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About
Armenians
Christianity and Armenian Culture
Invention
of Armenian Alphabet
Creative
Religious and Historical Writings
Music
Architecture
Sculptures
and Cross-works (Khachkar)
Paintings
1700 Years of Christianity - Exhibit
History of Texas Armenians
Famous American Armenians
FAQs
About
Armenians
Ancient Armenia
The Armenian nation entered upon the arena of history some 600 years B.C.
Present day research has established that the Armenians are descendants
of the Urartians, and were occupying the plain of Ararat since at least
the second millennium. The Urartians had attained a high level of civilization
which determined the cultural future of ancient Armenia. Cuneiform writing,
agriculture, animal husbandry, horticulture and metallurgy were all part
of the Urartian civilization. The Urartians used highly developed techniques
of irrigation and construction of fortified cities. In fact, one of the
Urartian canals is still in operation today in the city of Van (now Turkey).
The fall of the Urartian kingdom allowed the stronger, more powerful people
of that region, the Hays, to give rise to their nation - Armenia.
Religion
Armenians
hold the distinction of being the first nation to declare Christianity
as its state religion in 301 A.D., when King Trdat III and St. Gregory
the Illuminator, the first bishop of Armenia converted the Armenians to
Christianity. Prior to this event, the Apostles Thaddeus and Bartholomew
had reached Armenia during the middle of the first century and preached
Christianity secretly.
The first Cathedral
in Etchmiadzin was erected by Trdat and Gregory in the year 303 A.D. The
Cathedral became the seat of the Catholicate near Yerevan, the present
capital of Armenia, where the head of the Armenian Church, His Holiness
the Catholicos has resided ever since. The present Patriarch Catholicos
in Etchmiadzin is the 130th from St. Gregory the Illuminator.
Ecclesiastical
Architecture
Scholars
believe that Armenian churches were the prototype of the Gothic style.
According to them, the 4th century Armenian churches were the first to
introduce the square building with a single dome and niches which served
as houses of worship. Among the oldest Armenians churches are the Cathedral
of Etchmiadzin (4th century), the Avan church (6th century), St. Hripsime
church (7th century), and the Cathedral of Ani (10th century).
Armenian Language
and Alphabet
The Armenian
language is an independent branch of the Indo-European family. It is an
extremely precise language and was recommended by anthropologist Margaret
Mead for use as an international language.
The Armenian alphabet
was invented by the scribe Mesrobe Mashtots in 404 A.D., to facilitate
the creation of Christian literature, primarily to translate the Bible
into Armenian. It contains 36 letters. Following the religious literature,
Armenian historiography flourished during the subsequent centuries and
the history of Armenia was introduced to the civilized world.
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