Meghri ( hy, Մեղրի) is a town and the center of the urban community of
Meghri
Meghri ( hy, Մեղրի) is a town and the center of the urban community of Meghri, in Syunik Province in southern Armenia, near the border with Iran. As of the 2011 census, the population of the town was 4,580. According to the 2020 official es ...
, in
Syunik Province
Syunik ( hy, Սյունիք, ) is the southernmost province of Armenia. It is bordered by the Vayots Dzor Province to the north, Azerbaijan's Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic exclave to the west, Azerbaijan to the east, and Iran to the south. It ...
in southern
Armenia
Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ' ...
, near the border with
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
. As of the 2011 census, the population of the town was 4,580. According to the 2020 official estimate, Meghri's population is around 4,500. Meghri is located 376 km south of the capital
Yerevan
Yerevan ( , , hy, Երևան , sometimes spelled Erevan) is the capital and largest city of Armenia and one of the world's oldest continuously inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Yerevan is the administrative, cultural, and i ...
and 73 km south of the provincial capital
Kapan.
As a result of the community mergers in 2016, the municipality of Meghri was enlarged to include the surrounding villages of
Agarak,
Alvank,
Aygedzor
Aygedzor ( hy, Այգեձոր) is a village in the Berd Municipality of the Tavush Province of Armenia. The Aghjkaberd mountain fortress is located close to Aygedzor.
Toponymy
The village was previously known as ''Kulali''.
Gallery
Այգ ...
,
Gudemnis,
Karchevan
Karchevan ( hy, Կարճևան) is a village in the Meghri Municipality of the Syunik Province in Armenia.
The village is located in the southern part of the Syunik Province, a short distance from the Aras River - the main tributary of the Kura R ...
,
Kuris,
Lehvaz,
Lichk,
Nrnadzor,
Shvanidzor
Shvanidzor ( hy, Շվանիձոր, ) is a village in the Meghri Municipality of the Syunik Province in southeastern Armenia, near Armenia's border with Iran.
Toponymy
The village is also known as ''Astazur'' and ''Shvandor''.
History
According ...
,
Tashtun,
Tkhkut,
Vahravar, and
Vardanidzor
Vardanidzor ( hy, Վարդանիձոր); is a village in the Meghri Municipality of the Syunik Province in Armenia.
Demographics Population
The population of the village of Vardanidzor was 228 at the 2011 census, up from 197 at the 2001 censu ...
.
Etymology
Meghri was founded as "Karchavan" in 906 by king Smbat I of Armenia, during the period of the Bagratid Kingdom of Armenia. Later, it was known as Meghri, meaning "honey town" in the Armenian language.
History
Ancient history and Middle Ages
The area of present-day Meghri has been settled since the
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second prin ...
. Many archaeological sites are found in the vicinity of the town dating back to the 7th and 6th centuries BC, during the period of the kingdom of
Urartu
Urartu (; Assyrian: ',Eberhard Schrader, ''The Cuneiform inscriptions and the Old Testament'' (1885), p. 65. Babylonian: ''Urashtu'', he, אֲרָרָט ''Ararat'') is a geographical region and Iron Age kingdom also known as the Kingdom of V ...
.
[ Historically, it has been part of the ''Arevik'' canton of the ancient Syunik province of the Kingdom of Armenia.
With the establishment of the Tatev Monastery in the 8th century, the region of modern-day Meghri witnessed a rapid social and economic development. In 906, the settlement of Karchavan was founded by king Smbat I Bagratuni of the ]Bagratuni dynasty
The Bagratuni or Bagratid dynasty ( hy, Բագրատունի, ) was an Armenian royal dynasty which ruled the medieval Kingdom of Armenia from c. 885 until 1045. Originating as vassals of the Kingdom of Armenia of antiquity, they rose to beco ...
