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Ethnography1
THE TERCENTENNIAL GLORY OF THE ARMENIAN KINGDOM OF CILICIA AND THE SELF-DEFENSIVE BATTLES OF THE ZEYTOUNTSIS (Historical-Folkloric Review)
By: Verjiné Svazlian Doctor in Philology, Leading Researcher, Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography, NAS RA, vsvaz333@yahoo.com
The precise and trustworthy relics of the popular oral tradition we had written down and cited in our present report clearly define and substantiate the erstwhile radiant historic events and personalities of the tercentennial Cilician Armenian Kingdom, as well as the cruel afflictions fallen subsequently to its lot, and the real pictures of the heroic struggles starting from King Levon II the Magnificent till the courageous rebellion and the self-defensive battles of the Zeytountsis in 1862.
pdf (0.21 MB)
History3
ECOLOGY AND CIVILIZATION OF THE ARMENIAN HIGHLAND
By: Aram Kosyan Doctor in History, Institute of Oriental Studies, NAS RA, aramkosyan@yahoo.com
The article represents an the overview of geological, geographical, climatic, relief, and related characteritics of the Armenian Highland – an unseparable component of the Armenian civilization. Specific geographical and climatic conditions of the Armenian Highland had greatly affected the development of early societies of the region, essentially stipulating their lifestyle, trends of economic and political development and interconnections with neighbors. The main peculiarity of the Armenian civilization is not its vulnerability from attacks of enemies, as it is usually stressed by many historians, but the specific environment which had imposed a burden to dealt with, regardless ethnic, political and cultural character and level of the population.
- Keywords:
- Armenian Highland
- ecology
- geology
- climate
- agriculture
- pastoralism
pdf (0.22 MB)
AN ATTEMPT TO IDENTIFY A PICTURE ON THE PARTHIAN ROCK-CUT RELIEFS OF HONG-I AZHDAR
By: Arthur Melikyan PhD, Vanadzor State University
Among the Iranian rock-cut reliefs by its iconographic and stylistic diversity, as well as the problem of historical reality is distinguished that of Hong-i Azhdar. The author reaches the conclusion that on the relief under discussion is depicted the Parthian king and the person who was the “second after the king”. The latter could be identified with Bagasis, the ruler of Media who was granted the “Parthian West” by Mithridates I. This person might be the same as Vagharshak of Movses Khorenatsi who, according to him, was the brother of the Parthian king Vagharsh.
- Keywords:
- Hong-i Azhdar
- Mithridates I
- Bagasis
- Parthia
- Vagharshak
pdf (0.64 MB)
THE FORMATION OF THE MILITIA IN VAN PROVINCE (November 1915 - October 1916)
By: Ruben Sahakyan Institute of History, NAS RA
After liberation of Van and the great part of the province in May 1915, the Caucasian Army command formed an interim administration of Armenians headed by Aram Manukyan, a prominent figure in the Armenian liberation movement. Together with other authorities, the judicial system, including militia, was organized. Unfortunately, the service of the Armenian militia, which was supposed to protect the safety and security of the Armenians of Vaspurakan, appeared again in the area of sharp divisions between the parties, which mainly affected the Vaspurakan people, seeking the way of returning to their homeland. The situation in Van-Vaspurakan has worsened after the departure of the militia.
Keywords:
pdf (0.53 MB)
Philology1
NEW READINGS AND INTERPRETATIONS IN THE RECENTLY DISCOVERED URARTIAN CUNEIFORM TEXT FROM AYANIS
By: Nikolay Harutyunyan Doctor in Philology, Institute of Oriental studies, NAS RA
The extensive inscription of Rusa II from Ayanis (Urartian city of Rusahinili, on the eastern shore of Lake Van) unearthed during archaeological excavations offers good possibilities for the study of Urartian philology and history. This inscription makes it possibile to discuss a number of new Urartian words, the revision of translations of words attested in already known inscriptions, establishment of correspondences between Urartian words and their Sumerian equivalents, restoration of defective passages etc.
In the article are discussed two Urartian words (išerhini and ešinini) which until now lack appropriate interpretations.
