Abovyan
- For the village in Ararat Province, see Abovyan, Ararat.
Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
| Abovyan Աբովյան |
|
|---|---|
From top left:
Surp Hovhannes Church • Abovyan with Mount Hatis Statue of Khachatur Abovian • Russian-Armenian brotherhood memorial at the town hall Panoramic view of Abovyan |
|
 Abovyan
Աբովյան |
|
| Coordinates: Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. | |
| Country |  Armenia |
| Marz (province) | Kotayk |
| Founded | 1963 |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Vahagn Gevorgyan |
| Area | |
| • Total | 11 km2 (4 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 1,450 m (4,760 ft) |
| Population (2011 census) | |
| • Total | 43,495 |
| • Density | 4,000/km2 (10,000/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC (UTC+4) |
| Area code(s) | (+374)222 |
| Website | Abovyan portal |
| Sources: Population[1] | |
Abovyan or Abovian (Armenian: Աբովյան), is a town in Armenia within the Kotayk Province. It is located 16 kilometres (10 miles) northeast of Yerevan and 32 kilometres (20 miles) southeast of the province centre Hrazdan. As of the 2011 census, the population of the town is 43,495, down from 59,000 reported at the 1989 census.
With a motorway and railway running through the city connecting Yerevan with the areas of the northeast, Abovyan is considered a satellite city of the Armenian capital. Therefore, Abovyan is generally known as the "northern gate of Yerevan".
The town of Abovyan covers an area of 11 square kilometres (4.2 square miles).
Contents
History
During the excavations of 1960 led by historian Mesrop Smbatiants, the remains of a 2nd-mellennium BC Cyclopean fortress, an ancient cemetery and old shelters with several objects that represent the 3 stages of the Bronze Age were found in the area of Abovyan.[2]
Smbatiants also found an 8th-century BC Urartian cuneiform left by king Argishti I, referring to the conquest of the "land of Darani" (the pre-Urartian name of modern-day Abovyan area).
The excavations led by Smbatiants revealed that the area of modern-day Abovyan was inhabited starting from the end of the 4th century BC.
During the ancient Kingdom of Armenia, the western area of modern-day Abovyan was part of the "Kotayk" canton of Ayrarat province while the eastern area was part of "Mazaz" canton of the same province.
Between the 5th and 7th centuries AD, the region was granted to the Amatuni Armenian noble dynasty.
After the Seljuk invasion of Armenia, the area became to be known as Elar. According to the Armenian historian Stepanos Orbelian of the 13th century, Elar became part of the Zakarid Principality of Armenia under the protectorate of the Georgian Kingdom. The region of Elar was granted to prince Liparit Orbelian of the Orbelian Dynasty by prince Ivane I Zakarian.
By the beginning of the 16th century, Eastern Armenia fell under the Persian rule, and Elar became part of the Erivan Beglarbegi and later of the Erivan Khanate. After the Russian conquest of Armenia in 1828, Elar became part of the Armenian Oblast and subsequently of the Erivan Governorate formed in 1850.
The small village of Elar (currently part of Abovyan) remained the largest settlement in the area until 1961, when it was renamed Abovyan in honour of the Armenian writer Khachatur Abovian. 2 years later in 1963, the town of Abovyan was founded by the decision of the Soviet government, occupying the village of Elar and the surrounding areas.
The modern town was built in 1962-1963 on a plateau located between Hrazdan and Azat rivers. It has rapidly developed as an industrial centre within the Armenian SSR. The town was planned to include 8 residential neighbourhoods (locally known as micro-districts), and an industrial district.
Ethnic groups
More than 90% of the population are ethnic Armenians, mainly from the Armenian diaspora who were relocated from Syria, Iran and Lebanon during the 1960s.
Minor communities of Kurds, Yazidis, Russians and Assyrians are also found in the town.[3]
Religion
The Armenians of the town almost entirely belong to the Armenian Apostolic Church. The Surp Stepanos church dating back to the Middle Ages and renovated in 1851 is the oldest standing church of the town. It was closed during the Soviet period. It remained closed until 2010 when it was entirely renovated and on 28 November of the same year, the church was reopened for the public. The other church in the town is the Surp Hovhannes church opened in 2013 by the efforts of the Armenian businessman Gagik Tsarukyan. The architect of the church was Artak Ghulyan.