. In 987, the town (known as Meghri) was included within the newly-founded Armenian Kingdom of Syunik
Kingdom of Syunik ( hy, Սյունիքի թագավորություն), also known as the Kingdom of Baghk and sometimes as the Kingdom of Kapan, was a medieval dependent Armenian kingdom . In 1105, the region of Meghri was occupied by the Seljuks
The Seljuk dynasty, or Seljukids ( ; fa, سلجوقیان ''Saljuqian'', alternatively spelled as Seljuqs or Saljuqs), also known as Seljuk Turks, Seljuk Turkomans "The defeat in August 1071 of the Byzantine emperor Romanos Diogenes
by the Turk ...
. The town was completely destroyed in 1126 and 1157 by the invading Seljuk forces.[
Between the 12th and 15th centuries, Syunik, along with the rest of the historic territories of Armenia, suffered from the Seljuk, Mongol, Aq Qoyunlu and ]Kara Koyunlu
The Qara Qoyunlu or Kara Koyunlu ( az, Qaraqoyunlular , fa, قره قویونلو), also known as the Black Sheep Turkomans, were a culturally Persianate, Muslim Turkoman "Kara Koyunlu, also spelled Qara Qoyunlu, Turkish Karakoyunlular, En ...
invasions, respectively.
Foreign rule
At the beginning of the 16th century, Meghri became part of the '' Erivan Province'' within Safavid Persia. At the beginning of the 18th century, the region was involved in the liberation campaign of the Armenians of Syunik led by David Bek
Davit Bek or David Beg (; died 1728) was an Armenian military commander and the leader of an Armenian rebellion against invading Ottoman forces and implanted Safavid Muslim tribes in the mountainous region of Zangezur (today the Armenian provin ...
against Safavid Persia and the invading Ottoman Turks. David Bek began his campaign in 1722 with the help of thousands of local Armenian patriots who liberated Syunik. He united the Armenian nobility
The Armenian nobility ( hy, Հայ ազնվականություն) was a class of persons which enjoyed certain privileges relative to other members of society under the laws and customs of various regimes of Armenia. Governments which recognized o ...
in the region to form the Principality of Kapan, which included Meghri.[ David Bek rebuilt the Meghri Fortress in the 18th century, making it the only Armenian fortress specifically built for firearms. In 1727, 400 of David Bek’s soldiers held off a large Ottoman advance in the fortress. Local Armenian rule of the region lasted until 1747, when the region was brought back under Persian control as part of the ]Nakhichevan Khanate
The Nakhichevan Khanate ( fa, خانات نخجوان, translit=Khānāt-e Nakhchevān; Azerbaijani:ناخچیوان خانلیغی,Naxçıvan xanlığı; hy, Նախիջեւանի խանութիւն, translit=Naxijewani xanowt'iwn) was a khanate ...
and then the Karabakh Khanate
The Karabakh Khanate was a semi-independent Turkic peoples, Turkic Khanates of the Caucasus, Caucasian khanate on the territories of modern-day Armenia and Azerbaijan established in about 1748 under Safavid dynasty, Iranian suzerainty in Karaba ...
in 1750.
During the Russo-Persian war of 1804-1813, Meghri became a notable center for military operations in the region. In early 1810, Shah Abbas-Mirza sent thirty thousand troops to Nakhichevan in order to invade the Karabakh Khanate
The Karabakh Khanate was a semi-independent Turkic peoples, Turkic Khanates of the Caucasus, Caucasian khanate on the territories of modern-day Armenia and Azerbaijan established in about 1748 under Safavid dynasty, Iranian suzerainty in Karaba ...
and go on to seize Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
. Having crossed the Aras river on May 15, the Persians occupied Meghri. In response, the commander of the Karabakh detachment of Russian troops, Major General Pyotr Nebolsin, sent a detachment battalion of about 500 people under the command of Colonel Pyotr Kotlyarevsky
Pyotr Stepanovich Kotlyarevsky (23 June 1782 – 2 November 1852) was a Russian military hero of the early 19th century.
