Category Archives: DEBATES

Song of satirist between two spellings

Summary

Haroutiun L. Kurkjian

The article presents and identifies a writing published in the early twenties’ soviet-armenian press, as belonging to the talentuous underground satiric author Ler Gamsar. Persecuted, exiled and very soon condemned to silence, Ler Gamsar has somehow, in this satiric page, managed to express his disapproval about the ‘Abeghian’ orthograph reformation imposed to the Armenian language by a soviet governmental decree.

The ‘fatherhood’ of the writing is confirmed by comparison with other preserved samizdat pages of Ler Gamsar, regarding their contents and the humoristic/satiric language tools typical for him.

Summary

Garnik A. Harurtunyan

In this article we turn to a brief examination of the Catholicos Hovhannes Odznetci’s (717-728) activity while the process of creating the Armenian Canon Book. The 32 canons added to the Canon Book concern different aspects of social life, as well as the hey presume ‘handling’ of various ritual issues and questions related to teaching principles that could have arisen through the centuries of the Armenian Church History. Beside composing the Armenian Canon Book, Hahvannes Odznetci compuled within one miscellany canon groups of independent and translation character. Each canon group has a list and preface written in front of it. One may learn about all this information in the author’s Colophon. We have also examined the characteristic features of manuscript groups of the miscellany Armenian Canon Book which have come down to our days through more than 200 manuscripts.

According to the tale­novel by Mkrtich Sargsyan “Nazar the Brave”

Summary

Sergey A. Aghajanyan

This article is the third one in a series of studies devoted to the phenomenon of artistic embodiment of the image “Nazar the Brave.” In this article it comes to a fairy tale-novel of Mkrtich Sargsyan “Nazar the Brave” (1980). The author has combined the main observations that were in scientific papers of philological bias and added his own comments. Cultural aspect of the study was used in order to comment on the material comprising the circumstances, the idea of creating an allegorical novel, caused especially by the Soviet experience

Based on H. Tumanyan’s tale of the same name

Summary

Sergey A. Aghajanyan
The article is an attempt to interpret newly the famous tale of H. Tumanyan «Nazar the Brave». To make the differences between the new interpretation and the one formed during the past decades as clear as possible, the author referred in details to the all fragments of the tale. The new analysis of the work has been done with the combination of methodological, as well as literary and culturological approaches. The research has several axes: the protagonist – Nazar, his co-existential environment and the nature of interrelations of these two. In the end of the article you will find the clarifications concerning the nature and reasons of unacceptable approaches in the analyses of the tale “Nazar the Brave”.

Hovhannes G. Khorikyan

Summary
The examination of the administrative- political situation of Achaemenid Persia’s Cilician satrapy is significant not only for the history of that country, but also for the specification of the Satrapic Armenia’s territory and its southern- western boundaries, which have been incorrectly interpreted without any exception in specialized literature.

The multisided study of the primary sources shows that the Cilician satrapy was not an administrative constant unit, and its territory has been subjected to administrative changes by the Achaemenid Court. Despite its small territory Cilician satrapy had a big military importance for Achaemenids, and that situation did not change during the whole period of existence of Achaemenid Persia.

The examination shows that Cilician satrapy has never reached Melitene in north-eastern part, as the future country called Commagene belonged to Satrapic Armenia.

An attempt to examine North-western part and boundary lines

Summary

Armen H. Gharagyozyan
Owing to the observations of the Armenian plateau’s ethno-geographic environment, it is confirmed that Achaemenid Empire’s XVIII satrapy was formed with Tchorokh basin from the beginning of the VI century. The etymology of ethnic names of the tribes inhabiting that territory indicates their Indo-European – Armenian descent. Though, in the first half of the II century it was obvious that Tchorokh basin was populated by Armenians.

As a result of Armenian plateau’s ethno-geographic observation it was discovered that the provisional name of the lake Van was Aghi tsov, which meaned the Sea of Sun or God Sun’s sea. The same meaning is conspicuous also in the name Aghtamar and is derived from the provisional version Alde of mythological name Halde.

