Vol. 15 No. 1 (2021)

The article points our the error of Strabo in the description of the Araks River, which was the border beween Greater Armenia and Atropatena. Based on this facts, autors show that the are two Araks River in the Armenian Highlands. Unaware of this, Strabo combined the source of one Araks (Gedar-su, Arag), which originates in the slopes of Mount Zarasp and flows into Lake Urmia, which the middle cource of the other Araks, originated from Mount Byurakn (Bingel-dag) and flows into the Caspian Sea. As a result of this, there is nonexistent turn of Araks (Arag, Gedar-su) to the west and a current to the north, from the sity of Azara (old Armavir) arose. In view of this, was proposed a new etimological localization of Basoropeda region concured by Artashes I from the Medes. Relying on Assyrian sources on the location of the land of Gizilbunda the autors suggest identifying Gizilbunda-Atropatene-Basoropeda countries, taking into account the possibility of change of the historical boundaries. 

Being one of the largest ministerial houses of early medieval Armenia, Mamikonyan`s dynasty attracted the attention of historians. However, there is a lot of reliable information in the sources. The 10th century historian Mesrop VayotsDzoreci mentions without any basis that Vartan, Vasak and Vahan Mamikonyans were the sons of Artavazd. And due to this circumstance, the further researchers considered them the sons of Artavazd. However, a detailed examination of the sources shows that Artavazd and Vasak Mamikonyans belonged to a family, not a father and a son. When Artavazd was proclaimed commander as a child in 338 , Vasak and  his brothers were in adulthood and Vasak was already nanny of Prince Arshak  then. And Artavazd, as a son of commander Vache Mamikonyan and a  representative of the senior branch, received the command and   the Mamikonyans dynasty from Khosrov Kotak , by which the king maintained the order of seniority. 

In the 16th century, Armenia became the scene of hostilities between the Ottoman Em­pire and Safavid Iran. The decades-long conflict had a very negative impact on the normal develop­ment of Armenia, affecting different directions of socio-economic and cultural sphe­res. The demographic consequences were especially prominent, as the Armenian population, as a whole demographic system, began to be exposed to external influences that disrupted its normal life. Such influences included the deportation of the population, the forcible collec­tion of children, the system of tax collection based on religious distinctions, the promotion of conversion to Islam, and so on. In such circumstances, the aim of our research is to understand the picture of the distribution of the Armenian population in the administrative units, created by the two foreign powers, through the processes of those negative impacts. In order to achie­ve this goal, we set a task to extract as much as possible the source database, which is rather narrow for the mentioned period. It also has methodological issues, such as the classification of the population in the Ottoman geographical records not by ethnicity but by religious affiliation.

The Italian national-liberation movement found a warm response in the magazine “The Masyats Aghavni’’ issued in Theodosia in 1860-1865. The magazine represented the Armenian-national conservative current. In addition to some issues related to the Italian national movement, the magazine also touched upon the deprivation of Pope Pius IX (Pope of Rome) of his secular power. Archimandrite Gabriel Aivazovsky, the editor of the magazine, observed the demand of the freedom-loving Italians from religious ideology and political unification point of view. He touched upon thas issue in his articles entitled “The spiritual and secular power of Popes of Rome”.

1. Ayvazovsky considered inadmissible actions of Pope Pius IX and his cardinals who made great efforts and exerted pressure upon the believers to maintain the secular power of the High Priest. In his understanding, the supporters of the Papacy made a huge mistake insisting on the fact that the demand to deprive the Pope of his secular power was a real danger to his spiritual power. G. Ayvazovsky countervailed the supporters of the Pope, who were of the opinion that the Popes’ power was divine given to the Church of Jesus, therefore was a limit­less spiritual an secular power. The editor of “The Masyats aghavni” refuted that approach and, quoting The Gospel, stated that Jesus Christ didn’t have any secular power and didn’t consider himself a king. He was the base of the Church, Head, Supreme Priest, Pastor and the Lord. The Creator didn’t appoint any of his apostles a Church head and granted them only a spiritual power. Thus, Ayvazovsky stated that all the Popes of Rome who considered themselves vicars of the Lord in the secular life and successors of St. Peter the Apostle, might have only a spiritual power. 

