Tag Archives: Reformation

DOI: 10.57192/18291864-2026.1-54

THE PAULICIAN AND TONDRAKIAN MOVEMENTS IN SOVIET ARMENIAN HISTORIOGRAPHY
Part one: Class struggle and social utopia

This article examines the representation of the Paulician and Tondrakian movements in Soviet Armenian historiography from a class-struggle perspective. While pre-Soviet scholarship approached these movements primarily within a theological framework, Soviet Armenian historiography — grounded in Marxist ideology and historical materialism — reinterpreted them as expressions of social struggle cloaked in religious form. Drawing on Engels’ interpretations of the 16th century Reformation and the German Peasants’ War, Soviet authors projected core concepts of Marxist historiography — such as class antagonism, social utopianism, and peasant resistance — onto the medieval Armenian context. As a result, the Paulician and Tondrakian movements were stripped of their religious character in favor of the ideological imperatives of the time.

The article interrogates the theoretical and evidentiary foundations of these claims, exposing the anachronistic language employed and demonstrating the limitations inherent in interpreting the Paulician and Tondrakian movements through a Marxist historiographical lens.

THE RELEVANCE OF THE HISTORY OF THE PAULICIAN AND TONDRAKIAN MOVEMENTS
A Critical Perspective on 18th–20th Century Armenian Historiography

The article examines the historiographical representation of the Paulicians and Tondrakians in 18th to 20th-century Armenian scholarship. This period marked the inception of studies on the subject and solidified key narratives that remain debated today. By examining key works from this period, the research uncovers how historiographical perceptions of the Paulicians and Tondrakians swung between viewing them as dangerous heretics or sectarians and as pioneers of reformist ideas.

Studies from this period approached the issue primarily from a religious and theological perspective, thus commonly employing the terms “sectarian” and “sect.” Armenian Evangelical historians, however, adopted the term “movement” to frame the Paulicians and Tondrakians as reformers, thereby highlighting the roots of evangelicalism in Armenia.

The article argues that the debates surrounding the Paulicians and Tondrakians are deeply intertwined with questions of national and religious identity. Consequently, the contrasting perspectives reflect efforts to understand and reevaluate the place of Armenians in the world.