- Keywords:
- Urartian inscriptions
- Tsolakert
- Ayanis
- Karmir blur
pdf (0.18 MB)
Philosophy and Law1
ARGUMENTATION OF THE SOURCE OF POWER, ITS FORMS AND THE STATE SOVEREIGNTY IN THE “CODE OF LAW OF ARMENIAN PEOPLE” BY MKHITAR GOSH
By: Lilit Sarvazyan PhD, Associate Professor at the Yerevan State Pedagogical University, Senior Researcher at the Institute of Philosophy, Sociology and Law of NAS RA, lilit.sarvazyan@gmail.com
Philosopher, theologian, jurist, ecclesiastical and public-political figure Mkhitar Gosh (c. 1130-1213) has made a significant contribution to the history of Armenian medieval legal and political culture. Mkhitar Gosh's legislative activity was based on the idea of a sovereign and centralized statehood in Armenia, the implementation of which presupposed the solution of a number of issues, unification of internal and disbanded armed forces, cooperation of local authorities, neutralization of separatist-centric policy, mitigation of inter-class conflicts on the principle of justice, establishment of social harmony, influence of spiritual and moral ideology, etc. These problems are reflected in the “Code of Law” and were solved by the genius thinker on a philosophical and legal level.
pdf (0.19 MB)
Demography and Governance1
CIVILIZATION, POLITICAL INSTITUTIONS AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
By: Yuri Suvaryan Member of Academy, NAS RA
Academician-Secretary of the Department
of Armenology and Social Sciences
suvaryan@sci.am
The factors that determine economic development are various and numerous, but in detailed analyzes the importance of political institutions has been used to a lesser extent. Among the factors of economic growth human resources, finances, new technologies, their quantitative and qualitative characteristics were considered essential, while in-depth historical-logical research substantiates that the basis of all this is the level of civilization of the country and the maturity of political institutions, having been conditioned by that factor.
pdf (0.20 MB)
Arts1
DEPICTION OF THE ARMENIAN CARPETS IN THE WORKS OF EUROPEAN ORIENTALISTS RUDOLF ERNST AND GIULIO ROSATI
By: Hasmik Hmayakyan PhD, Institute of Oriental studies, NAS RA
The art of carpet weaving is attested in Armenia from ancient times. The Armenian carpets have been honored in many parts of the world and it's not occasional that they have been depicted by painters of Renaissance, Baroque, Rococo and other styles.
The author reverts to the depictions of the Armenian carpets in the paintings of European Orientalists of the 19th century that have received little attention so far. Particularly the author discusses the carpets in the works of Austrian painter Rudolf Ernst and Italian Giulio Rosati, the parallels to which are being preserved in various collections of the Armenian carpets.
Summarizing it should be mentioned that we find numerous depictions of Armenian carpets in the paintings of the West European Orientalists of the 19th century, which requires a further study.
- Keywords:
- Armenian carpets
- Rudolf Ernst
- Giulio Rosati
pdf (2.70 MB)
Documents: Armenian Genocide1
THE DOCUMENTS REGARDING THE ATROCITIES OF THE ARMENIAN POPULATION OF THE VILAYET OF BITLIS IN 1915
By: Viscount Bryce
Extracted from “THE TREATMENT OF ARMENIANS IN THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE (1915-1916)” (DOCUMENTS PRESENTED TO VISCOUNT GREY OF FALLODON, SECRETARY OF STATE FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS by Viscount Bryce, with a preface by Viscount Bryce), London, 1916, p. 79-97.
pdf (0.23 MB)
Foreign Sources and Authors About Armenia and Armenians2
F. Ratzel, The History of Mankind. Volume III. London. 1898. Book V. D.WESTERN ASIATICS AND EUROPEANS. pp. 534-545. THE CAUCASIAN RACES.
By: Friedrich Ratzel
The History of Mankind. Volume III. London. 1898. Macmilan and Co., Limited. New York: The macmilan Company. Translated from the second German edition by A.J. Butler, M.A. with introduction by E.B. Tylor, D.C.I., F.R.S., with coloured plates, maps, and illustrations. 599p.