The editor of “The Masyats Aghavni” thought that the secular power of Pope Pius IX was a serious obstacle to the liquidation of the political separation of the Italian states. In his understanding, the Italians’ age-long dream to have a united kingdom would be realized only when Pius IX renounced his secular power. Only then the City of Rome would join the Italian Kingdom and become the capital of the whole state.

The editor of the magazine “The Masyats Aghavni’’ in his publications consis­tently asserted that the freedom-loving Italians would be united sooner or later and their declared Italian Kingdom would certainly become one of the European advanced countries.

Գ. Այվազովսկին անընդունելի է համարում Պիուս IX պապի և նրա կարդինալների գործողությունները, ովքեր ջանքեր էին գործադրում և ճնշումներ իրականացնում հավատացյալ ժողովրդի շրջանում՝ Հռոմի Քահանայապետի աշխարհիկ իշխանությունը պահպանելու նպատակով: Նրա համոզմամբ՝ պապականության կողմնակիցները մեծագույն սխալ են թույլ տալիս՝ պնդելով, թե Պապին աշխարհիկ իշխանությունից զրկելու պահանջը վնասում է նրա հոգևոր իշխանությանը: Գ. Այվազովսկին հակադրվում է Պապի աշխարհիկ իշխանության կողմնակիցներին, որոնց համոզմամբ պապերի իշխանությունն աստվածային է, ի վերուստ տրված Քրիստոսի եկեղեցուն, ուստի անսահման հոգևոր ու աշխարհիկ իշխանություն է: «Մասյաց աղավնու» խմբագիրը հերքում է այս մոտեցումը, և վկայակոչելով Ավետարանները, նշում, որ Հիսուս Քրիստոսը երկրային կյանքում փոխանորդ չուներ և իրեն թագավոր չէր համարում: Նա հանդիսանում էր եկեղեցու հիմքը, գլուխը, քահանայապետը, հովվապետը և տերը: Աստված առաքյալներից որևէ մեկին չէր կարգել եկեղեցու գլուխ և շնորհել էր միայն հոգևոր իշխանության և ոչ թե աշխարհիկ: Հետևաբար, եզրակացնում է Գ. Այվազովսկին, Հռոմի պապերը, ովքեր իրենց համարում են Աստծո փոխանորդը երկրային կյանքում և Պետրոս առաքյալի հաջորդը, կարող են ունենալ միայն հոգևոր իշխանություն:

«Մասյաց աղավնու» խմբագիրը գտնում էր, որ Պիուս IX պապի աշխարհիկ իշխանությունը լուրջ խոչընդոտ է իտալական պետությունների քաղաքական մասնատվածությունը վերացնելու հարցում: Նրա կարծիքով միասնական իտալական թագավորություն ունենալու իտալացիների դարավոր բաղձանքը միայն այն ժամանակ կիրականանա, եթե Պիուս IX-ը հրաժարվի իր աշխարհիկ իշխանությունից, որը կմիանա իտալական թագավորությանը, իսկ Հռոմը կդառնա պետության մայրաքաղաքը:

The activities of the Indicative Organization of ARF Dashnakstutyun of Constantino­ple in the months after the Vitosh disaster (1905 March to mid-July) aimed towards finali­za­tion of the organization of assassination of the Bloody Sultan Abdul Hamid II ("The Case of Nzhuyk") are comprehensively analyzed in the current publication.

A number of episodes from the activities of the Responsible-Indicative Organization of ARF Dashnakstutyun of Constantino­ple (almost left out of the historians' sight due to va­rious reasons in the past) are presented in detail based on various sources, including docu­ments from ARF Dashnakstutyun's Boston central archive published for the first time during the last decades.

Based on combined analysis of often contradicting and mutually excluding fac­tual ma­­te­rials, the current publication gives exhaustive answers to several questions which are still de­ba­table nowadays. Particularly, the current publication presents the objective and sub­­jective factors that made the Indicative Organization abandon its preliminary plan after the martyrdom of its leader Kristapor Mikayelyan and choose new tactics of striking the de­ci­sive blow during the last stages of the preparation of "The Case of Nzhuyk".