The Russians of the town are mainly Molokans.
Geography and Climate
Abovyan is built on Kotayk plateau between the rivers of Hrazdan, Azat and Getar at a height of 1450 meters above sea level. It is surrounded with Gegham mountains and Mount Hatis from the northwest, Gutanasar mountain from the north, Hrazdan gorge from the west and the heights of Nork from the south. The climate is continental and dry with relatively hot summers and cold winters.
| Climate data for Abovyan | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Average high °F (°C) | 33.1 (0.6) |
35.6 (2) |
45.7 (7.6) |
57.7 (14.3) |
67.1 (19.5) |
75.2 (24) |
82.2 (27.9) |
81.7 (27.6) |
75.0 (23.9) |
63.3 (17.4) |
49.6 (9.8) |
37.8 (3.2) |
58.67 (14.82) |
| Average low °F (°C) | 16.7 (−8.5) |
18.9 (−7.3) |
27.3 (−2.6) |
36.5 (2.5) |
44.2 (6.8) |
50.5 (10.3) |
56.7 (13.7) |
56.5 (13.6) |
48.2 (9) |
39.6 (4.2) |
30.9 (−0.6) |
22.5 (−5.3) |
37.38 (2.98) |
| Average precipitation inches (mm) | 0.71 (18) |
0.87 (22.1) |
1.18 (30) |
1.81 (46) |
2.80 (71.1) |
2.09 (53.1) |
1.22 (31) |
0.98 (24.9) |
0.87 (22.1) |
1.34 (34) |
1.02 (25.9) |
0.71 (18) |
15.6 (396.2) |
| [citation needed] | |||||||||||||
Economy
Abovyan was founded by the Soviets as an industrial town. It used to have many large industrial firms until the fall of the Soviet Union, including a concrete factory, a stone-processing plant and a chemicals factory.
Currently, the town is home to the largest brewery in Armenia, known as Kotayk Brewery, founded in 1974. The factory is owned by Gagik Tsarukyan's Multi Group Holding and produces a variety of lager beer under the brands Kotayk, Erebuni and Abovyan's Tshani.[4] Other industrial firm operating in the town include the Abovyan cannery and soft drinks plant, and the "Tamara" factory for dairy products.
Education
As of 2015, Abovyan has 10 public education schools, 9 kindergartens and 2 state intermediate colleges. It is also home to the Abovyan University named after Levon Orbeli.
2 major science institutions and research centres are located in Abovyan: the Republican Hospital of tuberculosis, and the Institute of Biological Microbes of the Armenian National Academy of Sciences.
Many cultural centres operate in the city, such as the cultural palace of Abovyan, the community creative centre for children and teenagers, the musical school, the art school, the public library and the museum of Abovyan.
Sport
FC Kotayk founded in 1955, is one of the oldest football clubs in Armenia who represented Abovyan until 2005. Like many other football clubs in the country, FC Kotayk was forced to default from the Armenian football league and consequently from professional football in 2005, due to financial difficulties.
The short-lived King Delux FC represented the town in a single season of the Armenian First League in 2012-13 before going defunct.
The town has the Abovyan City Stadium with a capacity of 3,946 seats. The sports academy of the town is operated by the town council.
International relations
<templatestyles src="Module:Hatnote/styles.css"></templatestyles>
Twin towns – Sister cities
Abovyan is twinned with:
Villeurbanne, Rhône-Alpes, France (since 1990)
Gallery
-
Surp Hovhannes church of Abovyan
-
Rossiya street
-
Sipan hotel
-
View from the town
.jpg)
.jpg)
References
- ↑ Kotayk population
- ↑ Union of Communities of Armenia:Abovyan (Kotayk) Archived 24 January 2011 at WebCite
- ↑ Abovyan city:Kurdish Community of Abovyan city Archived 24 January 2011 at WebCite
- ↑ Kotayk Brewery:History Archived 24 January 2011 at WebCite
External links
Media related to Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. at Wikimedia Commons
