The Origins
Noah and Ararat
Noah descending from Mount Ararat, by Ivan Aivazovsky
Immodestly, Armenians consider themselves direct descendants of Noah, survivor of the Biblical Flood. According to Genesis, “the boat came to rest on a mountain in the Ararat range.” Ararat, rising in the heart of the Armenian Highlands, was revered as a holy mountain by the peoples of the ancient world. Numerous ancient sources also placed the Biblical Garden of Eden in the Land of Armenia—often termed the “Land of Ararat.”
Tradition holds that Noah founded Nakhichevan, regarded as the oldest Armenian city. Moses Khorenatsi, the 5th-century Armenian historian, preserves a detailed genealogy tracing the Armenian forefather Haik back to Japheth, son of Noah. For this reason, the Armenian Plateau is often described as a cradle of civilization—an ancestral homeland from which humankind spread across the ancient world.
Haik
Haik is pictured here on a wall of Haldi Temple, in Erebuni fortress.
The oldest Armenian legends recount the struggles of the ancient Armenians against their Assyrian neighbors. Haik—the patriarch of the Armenian nation—led his warriors to victory over the Assyrian giant Bel (Baeleus). Around 2100 BC, a proto-Armenian polity began to form under his lineage.
To this day, Armenians call themselves Hai, and their homeland Haik or Haiastan, in honor of Haik. Hittite inscriptions mention a land called Haiasa, while Assyrian cuneiform texts refer to Armenia as Urartu (Arartu), meaning Ararat. The Old Testament identifies Armenia with the Kingdom of Ararat as well.
In antiquity, Armenia was closely associated with the great rivers Tigris, Euphrates, Araks, and Kura. For this reason, the Assyrians called the land Nairi—the “Country of Rivers.”
Once believed to be purely mythical, Haik is now seen by some scholars as an actual tribal chieftain of early proto-Armenian peoples in the 3rd millennium BC. Over centuries, he was deified and became the principal god of the pagan Armenian pantheon. One of his renowned descendants, Aram, greatly expanded Armenian territories, transforming the land into a powerful state. Greek and Persian sources thereafter refer to the land as Armenia—the “country of Aram.”
Ara the Beautiful
Semiramis and Ara the Beautiful, by Vardges Surenyants
Aram’s son, Ara the Beautiful, succeeded him. A cherished Armenian legend recounts that Ara’s extraordinary beauty captivated Queen Semiramis of Assyria—founder of Babylon and the famed hanging gardens. Ara rejected her repeated proposals, and, in desperation, Semiramis waged war against him.
The Assyrian forces prevailed, and Ara was killed despite the queen’s order to spare him. Heartbroken, and reputed to be a sorceress, Semiramis attempted to revive him through magic. When Armenian forces advanced to avenge their fallen leader, she disguised one of her lovers to resemble Ara and spread the rumor that the gods had restored Ara to life. The Armenians, unwilling to violate divine will, withdrew—and war ceased.
Van and Yerevan
The inscription of King Argiste about the foundation of Erebuni (present day Yerevan).
Tradition attributes the founding of Van—one of the most ancient Armenian cities, situated on the shores of the great lake of the same name—to the legendary Semiramis.
Another ancient city, today’s capital Yerevan, dates its founding to 782 BC. This is attested by a cuneiform inscription of King Argishti of Urartu, making Yerevan one of the oldest continuously inhabited capitals in the world.
