Literally meaning "the foot ofAragats" (the highest mountain ofArmenia), it is named after theAragatsotn canton of the historicAyrarat province ofAncient Armenia, ruled by theAmatuni noble family under the reign of theArsacid dynasty.
Aragatsotn Province occupies the northwestern part of Armenia and covers an area of 2,756 km2 (9.3% of the total area of Armenia). It has internal borders withShirak Province from the north,Lori Province from the northeast,Kotayk Province from the east,Armavir Province from the south and the city ofYerevan from the southwest. TheAkhurian River at the west separates Aragatsotn from theKars Province ofTurkey.
Historically, the current territory of the province mainly occupies parts ofAragatsotn,Nig andShirak cantons ofAyrarat province of Ancient Armenia.
Arteni mountains (2047 m.)
The northern part of the province is dominated by theAragats mountain range. At the northeast and the east, it approximates the mountains of Pambak and Tsaghkunyats, respectively. The mountains of Arteni dominate the northeastern and the central eastern parts of the province. The tiny Akhurian valley occupies the eastern edge of Aragatsotn. Aragatsotn occupies the northwestern parts of theArarat plain in the south and the southeast.
The altitude of the province ranges between 950 and 4,090 meters above sea level.
Mount Aragats (4,090 m.) is the highest peak of Aragatsotn and Armenia.
Besides the Akhurian river, the rivers ofKasagh, Gegharot, and Amberd are the main water resources in the province. Mountainous lakes includingLake Kari,Lessing, Amberd, Tagavor, and Kuraghbyur are found on Mount Aragats. Between 1962 and 1967, the Aparan reservoir was built on the Kasagh river.
The climate of Aragatsotn is deeply diversified due to the wide range of altitudes of the region. The annual precipitation level ranges between 400 mm (16 in) at the lower areas and 1,000 mm (39 in) at the mountainous territories.
TheHoly Cross Basilica of Kasagh of the 4th centuryThe ruins of the Saint Paul and Peter Church ofZovuni, dating back to the 4th and 5th centuries
According toMovses Khorenatsi, Aramaniak -the son of the patriarch and founder of the Armenian nationHayk- along with his clan, settled in the area of modern-day Aragatsotn. The cemeteries ofVerin Naver archaeological site -located 3 km west of Ashtarak- date back to the 24th and 14th centuries BC.
Being situated at the heart of theAyrarat province at the centre of theArmenian Highland, Aragatsotn was among the most strategic regions in the history of Armenia, especially since the establishment of theKingdom of Armenia in 331 BC by theOrontid dynasty. Later in 190 BC, theArtaxiad dynasty took over the reign of the Armenian Kingdom. During the 2nd century AD, the towns ofCasala (the Hellenized version ofKasagh, nowAparan), andTalina (nowTalin) were mentioned byPtolemy during the reign of theArsacid dynasty of Armenia. The territory of Nig canton, including the area of Aparan, was under the administration of theGntunyan Armenian noble family, while the territory of Aragatsotn canton, including the area of Ashtarak, was ruled by theAmatuni noble family.
In 658, Armenia was conquered by theArab invaders. At the end of the 9th century, Aragatsotn became part of the newly establishedBagratid Kingdom of Armenia. The Armenian noble families ofKamsarakan andPahlavuni ruled over Aragatsotn under the Bagratid kings.
However, between the 11th and 15th centuries, Aragatsotn along with the rest of the historic territories of Armenia suffered from theSeljuk, Mongol,Ag Qoyunlu andKara Koyunlu invasions, respectively. At the beginning of the 16th century, Aragatsotn became part of theErivan Beglarbegi within theSafavid Persia. During the first half of the 18th century, Aragatsotn became part of theErivan Khanate under the rule of theAfsharid dynasty and later under theQajar dynasty of Persia. It remained under the Persian rule until 1827–1828, when Eastern Armenia was ceded to theRussian Empire as a result of theRusso-Persian War of 1826–28 and the signing of theTreaty of Turkmenchay.
