History of the Armenians

Armenians (self-designation - Hay) are the indigenous people of the Armenian Highlands. The Armenian language forms a separate branch of the Indo-European family.

Armenia and the diaspora: Russia, Georgia, Iran, the countries of the Middle East, Europe and America. The figure in the fact bar refers only to ethnic Armenians of the Republic of Armenia according to the 2022 census.

9th–6th centuries BCE. The kingdom of Van, Urartu. An important stage in the history of the Armenian Highlands; Urartian and Armenian are different languages. Second half of the 6th century BCE. Early written mentions. The unambiguous mentions of Armenia and the Armenians in the Persian and Greek traditions date to this time. 95–55 BCE. The reign of Tigranes II. The Armenian kingdom becomes a significant power of the Hellenistic world. 1st–3rd centuries CE. Between Rome and Parthia. The political history of the kingdom is connected with the rivalry of neighboring powers and local dynasties. 2nd–3rd centuries. Early spread of Christianity. Christian preaching and communities precede the conversion of the royal court.

Beginning of the 4th century. Conversion of the royal authority. The traditional date is 301; scholarly discussion includes 314–315. This concerns the beginning of a long Christianization. 325. Participation of Aristakes in the Council of Nicaea. The successor of Gregory the Illuminator participates in the council; this episode is examined in critical research on the tradition of Agathangelos. Around 405–406. The Armenian alphabet. Mesrop Mashtots creates the script; translations and original literature develop. 428. Dvin as the center of Persian Armenia. After the abolition of the Arsacid kingdom, the administration of the marzpan is located here; later Dvin also becomes an ecclesiastical center. 5th century. Christian authors on former cults. Written testimonies preserve the names of pre-Christian deities and descriptions of sanctuaries.

451. Battle of Avarayr. The religious resistance is connected with the policy of the Sasanian state; the event becomes an important part of historical memory. 451. Council of Chalcedon. The Armenian Church does not accept its doctrinal definition; the subsequent formulation of its position takes time. Second half of the 5th century. The Armenian recension of Agathangelos. The well-known text about the conversion of Armenia takes shape substantially later than the events it describes. 505/506. Council of Dvin. The first council belongs to one of the stages in the formation of the church's position; the dating and subsequent decisions are studied separately. 552–555. Second Council of Dvin. The dating remains disputed: 552, 554 and 555 are proposed; the condemnation of the Chalcedonian definition is associated with the council.

Middle Ages. Communities and ties with Iran. Migrations, trade networks and cultural contacts expand the geography of Armenian life. 10th–13th centuries. Monastic culture of Lori. Haghpat and Sanahin become significant centers of architecture, scholarship and religious life. 13th century. Flourishing of the Geghard complex. Significant parts of the monastic ensemble are created, including the rock-cut chambers. 1375. Fall of the Cilician kingdom. The end of the kingdom is accompanied by further movement of Armenian communities. 1441. Catholicosate in Etchmiadzin. The catholicosate in Etchmiadzin is restored; the Cilician catholicosate continues to exist.

1512. The first Armenian printed book. "Urbatagirk" is published in Venice; the history of the Armenian printed book begins. 1666. The first complete printed Armenian Bible. The edition of Voskan Yerevantsi appears in Amsterdam. 1717. The Mekhitarists on San Lazzaro. The Armenian Catholic monastery in Venice develops as a center of books and scholarship. 1733. The Bible of Mekhitar of Sebastia. A new Armenian edition appears in Venice, continuing the printing tradition. 1742. Armenian Catholic patriarchate. The Pope confirms the patriarchal ministry of Abraham Ardzivian; Catholic communities had existed earlier as well.

1794. The journal "Azdarar". The first Armenian periodical appears in Madras. 19th century. New literary norms. The Eastern Armenian and Western Armenian norms become established in print, school and literature. 1846. Armenian Evangelical Church. A new Armenian Evangelical community is formed in Constantinople. End of the 19th century. Regional costume in photography. F. Orden photographs an Armenian girl from Shamakhi; the portrait records a specific local image. 1899. Komitas completes his studies in Berlin. Scholarly and performing work combines the study of folk music with professional training.