The current publication also makes important adjustments on the activities of the In­di­cative Organization of ARF Dashnakstutyun, as well as several controversial and contra­dictory issues on "The Case of Nzhuyk" for historians.

The purpose of this article is to present demographic processes in the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Region in the second half of the 1920s – in the 1930s. To achieve this goal, we set the following tasks: to explore the main factors that determine the demographic picture of the autonomous region, to present their consequences and impact on demographic proces­ses. During the research process, various methods were used, such as analysis, comparison and juxtapose of various sources, archival documents, press and other materials.

Exploring the subject-matter theme, we came to conclusion that the demographic processes of the autonomous region were a consequence of the demographic policy of the Azerbaijani authorities, as well as it was conditioned by the socio-economic and socio-political processes of the Soviet Union. In the second half of the 1920s – in the 1930s, the factors determining the demographic processes in the region are grouped into two parts. The first group of factors is the measures taken by the Azerbaijani authorities. These measures inclu­ded the reduction of the region's territory due to administrative changes, the formation of Turkic settlements, measures aimed at eliminating nomadic settlements, the resettlement of the Armenian population to other regions for economic ″justifications″, a deliberate slowdown of the socio-economic development of the region. The second group of factors was associated with socio-economic, socio-political processes that engulfed the entire Soviet Union. These include the processes of collectivization, industrialization and repression in the 1930s.

The article presents the analysis of relevant facts about the active participation of the teaching staff, students and graduates of Yerevan State University and Armenian State Pedagogical University after Kh. Abovyan, in helping Artsakh in its struggle. The war unleashed by Azerbaijan in Artshakh and the bordering areas of the Republic of Armenia, forced the students of operating universities in the capital, first of all a number of YSU faculties, to leave the university studies, create volunteer detach­ments and move to military operations zones. Those who stayed in universities, supported the fighting Artsakh in every possible way. The university students organized helicopter flights, delivering clothes, food, ammunition and basic necessities to Artsakh.

After the victory of the Islamic Revolution in 1979, Iran continues to be a closed country for a number of reasons. In order to ensure the security of the ruling regime and the security of the state, any kind of information is subject to special examination before it becomes available. This is the reason for the small number of scientific researches on the Iranian armed forces. The work is dedica­ted to the study of Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and aims to determine their significance in ensuring stability in the country.

Turkey was preparing to attack the Republic of Armenia in 1920. M. Kemal realized that Russia also had a plan to conquer Transcaucasia, and the division of Transcaucasia between Turkey and Russia seemed more realistic. Turkey had been occupying the internationally recognized territories of the Republic of Armenia since September 1920. According to the US President W. Wilson’s Arbitral Award, 90000 sq. km area of Western Armenia would be given to the Republic of Armenia. Russia set the task to sovietize the region and establish the Soviet regime in the East with Turkey’s support.

Turkey tried to accomplish its unfinished programs in the region in April 2016, encou­raging Azer­baijan to launch military operation against Artsakh, which failed. The power shift in Armenia in 2018 put Turkey in favorable conditions: the society became disunited, income­petent officials were appointed to responsible positions, the highest ranking army officers were persecuted, obvious failures took place in foreign relations. The Covid-19 pandemic, which has been spreading in the region since 2020, placed Armenia under a complete external blockade and thus provided Turkey with new opportunities for its hostility programs.

The article examines the large-scale work done by the Tufenkian Charitable Foundation in the field of the development and implementation of programs aimed at the development of Artsakh's eco­nomy. In addition to investing in Artsakh's economy, the foundation has implemented programs that have enabled people to develop their economy, become owners, stay in bordering villages, create safe and comfortable conditions for resettlement, expand housing, create infrastructure: electricity, roads, drinking water, irrigation, overcome poverty, etc.

