost throughout the
day.
Transport terminals of Yerevan
(airports, railway stations, international bus terminals, cable car terminals)
Zvartnots airport
Parakar district
Erebouni airport
Arshakunyats ave.
169
tel: 282066
tel/fax:151123, 282641
tel: 440335
ARMENIA
Central bus terminal
Admiral Issakov Str.
tel: 562931
Northern bus terminal
Tbilissi highway
tel: 260666
Local bus terminal
Sassountsi David square
Yerevan rail station
tel: 525920
Arabkir rail station
1a Arabkir 29th Str.
tel: 252034
Karmir Blour rail station
95 Araratian Str.
tel: 482636
Noragavit rail station
Noragavit district
Kanaker rail station
112 Z. Kanakertsi Str.
tel: 283402
Lower cable car term.
2 Mkhitar Heratsi Str.
tel: 550352
Upper cable car term.
66 Amaranotsain Str.
tel: 573594
Underground stations
Barekamoutyun (Friendship)
76 Marshal Baghramian Ave.
Marshal Baghramian
21/1 Marshal Baghramian Ave.
Yeritasardakan (Youth)
3 Avetik Issahakian Str.
Hanrapetoutyan Hraparak
(Republic Square)
Hanrapetoutyan square
Zoravar Andranik
(Commander Andranik)
Tigran Mets ave.
Sassountsi David
Gortsaranain (Factory)
3 Bagratounyats Str.
Shengavit
9 Soghomon Tarontsi Str.
Garegin Nzhdeh hraparak
(Garegin Nzhdeh square)
Garegin Nzhdeh square
Charbakh
62 Araratian Str.
Ajapnyak (under construction)
Karo Halabian Str.
Tasnhing taghamas
(15th district, under construction)
1 Gyumrii Str.
170
TELECOMMUNICATIONS
Telephone
There are 45 interconnected
automatic electromechanical
telephone exchanges in operation in the country.
Presently work is underway
jointly with foreign companies to
upgrade the technology and improve a number of exchanges,
which will result in better domestic and long distance telephone service.
The long distance service is
provided through the Intelsat
satellite link, AT&T, Teleglobe, Sprint, British Telecom,
France Tel and the microwave
The central post office
in Yerevan
radiolink of the Moscow telephone exchange.
Domestic area codes
In Armenia 0+
from the CIS
from elsewhere
Yerevan
2
8852
3742
Abovian
61
88561
37461
930
885930
374930
46
88546
37446
Agarak (former Meghri region)
Aghavnadzor (Vayots Dzor)
Aintap
62
8562
37462
Alaverdi
73
88573
37473
Amassia
510
885510
374510
Aparan
520
885520
374520
Aragats
480
88580
37480
171
ARMENIA
Aramous
61
88561
37461
Ararat
78
88578
37478
Arevshat
45
88545
37445
Armash
78
88578
37478
Armavir (Hoktemberian)
47
88547
37447
Artashat
45
88545
37445
Artik
44
88544
37444
Ashotsk (Ghoukassian)
53
88553
37453
Ashtarak
43
88543
37443
Aygezard
45
88545
37445
Baghramian
33
88533
37433
Berd
71
88571
37471
Charentsavan
31
88531
37431
Dalar
45
88545
37445
Dilijan
720
885720
374720
64
88564
37464
Getap
46
88546
37446
Goris
91
88591
37491
Gyumri (Leninakan)
69
88569
37469
Hrazdan
67
88567
37467
Ijevan
63
88563
37463
Jambarak (Krasnoselsk)
65
88565
37465
Jermouk
77
88577
37477
Kapan
92
88592
37492
Maralik
42
88542
37442
Martouni
74
88574
37474
Massis
62
88562
37462
Meghri
930
88530
37430
Mkhchian
45
88545
37445
Nairi (Yeghvard)
68
88568
37468
Nor-Geghi
68
88568
37468
Nor-Hajn
68
88568
37468
Nor-Kharbert
62
88562
37462
Noyemberian
66
88566
37466
Gavar (Kamo)
172
Oshakan
Sevan
Shahoumian
Shinuayr
Sissian
Sourenavan
Spitak
Stepanavan
Talin
Taperakan
Tashir (Kalinino)
Tsakhkadzor
Vagharshapat (Ejmiatsin)
Vaik (Azizbekov)
Vanadzor (Kirovakan)
Vardenis
Vedi
Yeghegnadzor
Yeraskh
43
76
45
91
750
78
55
560
490
78
54
35
59
79
57
58
41
46
78
88543
88576
88545
88591
885750
88578
88555
885560
885490
88578
88554
88535
88559
88579
88575
88558
88541
88546
88578
37443
37476
37445
37491
374750
37478
37455
374560
374490
37478
37454
37435
37459
374
37457
37458
37441
37446
37478
Foreign city codes
Abu Dhabi
971-2
Addis Ababa
251-1
Adelaide
Aleppo
Alexandria
Algeirs
Florence
39-55
New York
1-212
Frankfurt am Main 49-69
Nice
61-8
Fresno
1-209
Nicosia
963-21
Geneva
41-22
Novi Sad
3821
Genoa
39-10
Osaka
81-6
Oslo
47-2
20-3
213-2
Gibraltar
350
33-93
357-21
Amman
962-6
Glasgow
441-41
Ottawa
Amsterdam
31-20
Glendale
1-818
Panama
90-4
G teborg
46-31
Paris
30-1
Guadalajara
52-36
Philadelphia 1-215
Ankara
Athens
Baghdad
964-1
Havana
53-7
1-613
507
33-1
Plovdiv
259-32
Bangkok
66-2
The Hague
31-70
Poznan
48-61
Barcelona
34-3
Hamburg
49-40
Prague
42-2
173
ARMENIA
Basle
Beijing
41-61
86-1
Beirut
961-1
Belfast
441-232
Hanover
49-511
Hong Kong
852
Pretoria
27-12
Quebec city
1-418
593-2
Haifa
972-4
Quito
Harare
263-0
Reykjavik
354-1
Belgrade
38-11
Helsinki
358-0
Rio de Janeiro
55-21
Berlin
49-30
Houston
1-713
Riyadh
699-1
Berne
41-61
Isfahan
98-31
Rome
Islamabad
92-51
Rotterdam
31-10
Birmingham
441-21
Bogota
57-1
Salvador
55-71
Bologna
39-51
Izmir
90-51
San Francisco
1-415
Bombay
91-22
Jakarta
62-21
San Marino
Jerusalem
972-2
Santiago
56-2
Johannesburg
27-31
Sao Paulo
55-21
Karachi
92-21
Sarajevo
38-71
Bonn
Boston
Bratislava
49-228
1-617
42-7
Istanbul
90-212
39-6
39
Brazilia
55-61
Lagos
234-1
Seattle
1-206
Bremen
49-421
La Paz
591-2
Seoul
82-2
Bristol
441-179
Lahore
92-42
Brussels
32-1
Liverpool
Bucharest
40-1
Leeds
441-132
Budapest
36-1
Lima
51-14
Buenos Aires
54-1
Lion
33-7
Burgas
Cairo
359-56
20-2
Lisbon
Lausanne
