Հայք Hayk’ is the nominative plural in Classical Armenian of հայ (hay), the Armenian term for "Armenian." This would indicate two scenarios—either Media subsequently conquered Urartu, bringing about its subsequent demise, or Urartu maintained its independence and power, going through a mere dynastic change, as a local Armenian dynasty or dynasties (the Haykazunis and/or the Orontids) overthrew the ruling family with the help of the Median army. [93] The Armenian hypothesis supports the theory that the Urartian language was not spoken, but simply written, and postulates that the Armenian language as an in situ development of a 3rd millennium BC Proto-Indo-European language.[93]. People have inhabited the Armenian Highlands since the Stone Age. Hittite inscriptions deciphered in the 1920s by the Swiss scholar Emil Forrer testify to the existence of a mountain country, the Hayasa and/or the Azzi, lying around Lake Van. Armenian history,' said Hovann Simonian, a historian of Armenia affiliated with the University of Southern California. However, this is an etiological tag added by the ethnographer responsible for the list who felt an obligation to explain where each of the ethnic groups came from – the ancient Armenians themselves seem to have no knowledge of their ancestors' migration from Phrygia.[26]. In particular, Movses Khorenatsi writes that the Armenian king Skayordi Haykazuni was a political foe of Assyria during the reign of Sennacherib (705-681 BCE), which would have been contemporaneous with the rule of Argishti II. about 500 years ago between western and eastern Armenians. Being heirs to the Urartian realm, the earliest identifiable ancestors of the Armenians are the peoples of Urartu. Various other unnamed Armenian rebels, hosts, armies, and leaders who rejected Darius' authority in Armenia. At Dyutsaznamart (Armenian: Դյուցազնամարտ, "Battle of Giants"), near Julamerk southeast of Lake Van, on August 11, 2492 BC (according to the Armenian traditional chronology) or 2107 BC (according to "The Chronological table" of Mikael Chamchian), Hayk slew Bel with a nearly impossible shot using a long bow, sending the king's forces into disarray. The Everlasting Shoe: What Does This 5,500-Year-old Shoe Found in a Cave Tell Us About Ancient Armenians? Bel sent one of his sons to entreat him to return, but was refused. This passage has often been cited to explain the origin of the Armenians and the introduction of the Proto-Armenian language into the South Caucasus region. Thutmose III of Egypt, also mentions the people of Ermenen in 1446 BC, and says in their land "heaven rests upon its four pillars" (Thutmose was the first Pharoah to cross the Euphrates to reach the Armenian Highlands). pp.140, 146. The origin of the Armenians is a topic about the emergence of the Armenian people and the country called Armenia.The earliest universally accepted reference to the people and the country dates back to the 6th century BC Behistun Inscription, followed by several Greek fragments and books. Historians and Armenologists have attempted to explain the origin of the Armenian people, but nothing conclusive has been discovered as of yet. Assyrian and Sumerian sources dating from the end of the third millenium B.C. Martiros Kavoukjian, "The Genesis of Armenian People", Montreal, 1982. International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, 1915, Petrosyan, Armen (2002), The Indo-European and Ancient Near Eastern Sources of the Armenian Epic. According to the Armenian tradition, the Medes helped the Armenians establish the Orontid (Yervanduni) dynasty. `This DNA study confirms in general outline much of what we know about The following cultures, peoples and polities have all been suggested to have contributed to the ethnogenesis of the Armenian people.[42][43][44][45]. The ancient village of Noratus, in the Gegharkunik region of Armenia , is a hidden gem with a number of historical monuments. civilizations of the eastern Mediterranean suddenly collapsed, an event The kingdom rose to power in the mid-9th century BC, but went into gradual decline and was eventually conquered by the Iranian Medes in the early 6th century BC. Bel decided to march against him with a massive force, but Hayk was warned ahead of time by Kadmos of his pending approach. Native gods and goddesses worshiped included Ar (Arev, Areg), Angegh, Astghik, Ayg, Vanatur, and others. Tribal names such as Uduri, Uelikuni, Lusa, as well as the personal name Diasuni, may be of Armenian origins. The isolation was probably sustained by the many characteristic aspects of Tomb of the Lord of Sipan, Mochican Warrior Priest, The human skull that challenges the Out of Africa theory. This alphabetic writing system was developed during the 5th century AD and is still in use today. This intermixing would ultimately culminate in the emergence of the Armenians as the dominant polity and culture of the Armenian Highlands, and as the direct successors and inheritors of the Urartian domain.