The example of the implementation of the sponsorship program of the newly built villa­ge of Arajamugh in the Hadrut region reveals the details of the implementation of a very important economic development program by the Tufenkian Foundation, owing to which three-room houses were built with fenced surrounding. We should note about the financial support for agriculture and livestock development: electricity, sewerage and drinking water systems. To provide jobs for the inhabitants, the foundation has created a 5-hectare pome­granate orchard, and only in 2017 six new houses in the village were commissioned. Owing to the implementation of these economic programs through the efforts of the Foundation, in 2008 Arajamugh village was formed as a separate community, including Arajavan and Araksavan settlements.

The analysis of the relevant facts shows the large-scale economic programs implemen­ted in other regions of Artsakh, especially in Kashatagh, Karvachar, Shushi, Martakert and Mar­tuni regions, in the capital city of Stepanakert, as a result of which many social problems were resolved, educational, cultural and social conditions were improved. From the above-mentioned programs the author highlights the economic programs called "Flour Mill" and "Technical Base", launched in southern Kashatagh in 2005-2007․ These programs became a stimulus especially for the development of the grain production sector.

In the end, the author expresses pain and regret that most of the results of this exten­sive effective work are enjoyed by our neighbor, Azerbaijan, which has great occupier and aggresive aspirations towards Artsakh.

The article presents in details the issues of redeployment of the armed forces in the South Cau­casus in the context of Georgia-US relations, covering the period of 1991-2019. The reasons, expectations and results of the deepening of the military direction of Georgia's military-poli­ti­cal cooperation, its strategic alliance with the United States, are discussed in details. Attention is paid to the steps taken by the United States to withdraw the Russian military bases in Georgia, the policy of deploying American military bases instead, the resulting regional se­curity and stability risks, and the military capabilities and modernization of military equipment in official Tbilisi.

The facts and events prove that with the support of the United States, Saakashvili prepared since 2004 for the return of territories beyond the control of official Tbilisi, even if necessary, through the use of force. The impact of the military and geopolitical changes in Georgia on neighboring countries, particularly – Armenia, are presented as well. The article focuses on the study and analysis of the scope and impact of the agreements concluded between the parties. The beginning, deepening and further developments of the military-political relations between Georgia and the USA are fully emphasized. Special attention was paid to the study of the goals of Georgia-US relations in the post-Soviet period in terms of geopolitical, energy, communication, conceptual and strategic issues in the region, as well as the impact of these issues on the relations between the two countries and regional policy.

The article is devoted to the study of residential complexes of the Armenian popu­lation of the historical province of Agdznik. The author, through a comprehensive study of historiographic and mainly field ethnographic materials recorded by him, revealed a number of peculiar aspects of the subject of research.

1. a) Before the Genocide and the exodus of the Armenians, the Armenian village in Agdznik preserved the ancient custom of settling by kindred clans and even the whole family in a separate settlement, which was dictated by socio-economic and defensive considerations. Consequently, one of the characteristic features of the settlement was the cohesion of housing complexes under one common roof, thus the village plan strove for roundness.
2. b) For centuries, not only this region, but almost all of historical Armenia was a cross­road for the movement of foreign invaders, because of which the Armenian settlements for defensive reasons were compressed, suppressed and crumpled, very often closed, narrowed rural paths.
3. c) Rural settlements appeared as adjoining to each other, connected to each other from the inside and outside of the complex of houses, the roofs of which turned into paths, sites for collective work, meetings, celebrations.
4. d) For the organization of self-defense and in order to avoid robbery and insult by the invaders, they were forced to build for the often repeated "hospitality" of travelers, isolated communal hotels in the air.
5. e) Here for a long time, almost invariably, the custom of cohabitation by families of a clan persisted, which very often led to the emergence of clan settlements.
6. f) Living in scattered houses, which is also stated by the testimony of the medieval histo­riographer Tovma Artsruni, was due to the fragmentation of the terrain, inaccessibility, the need to have land plots near the forest, fertilize fields with animal dung, be closer to pastures, winter feed for livestock, the exclusion of the almost impossibility of transporting goods.

