Hayots Dzor (, literally "the valley of the Armenians") or Eruandunik/Yervandunik (, from the name of the

Orontid dynasty The Orontid dynasty, also known as the Eruandids or Eruandunis, ruled the Satrapy of Armenia until 330 BC and the Kingdom of Armenia (antiquity), Kingdom of Armenia from 321 BC to 200 BC. The Orontids ruled first as client kings or satraps of t ...

) was a canton (''gavar'') of the province of

Vaspurakan Vaspurakan (, Western Armenian pronunciation: ''Vasbouragan'') was the eighth province of the ancient kingdom of Armenia, which later became an independent kingdom during the Middle Ages, centered on Lake Van. Located in what is now southeaster ...

of historical

Armenia Armenia, officially the Republic of Armenia, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of West Asia. It is a part of the Caucasus region and is bordered by Turkey to the west, Georgia (country), Georgia to the north and Azerbaijan to ...

encompassing the area to the southeast of

Lake Van Lake Van (; ; ) is the largest lake in Turkey. It lies in the Eastern Anatolia Region of Turkey in the provinces of Van Province, Van and Bitlis Province, Bitlis, in the Armenian highlands. It is a Salt lake, saline Soda lake, soda lake, receiv ...

, namely the valley of the Khoshab (

Hoşap River The Hoşap River or Güzelsu River () is a river in the Van Province of Turkey. Its catchment area approximately coincides with the Gürpınar District. Geography From its source in the İspiriz Mountains near Başkale on the southeast borders of ...

). It was bordered by the cantons of

Rshtunik Rshtunik () was a canton () of the province of Vaspurakan of historical Armenia, encompassing the area on the southern coast of Lake Van, which was also referred to as ("Sea of Rshtunik"), as well as Aghtamar Island. It was located to the east o ...

to the southwest, Tosp to the north, and Kughanovit to the east. Armenian folk tradition holds the region to be the site of the legendary battle between the Armenian patriarch

Hayk Hayk (, ), also known as Hayk Nahapet (, , ), is the legendary patriarch and founder of the Armenian nation. His story is told in the ''History of Armenia'' attributed to the Armenian historian Movses Khorenatsi and in the ''Primary History'' ...

and the Babylonian ruler Bel. Hayk is said to have founded the fortress of Haykʻ or Haykaberd (traditionally identified with the ruins of the Urartian fortress of Sardurihinili) at the site of the battle, in honor of which Hayots Dzor was named. The inhabitants of region irrigated their fields using the Khoshab River and the

Shamiram Canal The Menua Canal, also known as the Semiramis Canal or as the Shamiram Canal, is a canal joined with a series of hydraulic works such as aqueducts constructed by King Menua of Urartu (). It is located to the east of Van, Turkey and runs , supplyin ...

, which was built during the time of the

Kingdom of Urartu Urartu was an Iron Age kingdom centered around the Armenian highlands between Lake Van, Lake Urmia, and Lake Sevan. The territory of the ancient kingdom of Urartu extended over the modern frontiers of Turkey, Iran, Iraq, and Armenia.Kleiss, Wo ...

. Hayots Dzor was populated almost entirely by Armenians until the 1890s, when Kurdish tribes began to settle in the area following the

Hamidian massacres The Hamidian massacres also called the Armenian massacres, were massacres of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire in the mid-1890s. Estimated casualties ranged from 100,000 to 300,000, Akçam, Taner (2006) '' A Shameful Act: The Armenian Genocide a ...

. As of 1911, there were 12 monasteries in the region of Hayots Dzor, five of which were standing and seven of which were in ruins. Around 10,000 Armenians lived in Hayots Dzor before the

Armenian genocide The Armenian genocide was the systematic destruction of the Armenians, 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 t ...

, when the Armenian villages were destroyed and their inhabitants massacred or deported.

Villages

According to Manvel Mirakhorian, who traveled to the region in the late nineteenth century, the Armenian-populated villages of Hayots Dzor were as follows (modern-day Turkish names and district in parentheses): * Agrak * Atʻanantsʻ (Atalan,

Gevaş Gevaş (; ) is a municipality and Districts of Turkey, district of Van Province, Turkey. Its area is 1,544 km2, and its population is 26,918 (2022). In the last 2019 Turkish local elections, elections of March 2019, Murat Sezer from the Justic ...

) * Anggh (Dönemeç, Edremit) * Ankshtantsʻ (Parmakkapi, Gürpınar) * Aṛegh (Bozyiğit, Gürpınar) * Astvatsashen (Çavuştepe, Gürpınar) * Aradentsʻ (Çakinli, Gürpınar) * Berdak (Doğanlar, Edremit) * Zernak * Trkʻashen (Uğurveren, Gevaş) * Ishkhani Gom (Bakimli, Edremit) * Kaṛnurd (Değirmendüzü, Gürpınar) * Khachʻ * Kharakantsʻ (Engisu, Edremit) * Khekʻ (Yatağan, Gürpınar) * Khndrakatar * Khosp (Sakalar, Gürpınar) * Khorgom (Dilkaya, Edremit) * Kalbalasan (Arkboyu, Gürpınar) * Karmrakʻar * Kem (Köprüler, Edremit) * Kendanantsʻ * Kězěldash (Kiziltaş, Gevaş) * Kghzi (Gürpınar) * Hermeru * Hilunkʻ * Hirch (Gündoğan, Gevaş) * Hndstan (Erkaldi, Gürpınar) * Mashkatak (Gölbaşı, Edremit) * Margs (Andaç, Edremit) * Mulkʻ (Mülk, Edremit) * Nanik * Norgyugh (Yolaşan, Gürpınar) * Vochkharantsʻ Verin, Vochkhrantsʻ Nerkʻin (Koyunyataği, Gürpınar) * Pahantsʻ * Pzhnkert Verin, Pzhnkert Nerkʻin * Pltentsʻ (Aladüz, Gevaş) * Spitak Vankʻ * Surb Vardan (Kiyicak, Edremit) * Vahrantsʻ, Toni (Gölardı, Gürpınar) * Urtʻuk * Pʻakakatuk (Bölmeçalı, Gürpınar) * Kʻaravantsʻ (Çayırbaşı, Edremit) * Kʻerts (Abali, Gevaş) * Kʻeoshk (Köşk, Edremit and Ongün, Gürpınar)

References

Early medieval Armenian regions {{Armenia-hist-stub

Villages

See also

References