441-51
Shanghai
Sidney
Singapore
86-21
61-2
65
Skopje
38-91
Sofia
359-2
351-1
Stockholm
41-21
Stuttgart
46-8
49-711
Calgary
1-403
London
441-71
Tabriz
98-41
Canberra
61-62
Los Angeles
1-213,
Tehran
98-21
Calcutta
91-33
Capetown
27-21
Caracas
58-2
Cardiff
1-818, 1-310
Ljubljana
Luxembourg
38-61
Tel Aviv
972-3
Thessaloniki
30-31
352
Tokyo
81-3
39-11
441-222
Madras
91-44
Torino
Chicago
1-312
Madrid
34-10
Toronto
1-416
Colombo
94-1
Manchester
441-61
Toulouse
33-61
45-1
Manila
Copenhagen
Cracow
48-12
Dakkar
221
63-2
Tunis
216-1
Marseilles
33-91
Valetta
356-24
Mashhad
98-51
Vancouver
174
1-604
Dallas
Damascus
Delhi
Detroit
Dhaka
Dubai
Dublin
Düsseldorf
Edinburgh
1-214
963-11
91-11
1-313
880-2
971-437
353-1
49-211
441-31
Melbourne
Mexico city
Milan
Monaco
Montevideo
Montreal
Munich
Nairobi
Naples
61-3
52-5
39-2
33
598-2
1-514
49-89
254-2
39-81
Varna
Vatican
Venice
Vienna
Warsaw
Washington
Wroclaw
Zagreb
Zurich
359-52
396
39-41
43-1
48-22
1-202
48-31
38-41
41-1
Former USSR city codes 00+country code +
Adler
Akmola
Aktyubinsk
Almata
Aloushta
Anapa
Andizhan
Angarsk
Archangelsk
Ashgabad
Astrakhan
Baku
Barnaul
Batumi
Belgorod
Benderi
Berdsk
Bishkek
Blagoveshensk
Bratsk
Brest
Bryansk
Bukhara
Cheboksary
8622
31722
3132
3272
06560
86133
37422
39518
8182
3632
8512
8922
3852
88222
07222
04232
38341
3312
41624
3952
01622
0832
36522
8352
Kirov
Kishineu
Kislovodsk
Klaipeda
Kolomna
Kostroma
Kourgan
Koursk
Koustanay
Koutaissi
Krasnodar
Krasnoyarsk
Krivoy Rog
Kyzyl-orda
Lazarevskaya
Liepaya
Lipetsk
Lougansk
Loutsk
Lvov
Magadan
Magnitogorsk
Makhachkala
Mariupol
175
8332
0422
86537
01261
09661
0942
35222
07122
3142
88331
8612
3912
0564
32422
8622
01334
0742
0642
03322
0322
41322
3511
87222
06292
Riga
0132
Rostov upon
Don
8632
Rovno
03622
Ryazan
0912
Saint Petersburg 812
Samara
8462
Samarkand
36622
Saransk
83422
Saratov
8452
Sebastopol
069
Semipalatinsk 32222
Shaulyay
0121
Simferopol
06522
Smolensk
08122
Sochi
8622
Soukhoumi
88122
Sourgout
3462
Stavropol
8652
Stepanakert 89322
Syktivkar
82122
Taganrog
86344
Tallin
0142
Tambov
0752
ARMENIA
Chekhov
Chelyabinsk
Cherkassy
Chernigov
Chernovtsi
Chimkent
Chita
Dagomys
Daugavpils
Dneprodzerzhinsk
Dnepropetrovsk
Donetsk
Doubna
Dushanbe
Ekaterinbourg
Elektrostal
Elista
Essentouki
Fergana
Gomel
Grodno
Grozny
Irkoutsk
Ivanovo
IvanovoFrankovsk
Izhevsk
Jambul
Kaliningrad
Kalouga
Karaganda
Kaunas
Kazan
Kemerovo
Kerch
09672
3512
04722
04622
03722
32522
30222
8622
01354
05692
0562
0622
09621
3772
3432
09657
84722
86534
3732
0232
0152
87122
3952
0932
03422
34122
32622
0112
08422
3212
0127
8432
3842
06561
Maykop
Mineralniye
Vodi
Minsk
Mogilev
Moscow
Mourmansk
Naberezhnye
Chelni
Nalchik
Namangoun
Narva
Navoi
Neftekamsk
Nikolaev
Nizhnekamsk
Nizhniy
Novgorod
Novgorod
Novocherkassk
Novorossiysk
Novosibirsk
Odessa
Omsk
Orel
Orenbourg
Oulyanovsk
Oust
Kamenogorsk
Ouzhgorod
Palanga
Pavlodar
Penza
Perm
Petropavlovsk
Kamchatskiy
176
87722
86531
0172
0222
095
8152
8439
86622
36922
01435
43622
34713
05122
84353
8312
81622
86352
86134
3852
0482
3812
0862
3532
8422
32322
03122
01236
31822
8412
3422
41522
Tartu
Tashkent
Tbilissi
Ternopol
Theodossia
Tiraspol
Togliatti
Tomsk
Toula
Trakai
Tuapse
Tumen
Turkmenbashi
Tver
Ufa
Ulan Ude
Uralsk
Vilnius
Vinnitsa
Vitebsk
Vladikavkaz
Vladimir
Vladivostok
Volgograd
Vologda
Vorkuta
Voronezh
Yakoutsk
Yalta
Yaroslavl
Yelabouga
Yevpatoria
Yoshkar Ola
Yuzhno
Sakhalinsk
Yuzhnouralsk
0147
3712
8832
03500
06562
04233
8469
38222
0872
01238
86167
3452
4322
0822
3472
30122
31122
0122
04322
02122
86722
09222
4232
8442
81722
82151
0732
41122
0654
0852
84357
06569
8362
42422
35134
Khabrovsk
Kharkov
Kherson
Khmelnitskiy
Khosta
Kiev
4212
0572
05522
03822
8622
044
Petrozavodsk
Podolsk
Poltava
Pskov
Pyarnu
Pyatigorsk
81422
09675
05322
8112
01444
86333
Zagorsk
09654
Zaporozhie
0612
Zheleznovodsk86532
Zhitomir
04122
Long distance international phone tariffs
(as of July, 1999)
Domestic calls 20.0 drams per minute
Long distance within the CIS from 220.0 (Russia, Georgia) to 440.0
(Uzbekistan) drams;
European countries 1056.0 (UK, FRG, Luxembourg), Baltic countries
220 drams;
the remaining countries from 1056.0 (the USA) to 1300.0 (Brazil,
Singapore) drams
Payphones for intracity and international calls operate by tokens as well
as microchip phonecards available at post offices and newsstands.
Mail tariffs
(in drams, as of July, 1999)
Domestic
Weight
postcard letter
up to 200 g. 20
40
21100 g.
100
101250 g.
200
251500 g.
380
5011,000 g.
660
1,0012,000 g.
1,080
over 2,000 g.
for every 1,000g.
CIS countries
book post postcard letter
30
60
120
210
350
490
110
170
440
980
1,943
3,550
6,250
260
book post
100
250
580
1,150
2,130
3,760
Other countries
postcard
170
letter
book post
250
625
1,330
2,660
4,810
8,310
140
340
750
1,450
2,640
4,491
2,250
2,580
Parcel tariffs are set individually for every country and are posted at post
offices. The following post offices are designated for parcel service to foreign
countries: ## 2, 6, 10, 14, 20, 56, 65 and 78 (parcels to the CIS countries are
accepted at all post offices).
Note: One US dollar = 540 Armenian drams (as of July, 1999).
