Gale
06-16-2009, 12:36 PM
More things not to think about.
Armenia, actually Christian Armenia is a small country surrounded by non-Christian countries, how unusual is that?
What is its history, what are some of its archeological discoveries? Who are its people? I find this very interesting.
Noah and Ararat.
Immodestly, Armenians consider themselves direct descendants of Noah, survivor of the Biblical flood. According to Genesis, ...the boat came to rest on a mountain in the Ararat range. Ararat, located in the heart of Armenia, was a Holy Mountain for the peoples of the ancient world. Many ancient scriptures placed the Biblical Garden of Eden in the Land of Armenia also called the Land of Ararat.
Tradition states that Noah founded Nakhichevan, the oldest of the Armenian cities. Moses Khorenatsi , historian of the 5th century, presents a detailed genealogy of the Armenian forefather Haik from Japheth, Noah's son. Thus, the territory of the Armenian Plateau is regarded as the cradle of civilization, the initial point for the further spreading of mankind all around the world.
The oldest myths reflect the wars of ancient Armenians against the neighboring Assyrians. Haik, considered the patriarch of the Armenian people, led his army to defeat the Assyrian giant Baeleus. By approximately 2100 BC, a prototype of the first Armenian state was founded. Even now, Armenians call themselves Hai (pronounced high), and their country - Haik or Haiastan, in honor of Haik. The Hittite scripts also mention a Haiasa country. Meanwhile, the Assyrian cuneiform writings designate Armenia as Urartu (Arartu), which means Ararat. The Old Testament also associates Armenia with the Mount Ararat (the Kingdom of Ararat).
In ancient times, Armenia was equally associated with the rivers Tigris, Euphrates, Araks and Kura. That is why the neighboring Assyrians also called Armenia, Nairi, standing for Riverland, Country of Rivers.
Haik, once thought to be just a hero of an epic legend, is presently accepted by some researches as an actual chieftain of Armens in the 3rd millennium BC. Historians proved that later Haik was deified and proclaimed the prime god in the pantheon of gods in the pagan Armenia.
Armenian History (http://www.armenianhistory.info/origins.htm)
By the 9th century B.C., a confederation of local tribes flourished as the unified state of Urartu. It grew to become one of the strongest kingdoms in the Near East and constituted a formidable rival to Assyria for supremacy in the region. The Urartians produced and exported wares of ceramic, stone and metal, building fortresses, temples, palaces and other large public works. One of their irrigation canals is still used today in Yerevan, Armenia's capital - a city which stands upon the ancient Urartian fortress of Erebuni.
Armenian History (http://www.hyeetch.nareg.com.au/armenians/history_p1.html)
The preliminary studies of the findings have shown the city of Tigranakert existed without interruption from the very day of its founding in the 1st century BC until the 13th-14th centuries AD.
The group has also studied the monastery complex craved in the rock in the Khachenaget valley.
According to Hamlet Petrosyan, the cave complex of Khachenaget is a church, a porch and a graveyard also carved in the rock. There, early Christian cross compositions and Greek inscriptions have been found.
The archeologist says the Khachenaget complex is known also to Azerbaijanis, who have considered it a complex of early (Caucasian) Albanian period, but the numerous archeological materials are distinctly Armenian.
The study has also discovered a system of water supply.
“The discovery of the city founded by the most famous Armenian King Tigran the Great is the greatest proof the lands have historically been Armenian. The government of Karabakh and the officials consider this a great victory today,” says Artsruni.
Landlocked Proof?: Scientists say Aghdam holds remains of Tigranakert (http://armenianow.com/?action=viewArticle&AID=1661&CID=1793&IID=&lng=eng)
Armenia, actually Christian Armenia is a small country surrounded by non-Christian countries, how unusual is that?
What is its history, what are some of its archeological discoveries? Who are its people? I find this very interesting.
Noah and Ararat.
Immodestly, Armenians consider themselves direct descendants of Noah, survivor of the Biblical flood. According to Genesis, ...the boat came to rest on a mountain in the Ararat range. Ararat, located in the heart of Armenia, was a Holy Mountain for the peoples of the ancient world. Many ancient scriptures placed the Biblical Garden of Eden in the Land of Armenia also called the Land of Ararat.
Tradition states that Noah founded Nakhichevan, the oldest of the Armenian cities. Moses Khorenatsi , historian of the 5th century, presents a detailed genealogy of the Armenian forefather Haik from Japheth, Noah's son. Thus, the territory of the Armenian Plateau is regarded as the cradle of civilization, the initial point for the further spreading of mankind all around the world.
The oldest myths reflect the wars of ancient Armenians against the neighboring Assyrians. Haik, considered the patriarch of the Armenian people, led his army to defeat the Assyrian giant Baeleus. By approximately 2100 BC, a prototype of the first Armenian state was founded. Even now, Armenians call themselves Hai (pronounced high), and their country - Haik or Haiastan, in honor of Haik. The Hittite scripts also mention a Haiasa country. Meanwhile, the Assyrian cuneiform writings designate Armenia as Urartu (Arartu), which means Ararat. The Old Testament also associates Armenia with the Mount Ararat (the Kingdom of Ararat).
In ancient times, Armenia was equally associated with the rivers Tigris, Euphrates, Araks and Kura. That is why the neighboring Assyrians also called Armenia, Nairi, standing for Riverland, Country of Rivers.
Haik, once thought to be just a hero of an epic legend, is presently accepted by some researches as an actual chieftain of Armens in the 3rd millennium BC. Historians proved that later Haik was deified and proclaimed the prime god in the pantheon of gods in the pagan Armenia.
Armenian History (http://www.armenianhistory.info/origins.htm)
By the 9th century B.C., a confederation of local tribes flourished as the unified state of Urartu. It grew to become one of the strongest kingdoms in the Near East and constituted a formidable rival to Assyria for supremacy in the region. The Urartians produced and exported wares of ceramic, stone and metal, building fortresses, temples, palaces and other large public works. One of their irrigation canals is still used today in Yerevan, Armenia's capital - a city which stands upon the ancient Urartian fortress of Erebuni.
Armenian History (http://www.hyeetch.nareg.com.au/armenians/history_p1.html)
The preliminary studies of the findings have shown the city of Tigranakert existed without interruption from the very day of its founding in the 1st century BC until the 13th-14th centuries AD.
The group has also studied the monastery complex craved in the rock in the Khachenaget valley.
According to Hamlet Petrosyan, the cave complex of Khachenaget is a church, a porch and a graveyard also carved in the rock. There, early Christian cross compositions and Greek inscriptions have been found.
The archeologist says the Khachenaget complex is known also to Azerbaijanis, who have considered it a complex of early (Caucasian) Albanian period, but the numerous archeological materials are distinctly Armenian.
The study has also discovered a system of water supply.
“The discovery of the city founded by the most famous Armenian King Tigran the Great is the greatest proof the lands have historically been Armenian. The government of Karabakh and the officials consider this a great victory today,” says Artsruni.
Landlocked Proof?: Scientists say Aghdam holds remains of Tigranakert (http://armenianow.com/?action=viewArticle&AID=1661&CID=1793&IID=&lng=eng)