1907. Komitas' musical work in Europe. Publications and performances introduce a new audience to the Armenian musical tradition. 1915–1916. The Armenian Genocide. Mass killings, deportations and the destruction of communities in the Ottoman Empire change the fate of the people and the diaspora. 1918. The First Republic of Armenia. State and diplomatic institutions of the new republic emerge. 16 May 1919. Founding of Yerevan University. A decision is adopted to establish a university, important for higher education and science. 1920. Establishment of Soviet power. The period of the First Republic ends; a new stage of state history begins.

1946. Byurakan Observatory. An astrophysics research center linked to the development of Armenian and world science is founded. 1991. Independent Republic of Armenia. After the collapse of the USSR, an internationally recognized independent statehood takes shape. 1996. Haghpat in World Heritage. UNESCO includes the monastery in the list of protected monuments. 2000. Expansion of recognition of architectural heritage. Sanahin is added to the Haghpat site; Geghard and the Echmiadzin complex with Zvartnots are also included. 2005. The duduk receives UNESCO recognition. The duduk and its music are proclaimed a masterpiece of oral and intangible heritage.

2008. The duduk in the Representative List. The tradition is included in the new Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage. 2010. The craft of making khachkars. UNESCO recognizes the symbolism, carving skills and transmission of the craft. 2012. The epic "Sasna tsrer" in the UNESCO list. The living performance tradition of the Armenian epic is recognized. 2014. The cultural practice of lavash. The preparation, significance and use of lavash in Armenia are included in the UNESCO list. 2 October 2016. Documentary photograph of Geghard. A photograph by Diego Delso is used on the page with attribution and license.

2017. International recognition of kochari. The collective dance is included in the intangible heritage list. 2019. The art of Armenian writing. UNESCO recognizes the living cultural practice of designing and using letters. 2022. Census of the population of Armenia. 2,875,697 ethnic Armenians were counted; the figure refers to the country and the census year. September 2023. Arrival of refugees from Karabakh. Mass forced displacement requires humanitarian aid and support for families. 2023. The blacksmithing tradition of Gyumri. UNESCO includes the craftsmanship of local blacksmiths in the Representative List.

The Armenian language forms a separate branch of the Indo-European family. Centuries-long contacts with Iranian languages left a significant layer of borrowings, yet Armenian does not belong to the Iranian group.

Modern written Armenian is represented by the Eastern Armenian and Western Armenian literary standards. Eastern Armenian is the state language of Armenia; it is also widespread in the diaspora. The Western Armenian tradition is preserved in many communities abroad. Dialectal diversity is broader than this division.

The alphabet of Mesrop Mashtots was created at the beginning of the 5th century and initially contained 36 letters; later the script was supplemented with new signs. Grabar, the language of early literature and worship, differs from modern spoken Armenian.

Eastern Armenian has no grammatical gender. Number, case and definiteness of the noun are expressed by endings and suffixes; in conjugation, combinations of a participle with an auxiliary verb are widely used.

Before the adoption of Christianity. The pre-Christian religious culture combined local, Iranian and Hellenistic traditions. Among the known deities are Aramazd, Anahit, Vahagn and Mihr. The reconstruction of the old cults is limited by their late documentation and the influence of Christian interpretation.

Adoption of Christianity. The royal court adopted the new faith at the beginning of the 4th century under Trdat III and Gregory the Illuminator; 301 is the traditional date. The Christianization of the population continued for longer. Mashtots' alphabet made it possible to translate the Scriptures and to create Armenian theological literature.

Armenian Apostolic Church. It belongs to the ancient Eastern churches. It recognizes the first three Ecumenical Councils but does not accept the doctrinal definition of the Council of Chalcedon of 451. It preserves its own liturgical traditions and the use of Grabar.

Religious diversity. Among Armenians there are also Catholics, Protestants and secular people. The Armenian Catholic Church preserves the Armenian rite and is in communion with Rome. Nationality by itself does not determine religious affiliation.