177
ARMENIA
Domestic mail codes
Abovian
377911
Kajaran
377815
Agarak
378510
Kapan
377810
Akhourian
377530
Klageran
377300
Akhtala
377120
Loussakert
378564
Alaverdi
377130
Maralik
377640
Amassia
377560
Martouni
378710
Anipemza
377711
Massis
378334
Aparan
378450
Meghri
377910
Aragats (Tsaghkahovit)
378452
Meghrout
377277
Ararat
378222
Nairi (Yeghvard)
378414
Armavir (Hoktemberian)
377760
Nor Hajn
378519
Artashat
378240
Nor Kharberd
378336
Artik
377610
Noubarashen (Sovetashen) 375071
Arzni
378518
Noyemberian
377110
Ashotsk (Ghoukassian)
377540
Pemzashen
377611
Ashtarak
378410
Sevan
378610
Ayroum
377100
Sissian
378010
Berd
377010
Spitak
377410
Charentsavan
378562
Stepanavan
377320
Dastakert
378033
Talin
377340
Dilijan
377250
Tashir (Kalinino)
377133
Gagarin
378615
Toumanian
378552
Gavar (Kamo)
378630
Tsakhkadzor
378552
Goris
377830
Vagharshapat (Ejmiatsin) 378310
Gyumri
(Leninakan)
Vanadzor
from 377500 to...
(Kirovakan)
from 377200 to...
Hrazdan
378550
Vardenis
Ijevan
277260
Vayk (Azizbekov)
Jambarak (Krasnoselsk)
377290
Vedi
378210
Jermuk
378840
Yeghegnadzor
378140
Yerevan
178
378810
37811
from 37500
TOURISM, HOTELS, RESORTS
Armenia is an attractive country
for tourists. Since times immemorial
travellers come here to acquaint
themselves with the rich history, an-
Hotel Dvin in Yerevan
cient and modern monuments of architecture, urban development, culture, to climb mountain peaks, to
rest and recuperate at spas. Most of
the countrys natural landscapes
have preserved their primordial
beauty and purity. The fauna and
flora of Armenia are diverse: over
3,000 species of plants, 450 species
of vertebrates. 10 thousand species
of insects, 1,000 species of invertebrates, 302 species of birds, 45 species of reptiles, 23 species of fish, 5
species of amphibia. Some of these
are rare and are classified as endangered species.
Armenia used to be one of the
most visited republics of the former
Soviet Union: in the 1980s 700
thousand tourists came to the republic every year. In view of economic difficulties of the recent
years the flow of tourists has significantly declined. The capacity of the
hotels also shrank since some of
them were designated as temporary
accommodation for the families
that were left without shelter after
the 1988 earthquake in Northern
Armenia and for the refugees from
Azerbaijan. Presently the hotels, resorts, pensions and spas are gradually freed from temporary residents,
renovated and reclaimed by the
tourist industry. New smaller private hotels are built.
Hotel Armenia in Yerevan
The further development of tourist industry that is so promising for
Armenia requires substantial capital
investment to be steered towards upgrading infrastructure.
179
ARMENIA
Yerevan hotels
hotel
address
telephone
facsimile
Armenia
1 Amirian Str.,
Yerevan, 375002
525393
525383
560844
151803
Ani
19 Sayat nova Str.,
Yerevan, 375010
520775
520724
523961
520545
Dvin
40 PAronian Str.,
Yerevan, 375002
536343
536480
151924
Erebouni
26/1 Nalbandian Str.,
Yerevan, 375010
564993
583815
Hrzdan
72 Dzorapi Str.,
Yerevan, 375002
535332
Shirak
13a Movses Khorenatsi Str.
529915
Arabkir
54b Komitas Str.
231990
Nairi
270 Amaranotsain Str.
652221
Yerevan
14 Abovian Str.
581392
Sevan
8 Khorhrdarani Str.
533108
Tsitsernak
18 G. Hovsepian Str.
653476
Sport
Tsarav Aghbyuri Str.
Sebastia
46 Leningradian Str.
537095
394700
Hye business Suits 8 Hanrapetootyan Str.
567567
151522
Bass
3 Aygedzor Str.
221353
222638
268975
151429
Arma
275 Norki Ayginer Str.
581843
654221
522779
Aviatrans
4 Abovian Str.
567228
567226
180
ARMENIAN RESORTS, SPAS
There are over 7,500 sources of
sweet water and 1,300 sources of
mineral water in Armenia, most of
them have healing properties.
There are over 100 resorts, pensions and sanatoriums in different
regions of Armenia located in forested and alpine areas: in Arzni,
Hankavan, Aghveran, Byurakan,
Dilijan, Jermuk, Ijevan, Sevan,
Tsaghkadzor, in the regions of
Zangezour, Gougark and others,
including resorts placed on sources of mineral water.
Apart from being pleasant table
waters, the mineral waters of Armenia have healing properties and are
recommended by doctors for the
treatment of the following conditions: Hankavan recommended
for disruptions of motility and secretory function of the stomach with
hyper or low acidity, stomach ulcer,
chronic colitis, enterocolitis, liver
dysfunction etc; Ararat recommended for gastrointestinal conditions, gastritis, stomach and duodenal ulcer, dysfunction of the liver,
gall-bladder, bile ducts; Arzni
recommended for chronic catarrhs
of the stomach and bowels, bile
gravel; Bjni recommended for
the treatment of gastrointestinal
conditions, liver etc.; Jermuk
recommended for jaundice, bile
gravel, gall-bladder inflammation,
stomach and bowel ulcer; Dilijan
recommended for chronic catarrhs
The Arzni resort
of the stomach and bowels, inflammation of the gall-bladder, jaundice,
cholecystopathy, hepatocholecistite,
bile gravel etc.; Lijk recommended for chronic hepatitis and
colitis; Lori recommended for
conditions of digestive organs and,
as baths for conditions of the peripheral nervous system, locomotor
frame, the genitals; Sevan recommended for conditions of the
gastrointestinal tract, the liver, bile
ducts, and disruption of the metabolism.
181
ARMENIA
THE CLIMATE. CLOTHING. TRADITIONAL
COSTUMES
Climate
Dry, continental climate prevails in Armenia. The mountainous topography is determinant for
the weather conditions. Within a
stretch of 30 to 50 kilometers one
may encounter several climatic
zones succeeding each other. In
most of the territory of the country the seasons break down as follows: Spring March, April,
May; Summer June, June, July,
August; Autumn September,
October, November; Winter
December, January, February.
The average monthly temperature of the air in Yerevan is:
in January
-3.4 degrees C
in February
-0.9
in March
+5.4
in April
+12.4
in May
+17.4
in June
+21.6
in July
+25.6
in August
+25.3
in September
+20.4
in October
+13.5
in November
+6.5
in December
-0.1
average annual +12.0
The hottest months in the Ararat
valley (Yerevan) are July and August,
the temperature may rise up to +42
degrees Celsius (absolute maximum). The coldest months are January and February, the frost may get
as low as -30 degrees Celsius (absolute minimum).
The countrys absolute minimum
was recorded on the shore of Arpi
lake, -46 degrees Celsius. Precipitation is the most frequent in Spring
and Autumn. In Winter it snows, in
mountainous areas the snow cover
may reach the height of two meters,
in the Ararat valley (Yerevan) the
snow cover does not stay for long.
The average monthly precipitation in the Ararat valley (Yerevan) is:
in January
24 mm
in February
26 mm
in March
32 mm
in April
43 mm
in May
52 mm
in June
27 mm
in July
13 mm
in August
10 mm
in September
13 mm
in October
26 mm
in November
28 mm
in December
22 mm
total annual
316 mm
There are 328 sunny days in the
year in the Ararat valley.
182
Clothing, traditional
costumes
Armenians have a great variety
of traditional costumes. Every region of historical Armenia had its
own unique style of clothing.