Abaran battle memorial
After the fall of the Russian Empire in 1917, the Armenian, Georgian and Muslim leaders ofTranscaucasia united to form theTranscaucasian Federative Republic and proclaimedTranscaucasia'ssecession. However, it was a fragile short-lived federation that collapsed in May 1918, while the Turkish army was advancing towards Eastern Armenia throughGyumri, Aragatsotn, and Sardarapat. On May 21, 1918, the Turkish forces attacked throughAparan in Aragatsotn trying to reachYerevan. The Turks were opposed by the Armenian forces under the command ofDro at the outskirts of Aparan. After three days of fierce fighting, the Armenians launched a counter-attack on 25 May, and the Turkish troops were forced to retreat back to the north on 29 May. As a result of the decisive victories over the Turks in the battles ofSardarabad,Abaran, andGharakilisa, the Armenians declared independence on May 28, 1918.
After 2 years of brief independence, Armenia became part of theSoviet Union in December 1920. From 1930 until 1995, modern-day Aragatsotn was divided into 3raions within theArmenian SSR:Talin raion,Aparan raion, andAshtarak raion. With the territorial administration reform of 1995, the 3 raions were merged to form the Aragatsotn Province.
According to the1989 Soviet census, the Aragatsotn Province (then part of theAparan,Aragats,Ashtarak, andTalin districts in 1930–1995)[5] had a population of 141,611. 24,277 or 17.14% of which was urban, distributed in the city of Ashtarak, and 117,334 or 82.86% were rural, distributed in the districts of Aparan (21,654), Aragats (13,401), Ashtarak (42,701), and Talin (39,578).[6]
According to the 2011 official census, Aragatsotn has a population of 132,925 (66,738 men and 66,187 women), forming around 4.4% of the entire population of Armenia. The urban population is 31,376 (23.6%) and the rural is 101,549 (76.4%). Aragatsotn has the highest percentage of rural population in Armenia.
The province has 3 urban and 111 rural communities. The largest urban community is the provincial centre of Ashtarak, with a population of 19,615. The other urban centres of Aparan and Talin have a population of 6,451 and 5,310 respectively.
With a population of 4,780, the village ofOshakan is the largest rural municipality of Aragatsotn.
As a result of the administrative reforms completed during 2019, Aragatsotn is currently divided into 9 municipal communities (hamaynkner), of which 3 are urban and 6 are rural:[9][10][11][12]
A cross denotes a town (urban settlement), otherwise, the settlements are villages (rural settlements).
The 17th-century bridge of Ashtarak onKasagh River is among the interesting sites of the Aragatsotn Province.
The urban settlements of the province are home to cultural palaces and many public libraries. The house-museum of novelistPerch Proshyan founded in 1948, is located in the town of Ashtarak within the Proshyan family house. It was last restored in 2008.[21]
Aragatsotn is also home to the Armenian Alphabet Park located near the town of Aparan.
The Ashtarak Walnut Festival is taking place every year during the month of October to promote the famous walnut of Ashtarak. It was first celebrated in 2012.[citation needed]
Talin has its local "Talin Ashkharh" weekly newspaper.
The province is connected with the capital Yerevan through the Ashtarak highway.
The M-1 Motorway connects Aragatsotn with northwestern Armenia, including the city of Gyumri, while the M-3 Motorway connects the province with northeastern Armenia up to the Georgian border.
The rural population of the province is 3 times bigger than the urban. Thus, the majority of the population is involved in agriculture, including farming and cattle breeding. Being a major agricultural region, Aragatsotn contributes 9.7% of the annual total agricultural product of Armenia.
Around 79% (2,178 km2) of the total area of the province arearable lands, out of which 25% (542 km2) are ploughed. With an approximate areա of 240 km2 (93 sq mi) of farmlands are occupied by grains and dry seeds. Around 40% of the 47 km2 (18 sq mi) of orchards in Aragatsotn are occupied by grapes. Potato farms occupy around 16 km2 (6 sq mi), while vegetables are spread over 10 km2 (4 sq mi) of farms.[22]
Around the highlands of Mount Aragats, particularly in the regions of Aparan and Talin, cattle breeding is more common in rural communities. Beekeeping farms are also found in higher woodlands. The village of Voskehat is home to the "Ashtarak Dzu" poultry farm, while the Aragats village is home to the "Aragats Poultry farm".