Biography
He was born in the village of Olkhovatka near Kharkiv into a cleric's family. Kotlyarevsky was brought up in an i ...
with the task of reconquering Meghri, which, due to its strategic position, was known as the “key to Karabakh
Karabakh ( az, Qarabağ ; hy, Ղարաբաղ, Ġarabaġ ) is a geographic region in present-day southwestern Azerbaijan and eastern Armenia, extending from the highlands of the Lesser Caucasus down to the lowlands between the rivers Kura and ...
and Tabriz
Tabriz ( fa, تبریز ; ) is a city in northwestern Iran, serving as the capital of East Azerbaijan Province. It is the List of largest cities of Iran, sixth-most-populous city in Iran. In the Quri Chay, Quru River valley in Iran's historic Aze ...
.” The Persian garrison in Meghri consisted of 1,500 regular Persian infantry (Sarbaz) with artillery stationed on the right, steep bank of the Meghri River. The Persians heavily fortified the villages, which was defended by two hundred sarbaz. Divided into three columns, the Russian detachment secretly approached Meghri along the valley of the Aras River and on the morning of June 17 suddenly attacked the central fortification of the Persians, broke into the village and, after a stubborn battle, captured it. The Persians
The Persians are an Iranian ethnic group who comprise over half of the population of Iran. They share a common cultural system and are native speakers of the Persian language as well as of the languages that are closely related to Persian.
...
lost more than 300 people, the losses of the Russian detachment amounted to 35 people. Subsequent attempts by the Persian troops to return Meghri were unsuccessful.
In 1810, young British army officer William Monteith visited the region as part of his service with the British embassy to Persia. His 1856 memoirs paint a vivid picture of the Meghri valley which he describes as a "romantic glen" that he rates as "one of the most beautiful in Persia, or indeed in any country." He notes that "in former times thas evidently been densely peopled for churches, abandoned but still perfect, are thickly scattered on the slopes of the mountains, which here rise to a height on the western side of 8000 to 10,000 feet, covered with forests. The trees are of no great size, and much interspersed with apple, pear, and walnut, probably the remains of former gardens, or produced by seeds carried by the birds and wind into the once cultivated land."[
He describes the settlement of Meghri itself as being divided into two sections, each about half a mile from the river Araz, and separated by "small enclosed gardens, surrounded by vines". At the time, Russians controlled the larger village on the north side; the Persians occupied Little Meghri. The Araz he describes as being ''here a rapid foaming torrent, fordable only in one place, about a mile and a half farther up the river.'']
In 1813, Meghri became part of the Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...
as a result of the Russo-Persian War of 1804–13 and the signing of the Treaty of Gulistan
The Treaty of Gulistan (russian: Гюлистанский договор; fa, عهدنامه گلستان) was a peace treaty concluded between the Russian Empire and Iran on 24 October 1813 in the village of Gulistan (now in the Goranboy Distr ...
. It was included within the Karabakh province until 1868 when it became part of the newly-formed Zangezur uezd of the Elizavetpol Governorate
The Elizavetpol Governorate, also known after 1918 as the Ganja Governorate, was a province ('' guberniya'') of the Caucasus Viceroyalty of the Russian Empire, with its capital in Yelisavetpol (present-day Ganja). The area of the governorate st ...
.
In 1881, the first mixed school was opened in Meghri. In 1901, a consumers' co-operative
A consumers' co-operative is an enterprise owned by consumers and managed democratically and that aims at fulfilling the needs and aspirations of its members. Such co-operatives operate within the market system, independently of the state, as a f ...
was opened in Meghri, which was the first of its type in Armenia.[
]
Modern history
With the establishment of the Republic of Armenia in 1918, Meghri was included within the Zangezur region of the newly-founded republic. However, after the fall of the republic in December 1920, the 2nd Pan-Zangezurian congress held in Tatev
The Tatev Monastery ( hy, Տաթևի վանք, Tat'evi vank') is a 9th-century Armenian Apostolic monastery located on a large basalt plateau near the village of Tatev in the Syunik Province in southeastern Armenia. The term "Tatev" usually refe ...