Sometimes it was possible to judge
the origin of a person, whether social or territorial, by the costume.
Presently European attire prevails in Armenia. Senior citizens
in Zangezour and Artsakh still
wear traditional apparel. It is
possible to form an opinion
about Armenian traditional costume by visiting the museums or
folkloric concerts.
183
A girl in a traditional costume plays
the traditional Armenian instrument
Kanon
ARMENIA
THE ARMENIAN ALPHABET
²³
u as in rub
ØÙ
m as in mall
´µ
b as in ball
ÚÛ
y as in hay
¶·
g as in gut
ÜÝ
n as in nanny
¸¹
d as in duck
Þß
sh as in shin
º»
ye as in yell
àá
vo or o as in ox
¼½
z as in zilch
âã
ch as in chalk
¾¿
e as in edge
äå
p as in spy
ÀÁ
u as in fur
æç
j as in jam
ÂÃ
t as in tin
èé
r as in rubbish
ÄÅ
s as in pleasure
êë
s as in sky
ÆÇ
i as in ink
ìí
v as in veal
ÈÉ
l as in lock
îï
t as in sty
ÊË
ch as in Scottish Loch
ðñ
r as in far
ÌÍ
ts as in tsk
òó
ts as in tsunami
ÎÏ
k as in sky
àõ áõ
oo as in spook
ÐÑ
h as in hall
ö÷
p as in pass
ÒÓ
dz as in Dzungaria
øù
k as in king
ÔÕ
r as in French gar on
ºí ¨
yev
Ö×
tj
úû
o as in ox
üý
f as in far
184
SURVIVAL LEXICON IN THE ARMENIAN
LANGUAGE
Hello
Bare´v (dzes)
´³ñ¨ (Ò»½)
Good morning
Bari´ looys
´³ñÇ ÉáõÛë
Good day
Bari´ or
´³ñÇ ûñ
Good evening
Bari´ yereko´
´³ñÇ »ñ»Ïá
Have a nice day
Hajeli´ or em
maghtou´m
Ð³×»ÉÇ ûñ »Ù
Ù³ÕÃáõÙ
How do you do?
Inchpe´s ek
ÆÝãå»±ë »ù
Let me introduce
myself, my name is
Vardan
Tooyl tvek
nerkayana´l, im
anouneh´ Vardan eh
ÂáõÛÉ ïí»ù
Ý»ñÏ³Û³Ý³É, ÇÙ
³ÝáõÝÁ ì³ñ¹³Ý ¿
Let me introduce
Mrs/Mr Vardanian
Tooyl tvek
nerkayatsne´l
tikiń/paroń
Vardanianiń
ÂáõÛÉ ïí»ù
Ý»ñÏ³Û³óÝ»É,
ïÇÏÇÝ/å³ñáÝ
ì³ñ¹³ÝÛ³ÝÇÝ
There is a call for
Mrs/Mr Vardanian
Khndrou´m em
tikiń/paroń
Vardanianiń
herakhosi´ mot
ÊÝ¹ñáõÙ »Ù
What is your name?
Inchpe´s eh dzer
anouńeh
ÆÝãå»±ë ¿ Ò»ñ
³ÝáõÝÁ
How old are you?
Kani´ tarekań ek
ø³ÝÇ± ï³ñ»Ï³Ý »ù
I am thirty
Yes yeresouń
tarekań em
ºë »ñ»ëáõÝ
ï³ñ»Ï³Ý »Ù
Where are you going?
Oor ek gnoum?
àõ±ñ »ù ·ÝáõÙ
I go to Yerevan
Yes gnoum em
Yerevań
ºë ·ÝáõÙ »Ù
ºñ¨³Ý
I need a cab to
hotel Armenia
Indz petk eh taxi
minche´v Armenia
hyoorano´ts
185
ïÇÏÇÝ/å³ñáÝ
ì³ñ¹³ÝÛ³ÝÇÝ
Ñ»é³ËáëÇ Ùáï
ÆÝÓ å»ïù ¿ ï³ùëÇ
ÙÇÝã¨ §²ñÙ»ÝÇ³¦
ÑÛáõñ³Ýáó
ARMENIA
How do I get to the
Republic square?
Inchpe´s
gnal minche´v
Hanrapetoutyań
hrapara´k
ÆÝãå»ë ·Ý³É
Ð³Ýñ³å»ïáõÃÛ³Ý
Ññ³å³ñ³Ï
I need to get to
3 Abovian street
Indz petk eh gnal
Aboviań pogho´ts,
toun tiv yere´k
ÆÝÓ å»ïù ¿ ·Ý³É
²µáíÛ³Ý ÷áÕáó,
ïáõÝ ÃÇí 3
I need a single
(double) room until
May 10
Khndrou´m em
mekteghano´ts
(yerkteghano´ts)
senya´k minche´v
mayissi´ ta´seh
ÊÝ¹ñáõÙ »Ù
Ù»Ïï»Õ³Ýáó
(»ñÏï»Õ³Ýáó)
ë»ÝÛ³Ï ÙÇÝã¨
Ù³ÛÇëÇ ï³ëÁ
Where do you live?
Vorte´gh ek aprou´m
àñï»±Õ »ù ³åñáõÙ
I live in hotel
Armenia
Yes aprou´m em
Armenia
hyooranotsou´m
ºë ³åñáõÙ »Ù
§²ñÙ»ÝÇ³¦
ÑÛáõñ³ÝáóáõÙ
What is your
occupation?
Icn eh dzer
masnagitoutyouńeh
Æ±Ýã ¿ Ò»ñ
Ù³ëÝ³·ÇïáõÃÛáõÝÁ
I am a doctor (techer) Yes bzhishk
(ousoutsićh) em
This is my first
(second) time in the
Republic of Armenia
ºë µÅÇßÏ
(áõëáõóÇã) »Ù
Yes arajiń (yerkro´rd) ºë ³é³çÇÝ (»ñÏanga´m em Hayastani´ ñáñ¹) ³Ý·³Ù »Ù
Hanrapetoutyounou´m Ð³Û³ëï³ÝÇ Ð³Ýñ³å»ïáõÃÛáõÝáõÙ
Its a sunny day today Ayso´r arevo´t or eh
²Ûëûñ ³ñ¨áï ûñ ¿
It rains (snows)
Andzre´v (dzyoun) eh
gali´s
²ÝÓñ¨ (ÓÛáõÝ) ¿
·³ÉÇë
The weather is
fine (bad)
Yeghana´keh lav
(vat) eh
ºÕ³Ý³ÏÁ É³í
(í³ï) ¿
How much does
this cost?
Sa inch arzhe´h
ê³ Ç±Ýã ³ñÅ»
Thank you
Shnorhakalootyouń
(shnorhaka´l em)
ÞÝáñÑ³Ï³ÉáõÃÛáõÝ
(ßÝáñÑ³Ï³É »Ù)
186
Coulod you please
tell me when is the
breakfast (lucnh,
supper)?