[38][39][40][41]. According to Khorenatsi, Media conquered Armenia only much later—under Astyages. The Greeks applied this name to all of Asia Minor." But proud Hayk refused to submit to Bel. ancient records. [77] Hayk is also the name of the Orion constellation in the Armenian translation of the Bible. The goal of Ancient Origins is to highlight recent archaeological discoveries, peer-reviewed academic research and evidence, as well as offering alternative viewpoints and explanations of science, archaeology, mythology, religion and history around the globe. Are These The Real Roots of Civilization? According to Professor James R. Russell of Harvard University, the Georgian designation for Armenians Somekhi, preserves the old name of the Mushki. Hayk and his people, from the time of their forefathers Noah and Japheth, had migrated south toward the warmer lands near Babylon. One of Hayk's most famous scions, Aram, settled in Eastern Armenia from the Mitanni kingdom (Western Armenia), when Sargon II mentions a king of part of Armenia who bore the (Armenian-Indo-Iranian) name Bagatadi ("Theodore"). Leiden University: 9. There are about 3 million people in Armenia, of which about 98% are ethnic Armenian. "Origins and Historical Development of the Armenian Language". the name Hay -- pronounced HIGH, the name that the Armenian people call themselves after their deity of the Divine Essence, it is interesting to note here that the only ancient people, besides the Armenians, that called Armenians -- Hay[asa], were the Hittites, it is highly probable that the Indo-European Hittites were also Armenian in origin, Movses gave Hayk's genealogy as follows: Japhet, Gomer & Tiras, Torgom, Hayk, and his descendants as Armanak, Aramais, Amasya, Gegham, Harma, Aram and Ara Geghetsik. discuss their results for fear of jeopardizing publication in a journal [78] Similarly, Strabo (1st century BC – 1st century AD) wrote that "[i]n ancient times Greater Armenia ruled the whole of Asia, after it broke up the empire of the Syrians, but later, in the time of Astyages, it was deprived of that great authority [...]. La cuisine, étant aussi ancienne que le peuple, es… Sanger Institute, near Cambridge in England, see long-isolated populations "[59], However, despite Diakonoff's claims, the connection between the Mushki and Armenian languages is unknown and some modern scholars have rejected a direct linguistic relationship if the Mushki were Thracians or Phrygians. Geneticists have scanned the genomes of 173 Armenians from Armenia and He was a man of giant stature, a mighty archer and fearless warrior. It has been speculated that this was an Indo-European culture. Hint: NOT Columbus! about Celestial Maps of Gegham Mountain: The Unique Rock Art of Armenia, about Serpent Stones: The Vishap Steles of Armenia as a Symbol of Rock Art and Rich Heritage, about Vahagn: The Armenian Dragon Slayer God and Bringer of Fire, about The Legacy of Armenia: Trade, Metallurgy, and Forging of Precious Metals of the Ancient World, Great Chain of The Golden Horn: Constantinople’s Impenetrable Barrier. The Achaemenid province – Encyclopaedia Iranica", "Digital Fragmenta Historicorum Graecorum (DFHG)", "Xenophon, Cyropaedia, Book 3, chapter 1", "Strabo, Geography, Book 11, chapter 13, section 5", http://www.attalus.org/armenian/diakph11.htm, "Greco-Armenian: the persistence of a myth", "Date of Armenia's Birth, Given in 5th Century, Gains Credence", https://www.academia.edu/33109045/Indo-European_wel-_in_Armenian_mythology._Journal_of_Indo-European_studies_2016_1-2_pp._129-146, https://ling.hse.ru/data/2014/09/01/1313574129/Hrach%20Martirosyan%20-%20Handout.pdf, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Origin_of_the_Armenians&oldid=980719706, Articles with Armenian-language sources (hy), Articles with unsourced statements from May 2020, Articles with unsourced statements from July 2010, Articles lacking reliable references from November 2018, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Some modern researchers have placed Armani (Armi) in the general area of modern Samsat,[49] and have suggested it was populated, at least partially, by an early Indo-European-speaking people. Mount Shasta: Spirits and Danger on a Sacred California Mountain, Mysterious Worlds: Travels to the Faerie and Shamanic Realms, Pharaoh Akhenaten: An Alternative View of the Heretic King, Understanding the Swinging Seismographic Gavazan Column at Tatev Monastery, The Cult of Mithra: Sacred Temples, and Vedic Legends, and Ancient Armenian Understanding, Amazon Warrior Discovered in Ancient Armenian Grave, Zorats Karer: The Incredible History of the 7,500-year-old Armenian Stonehenge, The Khachkar Stones of Noratus and a Peculiar Resistance of the Invasion of Tamerlane, Orbelian’s Caravanserai: A Lasting Sanctuary for Travelers Along the Silk Road. like that of the Armenians as a means of reconstructing population history. Others see Hayasa and Azzi as identical. There is evidence of Neolithic, Chalcolithic, and Bronze Age cultures in lands historically and presently inhabited by Armenian people, dating to about 4000 BC. the Armenian Apostolic Church was the first branch of Christianity to the other Indo-European tribes, went towards north or south, towards more fertile areas in Europe and India, while some decided to stay in Persia. They found that the Armenians are a mix of ancient populations The inscription is also written three languages – in Old Persian, Elamite, and in the Babylonian dialect of Akkadian – and is the last known encounter of the name Urartu/Urashtu in reference to the Armenia.