pdf (0.16 MB)
DISCOVERIES AMONG THE RUINS OF NINEVEH AND BABYLON; WITH TRAVELS IN ARMENIA, KURDISTAN, AND THE DESERT: BEING THE RESULT OF A SECOND EXPEDITION UNDERTAKEN FOR THE TRUSTEES OF THE BRITISH MUSEUM
By: Austen H. Layard
Sir Austin Henry Layard (1817-1894) was an English traveler, art historian, politician and diplomat. He is well known as the excavator of Nineveh and Nimrud, ancient Assyrian cities in the mid-XIX century, and the founder of the famous Assyrian king Assurbanapals’s library. The results of his works in Mesopotamia had appeared in several publications - in the extensive book “The Monuments of Nineveh” (2 volumes, London, 1849), “Discoveries among the Ruins of Nineveh and Babylon with travels in Armenia, Kurdistan, and the desert” (London, 1853), “A Second series of the Monuments of Nineveh” (London, 1853). As a diplomat A.H.Layard was appointed as envoy extraordinary to Spain in 1869 and ambassador to the Ottoman empire in 1877
pdf (0.58 MB)
Armenological Heritage1
ARMENIAN PAGAN PANTHEON AND THE PLACE OF ANAHIT IN THE PANTHEON
Karen V. Melik-Pashayan, The Cult of the Goddess Anahit, Yerevan, 1963, Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography, Academy of Sciences of Armenian SSR.
In this remarkable monograph the renowned ethnographer presents a study of Anahit, one of the chief deities of the Pre-Christian Armenia. Below the Editorial board suggests two chapters of the monograph - «Armenian pagan pantheon and the place of Anahit in the pantheon» (Chapter 2, pp.23-45) and «Places of worship of Anahit» (Chapter 5, pp.103-125).
pdf (0.25 MB)
Classics of Armenology2
NIKOLAI MARR (1864-1934)
Nikolai Marr was born on December 25, 1864, in Kutaisi, Georgia (then part of the Russian Empire). His father (Scott James [Jacob] Marr) was Scottish and his mother (Agrafina Mugularia) was Georgian. Nikolai Marr's father was an agricultural engineer, botanist who was working in Georgia and was the founder of the Kutaisi Botanical Garden. He had previously established several botanical gardens in different cities of the Russian Empire. In Kutaisi, Scott James Marr met Agrafina Mugularia, married her and settled there. From an early age, Nikolai communicated with local Armenians and learned Armenian.
pdf (0.23 MB)
HOVSEP ORBELI (JOSEPH ORBELI) (1887-1961)
Hovsep Orbeli was born on March 20, 1887 in Kutaisi (Russian Georgia) to the family of Abgar Orbeli and Varvara Arghutinskaya (both representatives of ancient aristocratic familes). In 1904 he graduated from the Third Men's Gymnasium in Tbilisi with a Gold Medal, and in 1911 from the Faculty of History and Philology of the University of St. Petersburg. At the same time, he was attending the courses of the Armenian-Georgian-Persian department of the Oriental Faculty of the University. He was involved in research since he was a student, and wrote articles on art for Brockhaus and Efron's new encyclopedic dictionary.
pdf (0.17 MB)
Book Reviews1
THE FAIRY TALE ABOUT DRAGON AND REALITY
By: Arsen Bobokhyan
A. Gilibert
P. Hnila
Yerevan, Publishing House of Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography, 2019, 651 pages.
The Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography, National Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Armenia has published the second collection, dedicated to dragon-stone monuments. In the first collection, which was published by the publishing house “Gitutyun” in 2015, the term "archaeology of dragon-stones" was defined for the first time, and separate monuments, their architecture, construction features and the archaeological context were presented as well. The collection also discussed issues related to ritual-religious significance and functions (Dragon Stones, 2015).
pdf (0.17 MB)
New Books7
THE ARMENIAN FAMILY VIV-A-VIS CONTEMPORARY CHALLENGES
(Proceedings of the International conference dedicated to the memory of a prominent researcher of the Armenian family, ethnographer Emma Karapetyan) (Ethno-sociological studies of Armenia and Diaspora, vol.13), Yerevan: Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography, NAS RA, 2019. - 232 p.
The present volume of “Ethno-sociological studies of Armenia and Diaspora” is a collection of papers dedicated to Dr. Emma Karapetyan, the distinguished specialist in Armenian ethnography and long-time senior researcher of the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography, NAS RA. The International conference which was held at the Institute includes 17 papers of authors from the Republic of Armenia and Armenian diaspora and is divided into four sections - “Armenian family issues: conceptual approaches”, “Migrations and the Armenian family”, ”Family and ethno-cultural values”, “Family and ethnicity”.
RUSSIAN COMPOSER THOMAS HARTMANN AND KOMITAS
By: Anushavan Zakaryan Doctor in Philology, Editor-in-Chief of the Historical and Philological Journal, patmhandes@rambler.ru
Institute of Arts, “Gitutyun” publishing house, Yerevan, 2019, 108 pages.
Thomas Hartmann (1885–1956), a Russian composer (of German origin), musicologist and conductor, took an active part in the musical and public life of the city, established friendly and creative ties with representatives of the Armenian intelligentsia.