on 26 April 1921, announced the independence of the self-governing regions of Daralakyaz (Vayots Dzor), Zangezur -including Meghri-, and parts of Mountainous Artsakh, under the name of the Republic of Mountainous Armenia
The Republic of Mountainous Armenia ( hy, Լեռնահայաստանի Հանրապետութիւն ''Leřnahayastani Hanrapetutyun''), also known as simply Mountainous Armenia ( ''Leřnahayastan''), was an anti-Bolshevik Armenian state roughly ...
(''Lernahaystani Hanrapetutyun''). However, the self-proclaimed republic had a short life, when the Red Army conducted massive military operations in the region during June–July 1921, attacking Syunik from the north and east. As a result of fierce battles, the Republic of Mountainous Armenia capitulated on 13 July 1921, following Soviet Russia's promises to keep the mountainous region of Syunik as part of Soviet Armenia
The Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic,; russian: Армянская Советская Социалистическая Республика, translit=Armyanskaya Sovetskaya Sotsialisticheskaya Respublika) also commonly referred to as Soviet A ...
.
The Soviets established the ''Meghri raion'' in September 1930, and the settlement of Meghri became the centre of the newly-formed raion. In 1959, Meghri was given the status of an urban-type settlement
Urban-type settlementrussian: посёлок городско́го ти́па, translit=posyolok gorodskogo tipa, abbreviated: russian: п.г.т., translit=p.g.t.; ua, селище міського типу, translit=selyshche mis'koho typu, ab ...
. In 1984, Meghri was granted with the status of a town. It was developed as a centre of food industry based on the local agricultural products of the region.
After the independence of Armenia, Meghri was included within the newly-formed Syunik Province
Syunik ( hy, Սյունիք, ) is the southernmost province of Armenia. It is bordered by the Vayots Dzor Province to the north, Azerbaijan's Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic exclave to the west, Azerbaijan to the east, and Iran to the south. It ...
, as per the administrative reforms of 1995.
Geography
At an average height of 610 meters above sea level
Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical datuma standardise ...
, Meghri is located near the Armenia-Iran border, on the shores of Meghri River, dominated by Zangezur Mountains from the northeast, and Meghri range from the southwest.
The town is mainly divided into 2 large neighborhoods:
*''Mets tagh'' meaning the large neighborhood, located on the left bank of Meghri river, it occupies the eastern part of Meghri. Formed during the 17th century, it occupies around 70% of the town's area.
*''Pokr tagh'' meaning the small neighborhood, located on the right bank of Meghri river, it occupies the western part of Meghri. It was formed during the Soviet days in the 20th century.
The 2 neighborhoods are separated by the Meghri river and Adelyan Street.
The surrounding areas of the town are designated as a Prime Butterfly Area, having number of rare and endangered species of butterflies, such as Gegenes nostradamus
''Gegenes nostrodamus'', commonly known as the dingy swift, light pygmy skipper, Mediterranean skipper or veloz de las rieras, is a butterfly belonging to the family Hesperiidae. It is found from the Mediterranean Sea, through Anatolia to Turkest ...
, Papilio alexanor, Cupido argiades, Polyommatus damonides, and others.
Climate
The climate here is classified as BSk by the Köppen-Geiger system, with cool winters and hot summers. Spring is the wettest season, while summer is the driest. On 1 August 2011, Meghri recorded a temperature of , which is the highest temperature to have ever been recorded in Armenia.
Demographics
Meghri is almost entirely populated by Armenians who belong to the Armenian Apostolic Church
, native_name_lang = hy
, icon = Armenian Apostolic Church logo.svg
, icon_width = 100px
, icon_alt =
, image = Էջմիածնի_Մայր_Տաճար.jpg
, imagewidth = 250px
, a ...
