Armenia is a landlocked country in Western Asia bordering the countries of Georgia, Azerbaijan, Iran and Turkey. The Caucasus republic looks back on an eventful history between foreign oppression and hard-won independence.
- Armenia became an independent in 1991 Country.
- Around 90 percent of the country is characterized by mountainous landscapes.
- Its history also includes an important cultural heritage.
Yerevan – Was for centuries Armenia hotly contested by all the great powers. With an area of 29,743 square kilometers, the country was finally able to blossom into an independent republic after decades of foreign oppression. Even if economically the state in the Caucasus still struggling with poverty, it boasts some important cultural treasures.
Armenia: contested territory in antiquity
The story of today Armenia extends back to the antiquity. From about 850 to 600 BC, the kingdom of Urartu had spread to today’s area. Under Persian rule (from 546 to 331 BC), the province was first known as Armenia mentioned on a trilingual inscription. After the campaign Alexander the Great against the Persians, the country was finally integrated into the sphere of interest of the Seleucid Empire.
In 188 BC settled down Artaxias I to the king of Armenia calling out. The dynasty of his descendants consolidated the independence of Greater Armenia as a separate kingdom. Nevertheless, it remained geostrategically hotly contested by Romans, Parthians, Sassanids and Persians until late antiquity. Islamic expansion in the 7th century marked the end of ancient Armenian history.
Armenia: From the Middle Ages to the 20th Century
But in the centuries that followed, the Caucasus region was taken over by various great powers. In the Middle Ages, the country led by Arab tribes finally disintegrated. After alternating conquests between Byzantium and the caliphate From the 18th century, parts of the country increasingly became the focus of Persian and Russian interests. Especially the decay of Ottoman Empire favored the rise of Russian dominance. Nevertheless, the conflicts intensified, so that in the years 1894 to 1896 the Ottoman government initiated several massacres of the Armenian population, which killed 80,000 to 300,000 residents.
After the entry of the Ottoman Empire into the First World War the situation finally escalated. 1915 marked by the Ottoman Minister of the Interior Talat Bey initiated arrest and deportation of Armenian intellectuals in Istanbul the beginning of Armenian Genocide. A genocide that killed an estimated 300,000 to 1.5 million Armenians.
Armenia: Independence after Soviet rule
1922 became Armenia in the Transcaucasian SFSR the newly founded Soviet Union incorporated. This association was dissolved 14 years later, so that Armenia (or the Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic – Armenian SSR for short) became part of the Soviet Union as a formally independent union republic.
In 1988 an earthquake wreaked havoc Armenia so that the government was dependent on foreign aid for the first time. The natural disaster cost the lives of around 20,000 Armenians. The resulting economic damage is still having an effect today. Acquired after the dissolving Soviet Union Armenia returned its independence on September 21, 1991.
Armenia: The Political System
Armenia has a parliamentary republic. Parliament – the National Assembly – is elected every four years. All deputies (currently 107) are combined in one chamber. Lange was the national conservative Republican Party of Armenia leading. In 2018, the so-called “Velvet Revolution” however, for a new political course. The centrist-liberal partycivil contract“ could under the incumbent prime minister Nikol Pashinyan in the parliamentary elections Armenia form a majority government for the first time. He is the country’s head of government. is President Armen Sarkisyan.
Armenia: facts at a glance
- Capital: Yerevan
- Official language: Armenian
- Area: 29,743 square kilometers
- Population: 2.963 million (as of 2020)
- Currency: Armenian Dram
- Administrative division: 11 provinces
- Religion: Oriental Orthodox Christianity (represented by the Armenian Apostolic Church)
Armenia: Languages and Population
The Armenian language, which has its own branch of Indo-European language is also the official language of the country. Even if the republic itself has just three million inhabitants, Armenian is spoken by around seven million people worldwide. Due to its history, however, Russian is still a compulsory subject in schools and is also widespread in the education sector and in business life. In the meantime, however, English is also becoming more and more popular as the first foreign language.
A third of the population lives in the capital Yerevan.
According to a 2011 census, a good 98 percent of the residents are also ethnic Armenians. The entire population of the country is thus considered to be almost ethnically homogeneous. The Yazidis make up the largest minority with just 1.17 percent of the population, followed by the Russians (0.39 percent), Assyrians (0.09 percent), Kurds (0.07 percent), Ukrainians (0.03 percent), Georgians (0.02 percent) and Iranians (476 people). The population development is steadily declining. The ratio of emigrants to the total population has long been the fourth highest in the world at 25 percent and remained almost unchanged until 2015.
Armenia: Geography and Cities
Armenia borders Georgia on the north, on the east Azerbaijanin the southeast at the Iransouth to the Azerbaijani Nakhchivan exclave and from southwest to west to the Turkey. The Caucasus republic is also referred to by the population as the “Land of Stones” because mountains and barren plateaus in particular characterize the landscape of the state. Around 90 percent of the country is 1,000 meters above sea level or higher. The biblical mountain is one of the most important elevations for the Armenians Ararat at 5,137 meters – not far from the capital Yerevan. It is considered the national symbol of the country. From a geographic point of view, however, there is a catch: the mountain is already behind the Armenian border in the east of Anatolia Turkey.
Next to the Ararat plain in the south-west are also the chains of the little one Caucasus to the north, the volcanic plateau of the Aragazthe gorge of Hunot as well as the Lake Sevan particularly scenic. Due to the differences in altitude, Armenia also has different climate zones, with the climate being mostly continental. The republic is divided into eleven provinces.
The provinces and capitals of Armenia at a glance
- 1 Aragatsotn Province: 126,278 inhabitants, capital Ashtarak
- 2 Ararat Province: 252,665 inhabitants, capital Artashat
- 3 Armavir Province: 255,861 inhabitants, capital Armavir
- 4 Gegharkunik Province: 215,371 inhabitants, capital Gawar
- 5 Kotajik Province: 241,337 inhabitants, capital Hrasdan
- 6 Lori Province: 253,351 inhabitants, capital Vanadzor
- 7 Shirak province: 257,242 inhabitants, capital Gyumri
- 8th Syunik Province: 134,061 inhabitants, capital Kapan
- 9 Tavush Province: 121,963 inhabitants, capital Ijevan
- 10 Vayots Dzor Province: 55,000 inhabitants, capital Ighegnadzor
- 11 Yerevan Province: 1,201,322 inhabitants, municipality status
Armenia: Interesting facts about the country
Armenia Despite its economic poverty, it mainly has cultural riches to offer. One of the most important buildings is the Etchmiadzin Cathedral – an Armenian Apostolic Church in the Armenian province of Armavir. The cornerstone for this was already laid at the beginning of the 3rd century. It is revered as the oldest Christian site of the Armenians and also forms the religious center of the country. Since the year 2000, the most important architectural monument in Armenia has also been called UNESCO World Heritage Site listed. In addition, there are also the monasteries Haghpat and Sanahinthe archaeological site of Zvartnotsthe monastery Geghard at the top Azat Valleythe temple of Garni, the rock caves of Goris and the cascade of Jenevan are popular destinations in the country.
Another cultural heritage – albeit immaterial – can be found in Armenian cuisine: lavash bread – a national dish in Armenia Armenia. Made from flour, water and salt, this popular flatbread is often hand-made in a traditional way in a tandoor (a charcoal-heated oven). Armenian cuisine per se also enjoys a good international reputation. It is closely related to the cooking traditions of the Caucasus and Asia Minorbut is also characterized by Eastern European influences.
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