The study of the author deals with the activities of Th.Hartmann directed towards the publication and preservation of the creative heritage of Komitas, the pioneer of the Armenian music. In the monograph is represented in detail the participation of Th.Hartmann in the establishment and activities of the “Society after Komitas”, one of the memorable pages of the Armenian music culture.
SOCIAL AND POLITICAL PREREQUISITES FOR THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE OF THE REPUBLIC OF ARMENIA AND THE BEGINNING OF ITS FORMATION (FEBRUARY 1965 - SEPTEMBER 1991)
By: Abrahamyan H.M.
Yerevan, 2019, YSU publ. house, 398p. (in Arm.)
The work is devoted to one of the most important events of the history of the Armenian people, at the end of the 20th century, when the struggle for the independence of Armenia began. The work covers such topics as the rich social and political life of the period, the nationwide reaction of the Artsakh and Gorbachev’s perestyoyka.
The monograph analyzes and evaluates the literature related to the topic under discussion, indicates the significance of the scientific works of Armenian historians, political scientists, politicians, economists and literary critics. Not only is a positive assessment given of these studies, but also their shortcomings and omissions are mentioned in the book.
THE AGONY OF A NATION (THE DEPORTED ARMENIANS IN MESOPOTAMIA)
By: Zabel Yesayan
(Compiled by Anushavan Zakaryan), Institute of History, NAS RA, Yerevan, 2000, 180 pages.
Zabel Mkrtich Yesayan (Hovhannisyan) was a prominent Armenian writeress, translator, publicist and national-public figure born in 1878 in Constantinople (died in 1943).
“The Agony of a Nation (The Deported Armenians in Meso¬potamia)” presents a history which Z. Yesayan heard and recorded following the words of Hayk Toroyan – an eyewitness of the tragedy of Armenians deported from Tigranakert, Zeitun, Achna, Aintap, Marash, Adana, Mersin, Sis, Edessa and other pros¬perous territories to the deserts of Mesopotamia starting from the end of 1914 up to February of 1916. The records are of historical-documentary value which highlight the evidence and descriptions of the Armenian Genocide.
The material of “The Agony of a Nation (The Deported Armenians in Meso¬potamia)” by Z. Yesayan is one of the brightest examples of the “literature of evidence” prevailing in the world literature and the last half a century.
RUSSIAN WRITERS AND HOVHANNES TUMANYAN
By: Anushavan Zakaryan Doctor in Philology, Editor-in-Chief of the Historical and Philological Journal, patmhandes@rambler.ru
M.Abeghyan Institute of Literature, Yerevan, 2019, 72 pages.
The study of A.Zakaryan is focused on the relations of the late XIX – early XX century Russian writers (Konstantin Balmont, Valery Brusov, Alexander Kulebyakin, Sergey Gorodet-sky, Boris Lazarevsky) with Hovhannes Tumanyan, the classic of the Armenian new literature. They got an indelible impression of Tumanyan, treated him with love, respect and honour. Russian writers characterized the Armenian poet as a most noble personality with extraordinary human qualities. H.Tumanyan highly estimated the input of Russian writers and intelligentsia in the human history. This was mostly conditioned with the fact that Tumanyan was a convinced adherent of the Russian orientation among the Armenian people.
LEBANESE ARMENIANS TODAY
Ethno-sociological studies (Ethno-sociological studies of Armenia and Diaspora, vol.11), Yerevan-Beirut: Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography, NAS RA, 2019. - 178 p.
Volume 11 of “Ethno-sociological studies of Armenia and Diaspora” is a joint undertaking of the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography, NAS RA and Haygazean university of Beirut devoted to the problems of the history of Lebanese Armenian community, particularly its integration issues carried out both by Lebanese Armenian and that of the Republic of Armenia.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE INSTITUTE OF ARCHAEOLOGY AND ETHNOGRAPHY, VOL. 3
(eds. T.Dalalyan, R.Hovsepyan, A.Babajanyan). Yerevan: Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography, NAS RA, 2019. – 253 p.
The present volume includes mostly the articles of the young generation of Armenian archaeologists and ethnographers. It covers the period from early antiquity until modern times. The volume is divided into several sections – “Prehistoric societies”, “Middle ages”, “Traditional ritual and and folklore”, “Anthropology and culturology of Soviet and Post-Soviet periods”, “Problems of the Diaspora”.