Assatse´k khndre´m
vor zhamiń eh
nakhaja´sheh
(ja´sheh, entri´keh)
²ë³ó»ù ËÝ¹ñ»Ù,
á±ñ Å³ÙÇÝ ¿
Ý³Ë³×³ßÁ,
(×³ßÁ, ÁÝÃñÇùÁ)
Breakfast is at 8,
lunch at 13:00,
supper at 19:00
Nakhaja´sheh
zha´meh ootiń,
ja´sheh tasnere´kin,
entri´keh tasninnin
Ü³Ë³×³ßÁª
Å³ÙÁ áõÃÇÝ
×³ßÁª ï³ëÝ»ñ»ùÇÝ
ÁÝÃñÇùÁª
ï³ëÝÇÝÝÇÝ
Good bye
Tstesootyouń
òï»ëáõÃÛáõÝ
Good night
Bari´ gishe´r
´³ñÇ ·Çß»ñ
Until meeting
Minche´v nor
handipoumne´r
ØÇÝã¨ Ýáñ
Ñ³Ý¹ÇåáõÙÝ»ñ
I shall be back soon
Shooto´v
kveradarna´m
Þáõïáí
Ïí»ñ³¹³éÝ³Ù
SPELLING OF ARMENIAN NUMERALS
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
0
0.5
10
20
30
mek
yerkou´
yere´k
chors
hing
vets
yot
oot
ińeh
zro
kes
tas
xan
yeresouń
Ù»Ï
»ñÏáõ
»ñ»ù
ãáñë
ÑÇÝ·
í»ó
ÛáÃ
áõÃ
ÇÝÁ
½ñá
Ï»ë
ï³ë
ùë³Ý
»ñ»ëáõÝ
40 karasouń ù³é³ëáõÝ
50 hisouń ÑÇëáõÝ
60 vatsouń í³ÃëáõÝ
yotanasouń
ÛáÃ³Ý³ëáõÝ
ootsouń
áõÃëáõÝ
innsouń
ÇÝÝëáõÝ
mek yev kes
Ù»Ï ¨ Ï»ë
mek karo´rd
Ù»Ï ù³éáñ¹
tasnme´k
ï³ëÝÙ»Ï
xanerku´
ùë³Ý»ñÏáõ
yeresounve´ts
»ñ»ëáõÝí»ó
haryou´r
Ñ³ñÛáõñ
yerku´ haryou´r »ñÏáõ Ñ³ñÛáõñ
haza´r
Ñ³½³ñ
vets haza´r
í»ó Ñ³½³ñ
haryou´r haza´r Ñ³ñÛáõñ Ñ³½³ñ
yere´k haryou´r »ñ»ù Ñ³ñÛáõñ
haza´r
Ñ³½³ñ
1,000,000 mek milyoń
Ù»Ï ÙÇÉÇáÝ
2,100,000 yerkou´ milyoń »ñÏáõ ÙÇÉÇáÝ
haryou´r haza´r Ñ³ñÛáõñ Ñ³½³ñ
70
80
90
1.5
1/25
11
22
36
100
200
1,000
6,000
100,000
300,000
187
ARMENIA
ON ARMENIAN CUISINE
Archaeological excavations attest that land in Armenia was cultivated as early as in the neolithic
Period. In the history of the origins of cultured plants the Arme-
An Armenian chef
nian Plateau is considered one of
their nidi. This is best illustrated
with the example of wheat: many
species of wild as well as cultured
wheat grow all over the Armenian
Plateau. Rye, grapes, pears, myrobalan, cherries, pomegranate,
walnut, quince, almond, figs and
cantaloupes are also believed to
have originated in Armenia and
its environs. It is a well known
fact that apricots have been first
intrioduced to Europe from Armenia, back then they were called
Armeniaca.
Traditional Armenian cuisine
is diverse and rich in food prepared from cultured and wild
plants and fruits, game and fish.
Special attention is paid in Armenia to table manners and ceremonial. The day usually begins
with a light breakfast, the lunchtime is between noon and 3 PM,
and supper is served anytime
from five to nine. Some of the
working people have developed a
habit of a second breakfast between noon and 3 PM, to be followed by dinner after work in the
evening. Most of the Armenian
families have tea a few hours before going to sleep.
The most common breakfast
contains cheese, honey, jam, butter, sausage and similar cold
188
The Central roofed produce
market in Yerevan. The view from
Mashtots avenue
meats, eggs in some form, franks,
tea or coffee. Dinner includes
hors doeuvres, a soup, hot meat
or fish dishes, fruit, pastries, tea
Baking lavash
or coffee. Supper is similar to
dinner, without the soup.
Catering in hotel restaurants
basically follows the same principles as outlined above. Meals of
traditional Armenian and European cuisine prevail in the restaurants. Armenian cuisine leans toward the European in its palette
of flavours, although some dishes
contain dominant elements more
befitting Eastern cooking.
This guide intentionally omits
references to restaurants recommended for food and entertainment, since during the years following Armenian independence
and the introduction of market
relations scores of new restaurants, cafes and bars have emerged
along with the existing traditional
ones, and competition makes
them continually improve and
upgrade the service. We presume
that by the time of the publication
of this guide or a visit by a potential guest more pertinent information shall become available.
We think it expedient to offer a
description of most frequently
taken traditional dishes, appetizers,
breads, wines and brandies (cognacs) to be used as guidelines by
our guests during home visits and
dining out. This will be followed
by a concise Gastronomic Glossary, which will hopefully assist
our guests in shopping and dining.
TRADITIONAL BREAD
LAVA´SH
Lavash is a thin ellipsoidal slip of
baked dough up to one meter long
and 50 centimeters wide. Lavash has
no crust and therefore no inside, it is
soft and flexible. Dried lavash has a
very long shelf life and may be reconditioned by wetting, it becomes once
again supple and tasty like fresh. Traditionally lavash is baked in the
tonir, a special clay vessel oven buried upright in the ground. Usually
lavash was baked in the warm season
and stockpiled for the winter. Presently lavash is also baked in modern
ovens using a special technology.
MATNAKA´SH
Matnakash is a flat oval or
round-shaped loaf with a rim along
189
ARMENIA
the perimeter and lengthwise furrows. The dough for matnakash is
made with yeast leaven.
HRAZDAŃ
This is a high rectangular loaf
with a crisp crust and occasional
grooves. It is baked by leavened
dough technique.
The bakeshops usually offer a wide
selection of both traditional breads
and a diversity of other types, including Georgian and European varieties.
COLD DISHES AND
HORS DOEUVRES
The cold dishes and hors
doeuvres of the Armenian cuisine are the copious prelude to the
national meal. These are the various salads with legumes, stewed
greens: mallow, sorrel, spinach,
asparagus, portulaca (dandur),
falcaria, fennel, marinated and
pickled greens: horse-fennel,
ramson, marjoram, celery and
others, as well as meats, poultry
and fish. Combination dishes are
quite common, such as passouts
tolma. The customary appetizers
are meat bastourma and meat
soujoukh permeated with garlic,
pepper and caraway flavours. Appetizers with the use of various
cheeses with garlic and walnut are
also quite piquant. The use of
spices, nuts, vinegar, matsoun and
sour cream makes cooking especially delightful. Fresh greens and
vegetables, diced, sliced and
chopped in different combinations are a must for starters.
BASTOURMA´
These are pressed and dried slices
of lean beef, previously soaked in
salt and coated with a spicy mash
(chaman). Served as a cold appetizer
thinly sliced.
SOUJOU´KH
Thin sausages stuffed with a filling of ground beef and spices. Served
sliced as a cold appetizer.
PASSOU´TS TOLMA´ (Lenten
tolma wrapped in pickled cabbage or
grape leaves)
The filling is made of sautéed
onions, tomato paste, soaked lentils,
crushed wheat, beans, peas. It is
wrapped in pickled cabbage or grape
leaves and cooked. Served cold.
MATSOUN (YOGURT)
A sour dairy product from bovine,
sheep or buffalo milk, fermented with
yeast and special bacteria. Matsoun
is good for food, it is used as a baby
formula and recommended for gastrointestinal conditions.