With the creation of the Soviet Union and the Sovie­tization of Transcaucasia, the process of nation-building in Azerbaijan entered a new phase. The Soviet leadership considered Kemalist Turkey and Azerbaijan as a means of spreading socialism in the Muslim East, which is the reason for the special policy of the Union center towards Azerbaijan. Soviet Azerbaijan went through several stages of identity search. In Stalin’s understanding of the nation, the territory had an important place. The state policy of Soviet Azerbaijan was carried out by the logic of this understanding. The policy of the Azerbaijani authorities towards the NKAO also had a component of cultural appropriation. “Albanization” of the cultural layer of Artsakh, especially churches, spiritual structures, had the task of excluding the authenticity of the autochthonousness of local Armenians, calling the Azerbaijanis the true “historical master” of the NKAO territory. The logic of this policy, which dates back to the Soviet period, Azerbaijan continues to this day.

Khachkar (cross-stone) represents the whole way and process of salvation of man­kind in a symbolic way, and it is also the condensed and allegorical image of the whole universe. Almighty God – Jesus Christ is in the centre of khachkar in the form of the cross. Heaven-Earth vertical divisions are clearly expressed on the khachkar – stair-like pedestal representing Golgotha, which was then replaced with rosette symbolizing the Earth, which has the image of the head (skull) of Adam on it, as the symbol of sinful mankind, the cross, as the Tree of Life or stairs, through which the soul of human being rises up to the sky, and the cornice symbolizing the Heaven sometimes with the images of Christ, apostles and saints. God, coming down to the Earth, was born as a Human Being, in order to raise the sinful mankind to the Heaven through the cross. The Cross, as the Tree of Life, connects the sky and the Earth, and it includes the whole world with its four wings. And the unrepeatable interlace ornaments are aimed to have emotional influence on the souls of people to make them better perceive the Christian truths.

The purpose of this article is to unveil solutions used for the interior of Cinema “Hoktember” (in Gyumri), which is of historical and cultural value, to explain and analyze its stylistic, ergonomic, zoning, redesign, compositional, and formal features. The research also re-visits the chronology of the cinema style changes and phases as well as analyzes the baseline points and the current situation of the building.

The research is anchored on historic, analytic and comparative methods in terms of appreciation of experience of the past, and henceforth for future implementation of exact design and proper construction and organization of spectating space of such buildings. It is also important for maintenance, preservation and rehabilitation of similar type of buildings of historic value.

The contemporary Iranian artist Farah Ossuli (born 1953), being inspired by classical Persian literature, has em­bodied in her oeuvre her own perception of a woman’s essence. Employing various techniques, she reflected in her canvases the work of poets coming from different eras, including Firdausi, Hafez, Nizami, Forugh Farrohzad, Sohrab Sepehri, and others.

Our goal is, through analysis of some of the pictures, encouraged by Hafez’s gazelles (“The Birth of Venus”, “Dawn”, “Paradise”, “The Creation of Adam”, “Moon and Sun”, “Cros­sing the Sky”, “My Bird, Your Cage”), to define the commonalities of thoughts between a 21^st century artist and a 14^th century poet. During 4 years, Ossuli had created canvases inspired by 50 gazelles of Hafez, each of them drawing on one gazelle – in full, in part, or even on a single line.

Hafez’s oeuvre contributed to the formation of Farah Ossuli’s own style in art. The out­standingly meaningful gazelles, created by the poet, facilitated the creation of no less meaningful and multifarious paintings, however, not always easily perceived by an ordinary spectator.

The Aragatsotn region of the Republic of Armenia is rich in historical and cultural monuments, monasteries. The article provides an analysis of some historical and cultural monuments of Aragatsotn region, which can be turned into tourist attractions. An analysis of the tourism infrastructure of the region was carried out. In order to identify the problems of tourism development in the region, SWOT analysis was carried out in the article, as a result of which the necessary conclusions and recommendations were made for the development of tourism in the region. Touristic routes have been proposed․