. The Church of the Holy Mother of God of Meghri of the large neighborhood opened in 1673, is the main church of the town. It is under the jurisdiction of the Diocese of Syunik based in Goris
Goris ( hy, Գորիս) is a town and the centre of the urban community of Goris, in Syunik Province at the south of Armenia. Located in the valley of the Goris (or Vararak) River, it is 254 km from the Armenian capital Yerevan and 67 ...
.
The town of Meghri has experienced relative population growth since the 19th century and especially during the Soviet years when several factories were set up there. In 1831 it was only a village with 272 inhabitants, in 1897 it already had 927 people. It continued to grow in the following decades and peaked in 2011, when, according to that year's census, it had 4,580 inhabitants but due to the country's economic crisis the population declined to 3,500 in 2016.
Here is the population timeline of Meghri since 1831:
Culture
Meghri has a public library founded in 1882. The municipality also runs the cultural centre and the children's school of art. A branch of Yerevan fine arts teaching centre was opened in Meghri in 1985.
The remains of Meghri Fortress dating back to the 11th century are found at the eastern heights of the town. In addition to the Holy Mother of God Church of 1673, the 17th century Surp Hovhannes church located in the small neighborhood is also active and famous for its wall paintings. The abandoned church of Surp Sarkis located at the north of Meghri, is also dating back to the 17the century.
Transportation
Meghri is the main gate between Armenia and Iran through the nearby Agarak border crossing. The M-2 road that connects the capital Yerevan with Iran, passes through Meghri.
During the Soviet days, Meghri was connected with Yerevan by railway passing through the Nakhichevan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic
The Nakhichevan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, abbreviated as Nakhichevan ASSR was an autonomous republic within the Azerbaijan SSR, itself a republic within the Soviet Union. It was formed on 16 March 1921 and became a part of the Az ...
. After the dissolution of Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
and as a result of the military conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of t ...
, the railroad became abandoned.
Economy
The town's economy is based on food industry, which contains a bread-baking factory, canneries and small home-based wineries
A winery is a building or property that produces wine, or a business involved in the production of wine, such as a wine company. Some wine companies own many wineries. Besides wine making equipment, larger wineries may also feature warehouses, b ...
. Meghri used to have a large wine factory during the Soviet years.
Agriculture is among the leading sectors in the region. Meghri is the only location in Armenia that produces pomegranate
The pomegranate (''Punica granatum'') is a fruit-bearing deciduous shrub in the family Lythraceae, subfamily Punicoideae, that grows between tall.
The pomegranate was originally described throughout the Mediterranean Basin, Mediterranean re ...
. The region is also known for its high-quality fig. Meghri has a significantly milder climate than the rest of the cities in Armenia, and produces fruits not found in other parts of the country.
The Iran-Armenia Natural Gas Pipeline passes through Meghri. In early 2007, it was reported that the governments of Armenia, Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...
, and Iran are planning to build an oil refinery
An oil refinery or petroleum refinery is an industrial process plant where petroleum (crude oil) is transformed and refined into useful products such as gasoline (petrol), diesel fuel, asphalt base, fuel oils, heating oil, kerosene, lique ...
for gasoline
Gasoline (; ) or petrol (; ) (see ) is a transparent, petroleum-derived flammable liquid that is used primarily as a fuel in most spark-ignited internal combustion engines (also known as petrol engines). It consists mostly of organi ...
export to Iran. This US$1.7 billion project would be led by Gazprom whose Armenian subsidiary is already the country's main energy supplier though in 2016 a new agreement opened up the possibility of having Meghri area's domestic gas supply (around 5000 households) to be provided by Iranian company Sanergy.