SOUPS
Meat, poultry fish and mushroom stock, vegetable and fruit
broth, as well as milk, matsoun
(yogurt) and buttermilk are the
staple for soups. The remaining
190
ingredients could be meat, vegetables, pasta, groats, fruit, spices.
KATNAPOU´R
Previously soaked rice stewed
until half-cooked is boiled in hot
milk to a squashy condition with salt
and sugar added.
SPAS
Egg and flour pulp is stirred into
matsoun diluted with water and
boiled together with stewed rice or
crushed wheat, mint and fresh coriander leaves. Sautéed onions are
added by the taste.
KHASH
Painstakingly washed and scraped
bovine shins, previously soaked in
water for 24 hours, are boiled in unsalted water until the flesh flakes off
the bones. Stewed tripe is added halfway through the cooking.
Khash is served scorching hot
with stand-alone salt, crushed garlic
in stock, radish and dried lavash.
Khash is not an everyday household staple, its consumption has a
ceremonial air to it. It is traditionally made in the cold season, and
guests are treated to it in the morning hours (one should forbear breakfast at home). Salads, appetizers and
other dishes are a profanation of the
khash ritual.
The following is a listing of the
most common hot meals.
TOLMA´
1. Beef or mutton tolma in grape
wrapped leaves.
The filling is a mix of ground
meet, rice and greens wrapped in
grape leaves, immersed in water or
stock and boiled over low fire.
Served with stand-alone matsoun to
be poured over it (crushed garlic
may me mixed into the matsoun to
taste).
2. Beef or mutton tolma in cabbage leaves.
The filling, the same as with grape
leaves, wrapped in slightly blanched
cabbage leaves, immersed in water or
stock and boiled. Diced tomatoes or
tomato paste are added. Sliced
quince, dried fruit and apples are
sometimes laid out in the casserole,
cooked along and then served with
tolma.
KOLOLA´K
Small balls made of fresh lean
beef battered by a wooden mallet
into a homogenous slushy mass.
Eggs, cilantro, flour, milk, and vodka
are stirred into the mass. The balls
are cooked in stock. Served with
crushed wheat porridge made with
the remaining stock, and with
melted ghee.
HARISSA
This is a kind of homogenous
porridge made of previously stewed
and boned chicken and coarsely
ground soaked wheat. It is cooked
for quite a long time, stirred by a
wooden paddle throughout. Served
with melted ghee and cinnamon or
sautéed onions.
191
ARMENIA
KHOROVATS (barbecued)
pork, veal, mutton
The peculiarity of Armenian
khorovats is in the preparatory
marination of meat, that is the making of bastourma. The meat cubes are
salted, sprinkled with black pepper
and chopped onions, stirred in earthenware or enamelware, closed with a
lid and left to stay for a few hours.
The marinated meat is then put on
skewers (shampours) and roasted
over hot coals (with no flame).
In the summertime khorovats is
usually served with tomatoes, eggplants and bell peppers baked on
skewers over hot coals. More often
than not these are skinned and diced
into a salmagundi with greens added
(cilantro, dill, parsley, green onions
and shallot). In wintertime khorovats
is served with tomato paste, dried
sweet basil and chopped onions.
Red dry wine should be served
with khorovats.
is also bred in small alpine lakes.
The flesh is pink and tender.
River trout (karmrakhayt)
The flesh is pale pink and tender.
Breeds in mountain rivers.
Sevan whiefish (sig)
Introduced and naturalized in
lake Sevan from the Ladoga and
Chud lakes in Russia.
The flesh is white and tender.
Sevan khramulya (koghak)
The flesh is white and lean with
fine bones.
ARMENIAN FISH
Fish in Armenia breeds in
Sevan, Arpi and Akna lakes, in
rivers and dozens of artificial
lakes and reservoirs.
A good catch
Sevan ishkhan (trout)
The following types breed in lake
Sevan: winter ishkhan, summer
ishkhan, gegharkouni and bojak
(midget breed). Large fish weigh up
to 15 kilos. The Sevan gegharkouni
Sevan barbel (beghavor)
The flesh is white and lean.
Carp (tsatsan)
The flesh is white and lean. Breeds
in Arpi and Akna lakes and in Arax,
Hrazdan and Sevjour rivers.
192
Sheatfish, roach, redhead chub
(khasham) and other fish also breed
in Armenian reservoirs.
Armenia has a developed network
of fish nurseries. Rainbow trout, carp,
Chinese carp, silver carp and other
fish are bred in these nurseries.
ARMENIAN WINES
Armenia produces over 50 different brands of wines, 7 brands of
champagne and sparkling wines.
Qualitywise these wines break
down into: ordinary aged for up to
one year; fine aged between 2 and 5
years and made by special technology; and collectible fine wines additionally aged for over three years.
The wines break down by their
composition into: table wines
natural wines without the addition
of alcohol, these include dry and
medium wines, their alcohol content
is between 10 to 17 percent. This
group includes ordinary white wines
Arteni, Ayroum, Arax, Lalvar, Hrazdan, Meghradzor,
fine wines Berd, Viskevaz,
Ejmiatsin, Byurakan, ordinary
red and rose wines Aragats, Getap, Garni, Artashat, Hoghi
aryoun (Earth Blood), fine red
wines Norashen, Areni, medium
wines Vernashen, Red demisweet, Rose demi-sweet;
fortified wines made with the
addition of rectified alcohol, their
Armenian wines have been
consistently awarded medals at
international competitions
proof is 19% of volume and more. This
group includes strong, dessert, medium, sweet and liqueur wines, including the fine wines Aygeshat,
Ashtarak, Arevik, Arevshat,
Getashen, Oshakan, Hoktemberyan Dessert, ordinary wines
Anoush, Nazeli, Zvartnots,
Kagor, Saperavi, Gayane,
White Muscat, Rose Muscat,
Madeira, Haykavan, ports
Yerevanian, Red, Ararat and
others. Most of the Armenian wines
that have received gold and silver
medals at international competitions
and samplings belong to this category;
aromatic wines made with the
use of rectified alcohol, sucrose and
herbal extracts. Their alcohol content is up to 16 percent of volume.
The most common wine of this category is Nectareni.
193
ARMENIA
ARMENIAN COGNACS
(BRANDIES)
Cognac production in Armenia was founded about a hundred
years ago. Over 15 marcs have
been developed and produced
since.
According to the age, proof and
other features Armenian cognacs
(brandies) are classified as follows:
ordinary, fine and collectible.
Akhtamar alcohol content is
42% of volume, 10 years of ageing on
the average;
Tonakan (Festive) alcohol
content is 42% of volume, 15 years
of ageing on the average;
Vaspourakan alcohol content
is 40% of volume, 18 years of ageing
on the average;
Ordinary cognacs are designated
by stars. The number of stars signifies the years of ageing of the cognac
distillate: 3 stars (40% vol.), 4 stars
(41% vol.), 5 stars (42% vol.). The
Ani and Ararat ordinary cognacs
are blended from six year spirits.
Fine cognacs differ by age,
blend, proof and colour. All Armenian fine cognacs have consistently
received gold and silver medals at
international competitions:
Armenian cognacs have been
acclaimed as the best in the world
more than once
Entir (Choice) alcohol content is 42% of volume, 7 years of ageing;
Nairi alcohol content is 41%
of volume, 20 years of ageing on the
average;
Hayastan (Armenia) alcohol content is 45% of volume, over
10 years of ageing;
Dvin alcohol content is 50%
of volume, over 10 years of ageing;
Yerevan alcohol content is 57%
of volume, over 10 years of ageing;
Hobelyanakan (Jubilee)
alcohol content is 43% of volume, 10
years of ageing on the average;
40 Years alcohol content is
the average;
50 Years alcohol content is
the average.