Aragatsotn has a poor industrial structure compared to other provinces in Armenia. It has only a share of 2% of the annual total industrial product of Armenia. The existing industrial firms are mainly based on food processing, dairy products, production of alcoholic drinks, water bottling, and building materials production.
Ashtarak is home to the "Ashtarak-Kat" company (founded in 1995), the leading ice-cream and dairy products manufacturer in Armenia. The town is also home to the "Gourmet Dourme" chocolate factory founded in 2007, the "P & D Group Armenia" for plastic containers founded in 2007, as well as the "Milen Art" plant, and the "Kharam Cooperative" for building materials production.
"Gntunik" bakery in Aparan using the traditionaltandoor"Golden Grape ArmAs" winery inNor Yedesia
Aparan is home to the "Nig" factory for electrical products founded in 1964, the "Aparan Cheese Factory" founded in 1982 (privatized in 1995), and the "Aparan Group LLC" for bottled water, soft drinks, and dairy products, founded in 2006, and the "Gntunik" plant for bakery and dairy products.
Aragatsotn is a major centre for dairy products and dried fruits. Talin is home to the "Bonilat" factory for dairy products founded in 2005, based on the former Talin cheese factory.[23] Other producers of dairy products include the "Gloria Cheeses" factory founded in 2005 inAragatsavan, the "Anulik" factory ofNigavan, the "Mastarchedo" plant ofMastara. The "Tamara Fruit" plant of Karbi (founded in 1985), the "Gyughi Tatik" plant of Oshakan (founded in 2002), the "Astghunk" plant of Aghdzk, and the "Byurakan Chir" plant of Byurakan specialize in dried-fruits production. Other notable food-processing plants of Aragatsotn include the "Village House" meat-processing plant in Agarak, the "Meat Art" for meet products in Getap, the "Avetsiyan Aghek" plant for soft drinks in Talin, the "Aparani Lavash" for bakery products in Davtashen,
Aragatsotn has many large industrial firms for alcoholic drinks production, including theVoskevaz Winery founded in 1932 inVoskevaz (privatized in 2004), theArmAs Winery founded in 2007 inNor Yedesia, the Armenia Wine Winery founded in 2008 inSasunik, the "Hayasy Group" for brandy, vodka, beer and juices founded in 2011 inVoskevaz, the Wine House Winery founded in 2011 inAghdzk,[24] and the "Van Ardi Winery founded in 2013 in Sasunik.
The province has many large firms for the production of building materials, including the "Aragats Perlite" plant for crushed stone founded in 1961 in Aragatsavan, the "Arus" company for stone structures in Parpi, and the "Levadan LLC" for building materials. Other notable firms within the province include the "SKIFF" enterprise for paintwork materials founded in 2008 in Sasunik and the "Diamotech" factory for gemstones in Talin.
Aragatsotn is a major centre forecotourism and the lovers ofextreme tourism. Aragats is the highest mountain in modern-day Armenia. It is a single extinct volcano consisting of 4 peaks: the northern (4090 m.), western (4080 m.), eastern (3916 m.), and southern (3879 m.) peaks. Thus, it frequently attractshikers andadventure travelers, with itsmountain lake of Kari situated at a height of 3250 meters.
The well-preserved ancient monasteries and medieval fortresses are also among the main attractions of the province.
Radio telescope at the Ashtarak Institute of Radiophysics and Electronics
As of the 2015-16 educational year, Aragatsotn Province has 123 schools, out of which 119 are operated by the province administration, while 4 are under the direct supervision of the Ministry of Education and Science.[25] The total number of the schools includes the 20 schools that are designated for the ethnic Yazidi and Kurdish minorities. As of the end of 2015, the number of students in the province's schools is 17,010.[26] There is also one school for special needs in the province.
TheKasaghi Marzik Stadium in Ashtarak is the largest sports venue in the province. The sports centres in Ashtarak were entirely renovated and opened in July 2017, with an approximate cost of US$1 million. Ashtarak is also home to theAyrudzi horse racing club.
It is planned to construct a modern sports complex in the village ofParpi. The football stadium of the complex was opened in 2013.
At the height of 2000 meters above sea level, the town of Aparan has a ski resort served with a ski lift.[29]
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