Armenia

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Republic of Armenia
Հայաստանի Հանրապետություն
Hayastani Hanrapetut’yun
Flag Coat of arms
Anthem: Մեր Հայրենիք (Armenian)
Mer Hayrenik   (transcription)
"Our Fatherland"
Capital
and largest city		 Yerevan
40°11′N 44°31′E / 40.183°N 44.517°E / 40.183; 44.517
Official languages Armenian[1]
Ethnic groups 97.9% Armenian,
1.3% Yazidis,
0.5% Russian,
0.3% others.[2]
Demonym Armenian
Government Presidential republic[3]
 -  President Serzh Sargsyan
 -  Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamyan
 -  Speaker Samvel Nikoyan
Formation and independence
 -  Traditional date 11 August 2492 BC 
 -  Nairi 1200 BC 
 -  Kingdom of Ararat 840s BC 
 -  Orontid Dynasty 560 BC 
 -  Kingdom of Armenia
formed
190 BC 
 -  Democratic Republic of Armenia established
28 May 1918 
 -  Independence
from the Soviet Union
Declared
Recognised
Finalised

23 August 1990
21 September 1991
25 December 1991 
Area
 -  Total 29,743 km2 (141st)
11,484 sq mi 
 -  Water (%) 4.71[4]
Population
 -  2014 estimate 3,009,800[5] (136th)
 -  Density 101.2/km2 (99th)
280.7/sq mi
GDP (PPP) 2010 estimate
 -  Total $16.858 billion[6]
 -  Per capita $5,110[6]
GDP (nominal) 2010 estimate
 -  Total $9.389 billion[6]
 -  Per capita $2,846[6]
Gini (2006) 37[7]
medium
HDI (2010) Increase 0.695[8]
medium · 76th
Currency Dram (դր.) (AMD)
Time zone UTC (UTC+4)
 -  Summer (DST) DST (UTC+5)
Drives on the right
Calling code 374
Patron saint St. Bartholomew the Apostle, St. Gregory the Illuminator, St. Jude the Apostle, Virgin Mary
Internet TLD .am

Armenia (officially called the Republic of Armenia) is a country in Asia. Its capital city is Yerevan. Armenia received its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.

Armenia touches Turkey, Georgia, Azerbaijan, and Iran.

There are some minorities living in Armenia, such as Greek, Russian, and other minorities, and more than 90% of the people are ethnic Armenians. Also, the Armenian Apostolic Church, is by far the largest religion in the country. There is a small amount of other Christians, Muslims and atheists.

Armenia is the place that some Christians believe Noah's Ark landed, and Noah's family settled. The Armenian name for Armenia (Hayastan) means Land of Haik. Haik was the name of a great-great-grandson of Noah.

Throughout history, Armenia's size has changed many times. Today Armenia is much smaller than it was once. In 80 BC, the Kingdom of Armenia covered parts of what is today Turkey, Syria, Lebanon, Iran, Iraq, Azerbaijan, and, of course, Armenia.

From 1920 to 1991, Armenia was a member of the Soviet Union.

Today, Armenia's borders are locked with Turkey and Azerbaijan, due to conflicts. In 1992, Armenia and Azerbaijan had a war over the land of Nagorno-Karabakh. The fighting stopped in 1994, and Armenia has had control over this land, but Azerbaijan still disputes about the land.

Geography[change | change source]

Armenia is landlocked in the South Caucasus. It is between the Black and Caspian Seas. The country is bordered on the north and east by Georgia and Azerbaijan, and on the south and west by Iran and Turkey.

It covers an area of 29,743 square kilometres (11,484 sq mi). The land is mostly mountains, with fast flowing rivers and few forests. There are hot summers and cold winters.

Mount Ararat used to be part of Armenia. It is the highest mountain in the region. It is now in Turkey, but clearly visible in Armenia. The Armenians see it as a symbol of their land. Because of this, the mountain is present on the Armenian national emblem today.

Provinces[change | change source]

Armenia is divided into ten provinces and the capital city of Yerevan. As of 2007, Armenia includes 915 communities. 49 are considered urban and 866 are considered rural. For a list of communities see List of settlements in Armenia.

Province Capital Area Population
Aragatsotn (Արագածոտն) Ashtarak (Աշտարակ) 2,753 km² 126,278
Ararat (Արարատ) Artashat (Արտաշատ) 2,096 km² 252,665
Armavir (Արմավիր) Armavir (Արմավիր) 1,242 km² 255,861
Gegharkunik (Գեղարքունիք) Gavar (Գավառ) 5,348 km² 215,371
Kotayk (Կոտայք) Hrazdan (Հրազդան) 2,089 km² 241,337
Lori (Լոռի) Vanadzor (Վանաձոր) 3,789 km² 253,351
Shirak (Շիրակ) Gyumri (Գյումրի) 2,681 km² 257,242
Syunik (Սյունիք) Kapan (Կապան) 4,506 km² 134,061
Tavush (Տավուշ) Ijevan (Իջևան) 2,704 km² 121,963
Vayots Dzor (Վայոց Ձոր) Yeghegnadzor (Եղեգնաձոր) 2,308 km² 53,230
Yerevan (Երևան) – 227 km² 1,091,235

Largest cities[change | change source]

Armenia has many cities. Here is a list of the ten biggest ones:

  1. Yerevan (1,121,900 people)
  2. Vanadzor
  3. Gyumri
  4. Vagharshapat
  5. Hrazdan
  6. Abovyan
  7. Armavir
  8. Kapan
  9. Gavar
  10. Artashat (20,562 people)

Filmography[change | change source]

Related pages[change | change source]

References[change | change source]

  1. ↑ The Constitution of the Republic of Armenia, Article 12.
  2. ↑ Asatryan, Garnik; Arakelova, Victoria (Yerevan 2002). The Ethnic Minorities in Armenia. Part of the OSCE
  3. ↑ The Constitution of the Republic of Armenia, Article 55.
  4. ↑ "The World Fact Book – Armenia". Central Intelligence Agency. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/am.html. Retrieved 2010-07-17.
  5. ↑ Հայաստանի Հանրապետության Ազգային վիճակագրության ծառայություն: Հայաստանի Հանրապետության մշտական բնակչության թվաքանակը 2014 թվականի հուլիսի 1-ի դրությամբ — ստուգվում: 1.8.2014
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 "Armenia". International Monetary Fund. http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2011/01/weodata/weorept.aspx?sy=2008&ey=2011&scsm=1&ssd=1&sort=country&ds=.&br=1&c=911&s=NGDPD%2CNGDPDPC%2CPPPGDP%2CPPPPC%2CLP&grp=0&a=&pr.x=46&pr.y=14. Retrieved 2010-04-12.
  7. ↑ "Distribution of family income – Gini index". The World Factbook. CIA. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2172.html. Retrieved 2009-09-01.
  8. ↑ "Human Development Report 2010". United Nations. 2010. http://hdr.undp.org/en/media/HDR_2010_EN_Table1.pdf. Retrieved 5 November 2010.

Other websites[change | change source]

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1. Includes territory in both Europe and Asia. 2. Usually thought of Europe for cultural, political and historical reasons. 3. Special territories. 4. Disputed territories.
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