Collectible cognacs are blended
from best quality fine cognacs with
additional ageing of over three
years.
194
GASTRONOMIC GLOSSARY
IN A RESTAURANT (CAFE, DINER)
restorań
é»ëïáñ³Ý
Cafe
srjarań/kafe´
ëñ×³ñ³Ý (Ï³ý»)
Diner
jasharań
×³ß³ñ³Ý
Can I have the menu
in Russian
(English, German)
khndrou´m em
jashatsoutsa´keh
roussereń (anglereń,
germanereń)
ÊÝ¹ñáõÙ »Ù ×³-
Glass
bazha´k
µ³Å³Ï
Plate
apse´h
³÷ë»
Fork
pataraka´gh
å³ï³é³ù³Õ
Knife
dana´k
¹³Ý³Ï
Spoon
gdal
·¹³É
Cold appetizers, please
khndrou´m em sa´reh ÊÝ¹ñáõÙ »Ù ë³éÁ
khortikne´r
ËáñïÇÏÝ»ñ
Salad, please
khndrou´m em sala´t ÊÝ¹ñáõÙ »Ù
(aghtsań)
ë³É³Ã (³Õó³Ý)
Butter
kara´g
Ï³ñ³·
Honey
meghr
Ù»Õñ
Cheese
pani´r
å³ÝÇñ
Sausage
yershi´k
»ñßÇÏ
Frankfurter
nrbershi´k
Ýñµ»ñßÇÏ
Greens
kanachi´
Ï³Ý³ãÇ
Bouillon
argana´k (bulyoń)
³ñ·³Ý³Ï (µáõÉÛáÝ)
Soup
apou´r (soup)
ëáõå (³åáõñ)
Beef
tavari´ mis
ï³í³ñÇ ÙÇë
Pork
khozi´ mis
Ëá½Ç ÙÇë
Mutton
vochkhari´ mis
áãË³ñÇ ÙÇë
Chicken
havi´ mis
Ñ³íÇ ÙÇë
Restaurant
195
ß³óáõó³ÏÁ éáõë»ñ»Ý (³Ý·É»ñ»Ý,
·»ñÙ³Ý»ñ»Ý)
ARMENIA
Fish
dzouk
Sturgeon
tarapi´ mis
Water
jour
Bread
hats
Salt/salty
agh/aghi´
Egg
dzou
Omelette
dzvatse´gh
Mustard
manane´kh
Vinegar
katsa´kh
Fried
tapaka´ts
Stewed
khasha´ts
Vegetables
banjaregheń
Fruit
mirg
Ice cream
paghpagha´k
Sweets
kaghtsraveni´k
Coffee (eastern, instant) sourj (arevelyań,
loutsvo´gh)
Tea
tey
Milk
kat
Mineral water
hankayiń jour
Juice
hyoot
Wine
ghini´
Table wine
seghani´ ghini´
Dry
chor
Medium (wine)
kissacho´r
Sweet
kaghtsr
Vodka
oghi´
Brandy (cognac)
breńdi (konya´k)
Beer
garejou´r
Cheers
kena´tsed
To your health
dzer kena´tseh
196
ÓáõÏ
ï³é³÷Ç ÙÇë
çáõñ
Ñ³ó
³Õ/³ÕÇ
Óáõ
Óí³Í»Õ
Ù³Ý³Ý»Ë
ù³ó³Ë
ï³å³Ï³Í
Ë³ß³Í
µ³Ýç³ñ»Õ»Ý
ÙÇñ·
å³Õå³Õ³Ï
ù³Õóñ³í»ÝÇù
ëáõñ× (³ñ¨»ÉÛ³Ý,
ÉáõÍíáÕ)
Ã»Û
Ï³Ã
Ñ³Ýù³ÛÇÝ çáõñ
ÑÛáõÃ
·ÇÝÇ
ë»Õ³ÝÇ ·ÇÝÇ
ãáñ
ÏÇë³ãáñ
ù³Õóñ
ûÕÇ
µñ»Ý¹Ç (ÏáÝÛ³Ï)
·³ñ»çáõñ
Ï»Ý³ó¹
Ò»ñ Ï»Ý³óÁ
SEASONINGS, SPICES, GROATS, PLANTS, GREENS,
VEGETABLES, FRUIT WITH THEIR ARMENIAN NAMES AND
TRANSLITERATIONS
Anise
anisoń
³ÝÇëáÝ
Cardamom
hil
ÑÇÉ
Saffron
krkoum/zafrań
ùñùáõÙ/ß³ýñ³Ý
Cinnamon
darchiń
¹³ñãÇÝ
Ginger
kojapghpe´gh
Ïá×³åÕå»Õ
Basil
rehań
é»Ñ³Ý
Celery
nekhou´r/karaou´z
Ý»Ëáõñ/ù³ñ³áõ½
Coriander
hame´m/gindz
Ñ³Ù»Ù/·ÇÝÓ
Tarragon
tarkhouń
Ã³ñËáõÝ
Dill
sami´t
ë³ÙÇÃ
Eremurus
shresh
ßñ»ß
Thyme
ourts
áõñó
Leek
pras
åñ³ë
Savory
tsotriń/tsoto´r
ÍáÃñÇÝ/ÍáÃáñ
Portulaca
dandou´r
¹³Ý¹áõé
Mallow
pipe´rt
÷Ç÷»ñÃ
Parsley
maghdano´s
Ù³Õ³¹³Ýáë
Cress
kote´m
Ïáï»Ù
Mint
daghts
¹³ÕÓ
Falcaria
sibe´kh
ëÇµ»Ë
Beans
lobi´
ÉáµÇ
Pumpkin
ddoum
¹¹áõÙ
Cabbage
kagha´mb
Ï³Õ³Ùµ
Cucumber
varouńg
í³ñáõÝ·
Tomato
loli´k/pamido´r
ÉáÉÇÏ/åáÙÇ¹áñ
197
ARMENIA
Eggplant
smbouk/badrijań
ëÙµáõÏ/µ³¹ñÇç³Ý
Carrot
gaza´r
·³½³ñ
Radish
boghk
µáÕÏ
Beet
jaknde´gh/bazou´k
×³ÏÝ¹»Õ/µ³½áõÏ
Mushroom
sounk
ëáõÝÏ
Spinach
spana´kh
ëå³Ý³Ë
Sorrel
trtnjouk
ÃñÃÝçáõÏ
Marshmallow
moloshava´rd
ÙáÉáß³í³ñ¹
Goosefoot
telouk/sagakho´t
Ã»ÉáõÏ/ë³·³Ëáï
Asparagus
tsnebe´k
ÍÝ»µ»Ï
Horse-fennel
bokhi
µáËÇ
Garlic
skhtor
ëËïáñ
Onion
sokh
ëáË
Caraway
chaman
ã³Ù³Ý
Ramson
ghandzi´l
Õ³ÝÓÇÉ
Marjoram
khnkatsaghi´k
/sousamba´r
ËÝÏ³Í³ÕÇÏ
ëáõë³Ùµ³ñ
Okra
bamia´
µ³ÙÇë
Wheat
tsoreń
óáñ»Ý
Barley
gari´
·³ñÇ
Pea
sise´r
ëÇë»Õ
Lentil
vosp
áëå
Olive
dzitaptoukh
ÓÇÃ³åïáõÕ
Pepper
takde´gh/pkghpekh
ï³ù¹»Õ/åÕå»Õ
Clove
mekha´k
Ù»Ë³Ï
Rose
vard
í³ñ¹
Almond
noush
Ýáõß
Walnut
enkooy´z
ÁÝÏáõÛ½
Filbert
pndouk
åÝ¹áõÏ
Apple
khndzor
ËÝÓáñ
198
Pear
tandz
ï³ÝÓ
Grape
khagho´gh
Ë³ÕáÕ
Apricot
tsirań
ÍÇñ³Ý
Water melon
dzmerou´k
ç»ñÙáõÏ
Cantaloupe
sekh
ë»Ë
Peach
dekhdz
¹»ÕÓ
Quince
serkevi´l
ë»ñÏ¨ÇÉ
Cherry
kera´s
Ï»é³ë
Sour cherry
bal
µ³É
Dewberry
mosh
Ùáß
Currant
hagha´rj
Ñ³Õ³ñç
Raspberry
aznvamori´
³½Ýí³ÙáñÇ
Strawberry
yela´k/getnamori´
»É³Ï/·»ïÝ³ÙáñÇ
Fig
touz
Ãáõ½
Pomegranate
nour
Ýáõé
Mulberry
tout
ÃáõÃ
Plum/cherry plum
salo´r/shlor
ë³Éáñ/ßÉáñ
Greengage
dambou´l
¹³ÙµáõÉ
Rosehip
massou´r
Ù³ëáõñ
Medlar
zker
½Ï»é
Dried apricot
tsiranachi´r
ÍÇñ³Ý³ãÇñ
Dried greengage
dambouli´ chi´r
¹³ÙµáõÉÇ ãÇñ
Orange
narińj
Ý³ñÇÝç
Tangerine
mandariń
Ù³Ý¹³ñÇÝ
Banana
adamatou´z/banań
³¹³Ù³Ãáõ½/µ³Ý³Ý
Lemon
kitroń/limoń
ÏÇïñáÝ/ÉÇÙáÝ
199
ARMENIA
MISCELLANEOUS REFERENCE
ADDRESSES AND TELEPHONE NUMBERS OF GOVERNMENTAL
AGENCIES AND THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY
address
telephone facsimile
The staff of the President
of the Republic
26 Marshal
Baghramian Ave.