The present paper addresses one of the ways of connecting sentence parts, i.e. the agreement, and its expression in the “History of the Armenians” by the remarkable Armenian historian of the 13th century, Kirakos Gandzaketsi. Before referring to the characteristics of the sentence structures found in the work of Gandzaketsi, the overall syntactic picture and the agreement peculiarities between the sentence parts in Old (Classical) Armenian (Grabar) and Middle Armenian (Cilician Armenian), as well as the differences existing in the above-mentioned stages of the language development are briefly presented. Afterwards, the reflec­tion of the latter in the aforementioned work is discussed in detail. Even though Kirakos Gan­dzaketsi lived and worked in the period during which Middle Armenian was in use, mainly Old Arme­nian/Grabar syntactic patterns are observed in his “History of the Armenians”. The ag­reement between sentence parts is expressed mostly in accordance with the peculiarities of the syn­tac­tic system of Old Armenian/Grabar. However, the historian who lived and worked in the Middle Armenian period was predominantly guided by the grammar patterns of Old Arme­nian/Grabar. This is explained by the fact that Kirakos Gandzaketsi, being a historian, re­pre­sents the branch of historiography, and thus referring to the history of a certain period, should remain close to the spirit of the very period, including the peculiarities of the grammatical sys­tem. As for the agreement between the word combinations found in the work at issue, it should be noted that here again Kirakos Gandzaketsi followed the grammatical patterns of Old Armenian/Grabar. Examples of the connection of both the main and secondary parts of the sentence, in which the patterns of agreement typical of Old Armenian/Grabar prevail, are identified in the whole work.

The letters published in this article are part of an extensive correspondence of the well-known Social Democrat, Marxist historian and publicist David Ananun (1880-1943). They were specially selected to clarify the nature of his relationship with the famous historian, statesman, Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist (Bolshevik) Part of Soviet Armenia in 1922-1927, Ashot Hov­hannisyan (1886-1972). At the same time, these letters show the influence of these relations on the fate of D. Ananun.

The presented letters contain interesting information about the interpersonal relations between D. Ananun and A. Hovhannisyan, and also contribute to the expansion of our under­standing of the social and political life of the 1910-1920s in Armenia and the Caucasus.

The article examines the impact of using primary and secondary sources during history classes to develop learners' historical and critical thinking. The author starts from the research hypothesis that the skills needed and developed while working with various sources contribute to the deve­lopment of historical thinking and critical thinking as well as information analysis, interpretation, evaluation, and decision-making skills. The author tested the hypothesis in one of the schools of Yerevan during action research. The research results confirm the positive effect of the chosen method on developing the learners' above-mentioned thinking skills and discuss specific difficulties and limitations that arise during its application.

Debates are an effective means of teaching students the ability to clearly and logically formulate their posi­tion, find convincing facts and arguments in support of the ideas put forward. The skills acqui­red in the process of preparing for participation in debates are applicable in many scientific fields, as well as in everyday life. The implementation of the "Debates" method in the educa­tional process contributes to: the development of communicative skills – the ability to listen and hear the interlocutor, the ability to empathize with others and show solidarity with them, and the development of oratorical abilities – public speaking skills, self-confidence.

Debates are not just an exciting activity, an interesting lesson, but also an effective me­ans for the development of students, the formation of their competencies necessary and use­ful for successful life in modern society, in particular, the competence related to commu­ni­ca­tion. Debates also form students' understanding of the structure of speech. An example of a plot speech in a debate can be the speech plan of the first speaker: greeting the audience — introducing the team and himself — introduction (justification of the relevance of the topic) - defining the concepts of the topic — putting forward a criterion — argumentation-conclusion — gratitude for attention. Students' understanding of the structural and plot schemes of the de­bate speech will allow them to make a clear plan for most public speeches in the future.

The issue of leadership among servicemen in the Armed Forces is subject to multifactorial, comprehensive measurement, for the purpose of which this article is based on military-sociological methodology, and thus the sociometric method is applied. The importance of sociometric studies in the RA Armed Forces is conditioned especially by the fact that the mixed principle of recruitment (combination of conscription and contract principles), as well as the combination of formal and informal groups, leadership models in the military staff and relative conflicts create the need to constantly monitor and manage the human factor of social processes taking place within the army. The application of the method made it possible to find the measurement of leadership among servicemen, identifying informal leaders.