The lake Urmia was perceived through its color characteristics as blue, clear sky or heavenly plait, celestial gift and vivifying song, as well as the name Sevan of the lake-name Geghama tsov.

Babken H. Harutyunyan
The great historiographer Movses Khorenatsi (Moses of Chorene) became immortal handing down to the verdict of posterity his unique “History of Armenia”, which is known with its three books according to the manuscripts and ends with the author’s “Lament”.

Thought judging by some announcements of Tovma Artsruni, it can be supposed that Movses Khorenatsi’s “History of Armenia” has had the Fourth book, which not only Tovma Artsruni was acquainted with but also some medieval authors.

The historians of blessed memory such as Ghevond Alishan, H. Karenyan, M. Emin, Khoren Stepane, G. Ter-Mkrtchyan, B. Gevorgyan (Tscughuryan) of Vagharshapat, St. Malkhasyants, Hrant Armen, N. Poghosyan, V. Vardanyan, Artashes Matevosyan and others also referred to the question of Movses Khorenatsi’s Fourth book, and one part of them accepts its eistence while the others deny it strictly assuming that it had rather a character of enclosures, the latter idea was assiduously substantiated especially by Artashes Matevosyan.

An attempt to show up the existence of Movses Khorenati’s Fourth book is made in this article, basing on the affirmations of Tovma Artsruni and tohers, and logical thought.

Summary 

Hovhannes G. Khorikyan
The study of the location of the country of Sakā and the Sacae in general in specialized literature has given rise to much disagreement. However, a comprehensive study of old sources shows that the country of Sakā of Achaemenid Persia corresponds to the country of the Sacae mentioned in the XV Satrapy. By initially being included in the territorial settlement of Sakā-haumavargā, the territorial settlement of Sakā was later included also in Sakā-tigraxaudā, found in the country of Sakā. Therefore, on the Behistun inscription, the country of Sakā and the Sacae in Herodotus’ XV Satrapy, in general, represent the haumavargā and tigraxaudā Sacae, who were found adjacent to each other, and reflected in the geographical concept, «the Scythians who are beyond Sogdians.»

Summary

Armen H. Gharagyozyan
There have been many conflicting and contradictory points of view in academic literature regarding one of the most remarkable characters in Armenian mythology, Tork Angegh (about the deprecatory nature of the Turkish ethnic name of Tork/Turk). This study shows that the depiction of Tork Angeghya (Angegh – Ugly) had a positive function and reflected the meaning of beauty. It is noteworthy that in Armenian, the Sun’s beautiful name is connected first and foremost with the notion of light. Thereby, Angeghya-Ugly meant heavenly lamp, lantern, light (at the foundation, Sun). It is obvious that the names Tork and Turk and their Asian parallels originated from the Indoeuropean sun god Tor’s (Tur or Dur) mythological name. At the same time, the perception of Tork/Turk as a god brings one to the conclusion that Tork the Ugly, in his composition meant the god of heavenly light. In this case, the semantic transfer of Tork the Ugly = Ara the Beautiful is obvious.

In this way, Tork the Ugly is presented as a heavenly light dominator, giver, distributor, grantor; at the same time the patron of crafts and tillers and the god of fertility. He was also the most-abled, the bearer of power and strength, always the winner, fierce, the diety of lightening and thunder.

In Light of a New Examination

Summary

Ashot. N. Hayruni

The article presents and elucidates in a detailed manner Armenia’s and the Armenian people’s more than half-century mutual relationship with Dr. Paul Rohrbach, a famous German scientist, publicist, social and political figure, traveler, and journalist. Along with the detailed analysis of the viewpoints put forward by Rohrbach regarding Armenia’s present and future and the mission of the Armenian people with regard to the development of the East, the direction and results of his pro-Armenian activities are also closely analyzed. Simultaneously, the rooted misunderstanding of Rohrbach in Armenian historiography is examined and re-evaluated in light of a new examination. In the article, Paul Rohrbach as a prolific publicist and public figure who was preoccupied with Armenian issues is underscored as is necessity for the academic study of his literary heritage.