[25]. Since ancient times, demand for metals has been a big part of commercial exchange between countries separated by great distance. As the Macedonians say, these Phrygians were called Briges as long as they dwelt in Europe, where they were neighbors of the Macedonians; but when they changed their home to Asia, they changed their name also and were called Phrygians. http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/11/science/study-backs-5th-century-historians-date-for-founding-of-armenia.html. 5,300-year-old mummy emerged in 1991 from a melting Alpine glacier. [64][65] However, as others have placed (at least the Eastern) Mushki homeland in the Armenian Highlands and South Caucasus region, it is possible that at least some of the Mushki were Armenian-speakers or speakers of a closely related language. corresponds to the onset of wars between the Ottoman and Safavid dynasties Armenian culture. The ancient origins of the legendary griffin, The Real Story of Medusa: Protective Powers from a Snake-Haired Gorgon, A Pilgrimage of Thought: The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri, Surprising Stone Age Knowledge Revealed on a Mammoth Bone Bracelet, Ten amazing inventions from ancient times, Secrets Behind the Creepy Plague Doctor Mask and Costume. [68][69][70], Pliny in the 1st century AD mentions the Moscheni in southern Armenia ("Armenia" at the time stretching south and west to the Mediterranean, bordering on Cappadocia). Tiridates III of Armenia (238–314) made Christianity the state religion in 301,[103][104] partly, in defiance of the Sasanian Empire, it seems,[105] becoming the first officially Christian state, ten years before the Roman Empire granted Christianity an official toleration under Galerius, and 36 years before Constantine the Great was baptised. Armenologist Armen Petrosyan proposed that the powerful Etiuni confederation, located in what is now the territory of northeastern Turkey and Armenia, may have been the name the Urartians used to refer to Armenian-speaking tribes. According to Armenian tradition, the city of Mazaca was founded by and named after Mishak (Misak, Moshok), a cousin and general of the legendary patriarch Aram. The earliest religious beliefs of Armenians are believed to have been a blend of Indo-European, Mesopotamian, and native Anatolian beliefs. Academics have also considered the etymological roots of the stems Armen- and Hay-, from which derive the modern exonym and endonym of Armenia and Armenians, in order to propose candidates for groups (i.e., Proto-Armenians) who may have contributed to the Armenian ethnogenesis. The polity that emerged in the region as a confederation of tribes was the Kingdom of Van, which was centered around Lake Van in modern-day Turkey. However, recent genetic research suggests that the Armenian ethnogenesis was completed by 1200 BCE, making the arrival of an Armenian-speaking population as late as the Bronze Age Collapse unlikely. Jews and Lebanese Christians, also share a lot of ancestry with the Iceman, The Armenian alphabet is the script developed for the writing of the Armenian language. His story is told in the History of Armenia attributed to the Armenian historian Movses Khorenatsi (410 to 490 AD). Ancient Origins articles related to Armenia in the sections of history, archaeology, human origins, unexplained, artifacts, ancient places and myths and legends. They have been documented from 2.6 million years ago, but the most recent fossils come from around 29,000 years ago. The presence of this dynasty is attested from at least 400 BC, and it can be shown to have ruled originally from Armavir and subsequently Yervandashat. The earliest possible record identified with Armenians, is from Armenic Sumerian records from around 2700 BC, in which the Armenians are referred to as the sons of Haya, after the regional god of the Armenian Highlands. Subterranean Secrets at the Temple of Sinca Veche, Le Puy-en-Velay, A Small French Town with a Large Legacy, The Top Ten Ancient History Podcasts You May Not Have Heard. He is said to have settled at the foot of Mount Ararat, traveled to assist in building the Tower of Babel, and, after his return, defeated the Babylonian king Bel (believed by some researchers to be Nimrod) on August 11, 2492 BC (Navasard) near the mountains of Lake Van, in the southwestern part of historic Armenia (present-day eastern Turkey). the world. The now well-known archaeological site, known plainly as the Mizyn parking lot, dates back 18-20 thousand years. Urartian history is part of Armenian history, in the same sense that the history of the ancient Britons is part of English history, and that of the Gauls is part of French history. populations are closer than present-day inhabitants of the Near East to the Hayk is identified with the Sun-God Orion. The rare grave of an injured female Amazon warrior has been discovered in the highlands of Armenia. These propositions are purely speculative and are largely based on geographic proximity, similarity between names, linguistics, and extrapolations made from known historical events of the time. [52] Armenia is possibly connected to Mannaea, which may be identical to the region of Minni mentioned in The Bible. The hill where Bel with his warriors fell, Hayk named Gerezmank meaning "tombs". and reached its peak in the ninth century B.C. He embalmed the corpse of Bel and ordered it to be taken to Hark where it was to be buried in a high place in the view of the wives and sons of the king. The researchers also see a signal of genetic divergence that developed genetically isolated populations of the Near East, like Cypriots, Sephardic David, Archevêque Syrien De Damas. Several prominent authorities agree in placing Azzi to the north of Ishuwa. geneticists calculated, coincident with Movses Khorenatsi's date for the Lebanon and compared them with those of 78 other populations from around