The Meghri Dam (also known as the Meghri Hydroelectric Project or Aras Watershed Dam) is a hydroelectric system planned on the Aras River
, az, Araz, fa, ارس, tr, Aras
The Aras (also known as the Araks, Arax, Araxes, or Araz) is a river in the Caucasus. It rises in eastern Turkey and flows along the borders between Turkey and Armenia, between Turkey and the Nakhchivan excl ...
near Meghri on the Armenia–Iran border. The construction was to have begun in 2012. The joint project was proposed and discussed earlier in the 1990s between Iranian and Armenian authorities.[
]
In June 2016, the Meghri Medical Center was opened with the presence of then-president Serzh Sargsyan
Serzh Azati Sargsyan ( hy, Սերժ Ազատի Սարգսյան, ; born 30 June 1954)[Of ...](_blank)
.
Tourism
Although the region is unique for its climate and abundant honey and fruit production (pomegranate
The pomegranate (''Punica granatum'') is a fruit-bearing deciduous shrub in the family Lythraceae, subfamily Punicoideae, that grows between tall.
The pomegranate was originally described throughout the Mediterranean Basin, Mediterranean re ...
, one of the national symbols of Armenia is only cultivated in Meghri), landscapes with rocky mountain ranges, the Aras River, an equally unique cultural heritage that is partly influenced by the Persian culture, for example, the murals of the local church, recently renovated thanks to a US subsidy, the remoteness of the country’s capital and the complicated conditions of the mountain roads lengthen the drive and therefore few tourists choose it. Visitors to the area are mostly adventurers who visit Armenia with the aim of later reaching Iran and, as Meghri is located right on the border, is visited by such tourists.
According to the Meghri administration, there are a total of 11 small hotels and hostels offering 170 rooms with 171 beds, despite the annual average number of guests reaching only 6580 people.
According to the State Tourism Committee of Armenia, about 220,000 Iranians visited Armenia in 2017, which is 16% more than in 2016 (about 185,000). The trend implies that the Meghri region has significant potential of tourism development. However, it lacks the capacity to host even a third of Iranian tourists. This is why people prefer other cities or choose a direct trip to Yerevan by visiting the region.
In the city there is an inn called Arevik which has between 8 and 10 beds created to somehow welcome tourists but due to the distances between Yerevan and Meghri there is not much investment because entrepreneurs are afraid of not receiving income and lack infrastructure.
To revive the city a program was created that would arouse the interest of tourists to the region. It consists of four main components: development planning, reconstruction of the neighborhood, capacity building and advertising of Meghri as a new tourist destination. Developing planning means creating a professional base to provide hospitality services with local traditions.
Education
As of 2017, Meghri is home to 2 public high schools. It also has a pre-school kindergarten ran by the municipality. In 2001, an intermediate technical college was opened in Meghri, preparing teachers, accountants and mechanists.
Sport
Meghri has a sports school served by a football training field and 2 swimming pools located at the centre of the city in the small neighborhood, on the right bank of Meghri river.
Notable people
* Yohannes Gugarats
* Khachatur Malumian, writer and political activist, victim of the Armenian genocide
The Armenian genocide was the systematic destruction of the Armenian people and identity in the Ottoman Empire during World War I. Spearheaded by the ruling Committee of Union and Progress (CUP), it was implemented primarily through t ...
* Paramaz (born Matteos Sarkissian), Armenian fedayee and political activist
Gallery
File:Akvofalo de Meghri.jpg, Waterfall of Meghri
File:Urbodomo de Meghri.jpg, Meghri City Hall
File:Persimonoj en Meghri.jpg, Local persimmons
File:Strato en malnova Meghri.jpg, Meghri Old Town (Pokr Tag)
See also
*Kingdom of Syunik
Kingdom of Syunik ( hy, Սյունիքի թագավորություն), also known as the Kingdom of Baghk and sometimes as the Kingdom of Kapan, was a medieval dependent Armenian kingdom
* Meghri Dam
References
External links
*
Meghri news
Syunik Province official website
{{Authority control
Communities in Syunik Province
Populated places in Syunik Province
Elizavetpol Governorate
906 establishments
Populated places established in the 10th century