520656
522330
521581
The staff of the National
Assembly
19 Marshal
Baghramian Ave.
520360
527450
527450
The staff of the Prime
Minister
Republic Square,
1 Government House
520201
520680
529443
Agriculture
48 Nalbandian street
524641
523793
AT&T
151583
On Coordination of
operation of production
infrastructure
Republic Square,
1 Government House
520321
AT&T
151036
Culture, youth issues
and sport
5 Toumanian street
521920
529349
523922
the Chief of staff of
Government-Minister
Republic Square,
1 Government House
520360
AT&T
151036
Defence
Ashtarak highway
345656
285321
151433
Economics
1 Melik-Adamian street 527082
1 Government House
AT&T
151154
Education and science
12 Movses
Khorenatsi street
526602
524749
525317
526996
Energy
Republic Square,
2 Government House
526556
521964
526365
151089
Environmental protection
35 Moskovian street
530741
538613
534902
Finance
1 Melik-Adamian street 595255
1 Government House
528742
Foreign affairs
Republic Square,
2 Government House
507250
521796
151042
Ministries
200
523531
Health
6 Toumanian street
582413
562923
151097
Industry and trade
5 Hanrapetoutyan street 538082
526577
538321
151583
Internal affairs
574543
587125
Justice
8 Khorhrdarani street
582157
582449
National security
563515
525891
Operational issues
Republic Square,
1 Government House
521706
AT&T
151036
Post and telecommunications 20 Nalbandian street
526632
524756
151446
Privatisation
Republic Square,
2 Government House
520351
151035
529443
Public revenue
Republic Square,
1 Government House
539195
538226
Social security
69 Terian street
565321
151920
565383
Statistics, state registry
and analysis
Republic Square,
3 Government House
524213
521921
Territorial governance
Republic Square,
1 Government House
525274
151036
529443
Transport
10 Zakiyan street
563391
560528
Urban development
Republic Square,
3 Government House
589080
523200
3 Marshal Baghramian avenue
16 Khachatour Abovian street
25 Demirjian street
3a Poushkin street
18 Vardanants street
13 Mesrob Mashtots avenue
563812
564724
526347
561506
564757
570717
570092
538490
CREATIVE ASSOCIATIONS
Writers
Artists
Composers
Architects
Journalists
Cinematographers
House of Film
Theatre professionals
House of Actors
201
ARMENIA
LIBRARIES
National
Municipal
Childrens
Musical literature
National Academy of Science
Medical Science
Theatre professionals
72 Terian street
2 Amirian street
42/1 Terian street
53 Tigran Metsi street
8 Hovhannes Toumanian street
584259
561566
521222
565304
587589
580344
238771
YEREVAN CHURCHES
Sourb (Saint) Sarkis
Sourb Hovhannes
Sourb Anania (Zoravor)
Katoghike
Sourb Gevorg
Sourb Astvatsatsin (Mother of God)
Sourb Astvatsatsin (Mother of God)
Sourb Hakob
Russian Orthodox
21 Raphael Israelian street
2nd Street, #9, Kond
96 Ghazar Parpetsi street
15 Abovian street
1st Noragavit street
Nork
32/2 Sebastiayi street
20/1, 6th Kanaker street
Kanaker
SPORTS FACILITIES
Hrazdan stadium
Dynamo stadium
Nairi stadium
Hayastan stadium
Chess House
Dynamo swimming pool
Intramural swimming pool
Intramural swimming pool
Dynamo sports palace
Arax sports arena
Sports and concert complex
Tennis courts
Hrazdan river canyon
2 Bagratounyats street
64 Sebastiayi street
50 Khanjian street
72a Charnets street
40 Komitas street
7 Khorenatsi street
9 Manandian street
Tsitsernakaberd park
Alex Manookian street and
Tsitsernakaberd park
202
FARMERS MARKETS
Number 1
Number 2
Number 3
Number 4
Number 5
Number 6
Number 7
Number 8
Number 9
Number 10
Number 11
35 Khorenatsi street
17 Nzdehi street
64 Sebastiayi street
53 Komitas street
29 A. Karapetian street
14 Gayi street
85 Tsereteli street
19 Erebouni street
51 Parouyr Sevak street
Avan-Arinj district
EMERGENCY PHONE NUMBERS
Fire protection
Police
Ambulance
Elevator breakdown service
Telephone repair
Long distance service:
Operator assisted calls
Overseas operator assisted calls
Complaints on service
City hall of Yerevan (reference, complaints)
1-01
1-02
1-03
1-85
Exchange prefix +1212
1-07
1-05
1-06
526356
CITY INFORMATION
Yerevan Telephone network information
for incoming overseas calls
Railway reference
Subway
Zvartnots airport reference
Erebouni airport reference
Central ticket office (airlines)
International ticket office (airlines)
Bus terminals reference:
Central
Northern
By the railway station
Yerevan street address information
1-09
538752
1-84
271800
1-87, 505640,
phone/fax AT&T 151123
480351
530662
582422, 531770
565370
282471, 280666, 621670
450570
536970
203
ARMENIA
A COUNTRY AND THE PEOPLE
Guidebook
Technical editor: A. Manoucharian
Photography: K. Azizian, A. Petrossian, Z. Sarkissian
Proofreader: Artashes Emin
Colour separation and typesetting
ENCYCLOPAEDIA-ARMENIKA Ltd
17 Toumanian Street, Yerevan