Saint Lazarus Island
San Lazzaro degli Armeni (, "Saint Lazarus of the Armenians"; sometimes called Saint Lazarus Island in English; ) is a small island in the Venetian Lagoon which has been home to the monastery of the Mekhitarists, an Armenian Catholic congregation, since 1717. It is one of the two primary centers of the congregation, along with the monastery in Vienna. The islet lies to the southeast of Venice proper and west of the Lido and covers an area of . Settled in the 9th century, it was a leper colony during the Middle Ages, but fell into disuse by the early 18th century. In 1717 San Lazzaro was ceded by the Republic of Venice to Mkhitar Sebastatsi, an Armenian Catholic monk, who established a monastery with his followers. It has since been the headquarters of the Mekhitarists and, as such, one of the world's prominent centers of Armenian culture and Armenian studies. Numerous important publications, such as the first complete dictionary of the Armenian language (1749–69) and the firs ...
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