Mkhitar Gosh ( 1130–1213) was an

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian diaspora, Armenian communities around the ...

scholar, writer, public figure, thinker, and

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

. He was one of the representatives of the Armenian Renaissance.

Biography

He was born in the city of Gandzak. He got his early education from public institutions. When he reached his adolescence he decided to dedicate his life to the church. To learn theology more thoroughly, Gosh traveled to

Cilicia Cilicia () is a geographical region in southern Anatolia, extending inland from the northeastern coasts of the Mediterranean Sea. Cilicia has a population ranging over six million, concentrated mostly at the Cilician plain (). The region inclu ...

, to the Black Mountains (), and studied orthodox theology under the local priests. Upon his return, he, along with the princes' Zakare and Ivane Zakarian financial help, built the church of Getik. He wrote a code of laws including

civil Civil may refer to: *Civility, orderly behavior and politeness *Civic virtue, the cultivation of habits important for the success of a society *Civil (journalism) ''The Colorado Sun'' is an online news outlet based in Denver, Colorado. It lau ...

and

canon law Canon law (from , , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical jurisdiction, ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its membe ...

that was used in both Greater Armenia and

. It was also used in

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

, by order of king Sigismund the Old, as the law under which the Armenians of

Lviv Lviv ( or ; ; ; see #Names and symbols, below for other names) is the largest city in western Ukraine, as well as the List of cities in Ukraine, fifth-largest city in Ukraine, with a population of It serves as the administrative centre of ...

and

Kamianets-Podilskyi Kamianets-Podilskyi (, ; ) is a city on the Smotrych River in western Ukraine, western Ukraine, to the north-east of Chernivtsi. Formerly the administrative center of Khmelnytskyi Oblast, the city is now the administrative center of Kamianets ...

lived from 1519 until the region fell under Austrian rule in 1772. He also wrote several popular fables. He founded the monastery of Nor Getik, where he was later buried. Ever since his death it has become better known as

Goshavank Goshavank (; meaning "Monastery of Gosh"; previously known as Nor Getik) is a 12–13th-century Armenian monastery located in the village of Gosh, Armenia, Gosh in the Tavush Province of Armenia. The monastery which has remained in relatively goo ...

. The works of Mkhitar Gosh were later adapted into a law codex in

Middle Armenian Middle Armenian (), also called Cilician Armenian (although this may be confused to refer to modern dialects), corresponds to the second period of Armenian which was spoken and written in between the 12th and 18th centuries. It comes after Graba ...

, which was prepared by

Sempad the Constable Sempad the Constable (also Smpad and Smbat; or , ; 1208–1276) was a noble from Cilician Armenia. He was an older brother of King Hetoum I. He was an important figure in Cilicia, acting as a diplomat, judge, and military officer, holding the ti ...

, a 13th-century Cilician Armenian noble, military commander, and judge."Smbat Sparapet." Dictionary of the Middle Ages

Notes

External links

* Robert W. Thomson
''The Lawcode (Datastanagirk') of Mxit'ar Goš''
— Rodopi, 2000 *English translations of Gosh's Fables and his Colophon are available at: http://rbedrosian.com/hsrces.html *English translations of th

an

- ''mirror if main site unavailable''
Grave of Mkhitar Gosh
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gosh, Mkhitar 1130 births 1213 deaths Armenian Christian clergy Armenian legal writers Armenian fabulists Medieval law

Biography

See also

Notes

External links