Armenia: Historical & Geographical Background

Armenia has historically encompassed a large region of south-west Asia, generally considered to extend from the upper Euphrates River to Lake Urmia, and from the Black Sea ranges to the limestone plateau of the Syrian Desert.  Thus defined, the region has an area of about 140,000 sq. km.; however, it is now divided politically between the newly independent Republic of Armenia, Turkey, and Iran.  The three international boundaries meet at the foot of Mt. Ararat, the legendary resting place of Noah’s Ark.

For the most part, the terrain is rough and mountainous.  An extensive plateau is deeply scored by rivers that flow in deep gorges cut through soft lava.  The climate is characterized by extremely severe winters and fairly hot summers.

The history of Armenia is the story of a gifted people, situated on a through-route between East and West, struggling to preserve their independence from countries pressing in on each side.  From the first millennium bc through ad 301 (the year Armenia officially adopted Christianity), Babylonia, Assyria, Persia, Greece, and Rome all tried—and failed—to subsume the Armenians.

Armenia’s conversion to Christianity brought new conflicts—and new opportunities.  War with Persia resulted in the division of the country into eastern and western parts.  A theological dispute with the Western church led to Armenia’s isolation from Rome and Byzantium.  At the same time, St. Mesrob’s development of an Armenian alphabet, and the translation of the Bible (and scores of other books) into Armenian, became a positive strategy for preserving and consolidating a distinct Armenian identity.

With the birth of Islam in the 7th century, the struggle which had long waged across Armenia—between Greece or Rome, on the one hand, and Persia on the other—gave way to a contest between Arabic Moslems and Byzantine Christians.  In such circumstances, Armenia could have no permanent peace; by the 16th century, the Ottoman Turks having begun their long period of rule, Armenia become a buffer state between Turkey and Russia.  Although modern times saw a feeble attempt by Britain, France, and Russia to force the Turks to grant autonomy to Armenia, nothing came of these efforts.

During the First World War, Armenia was again torn between the rival ambitions of Turkey and Russia.  This culminated in the darkest episode of Armenian history: the attempt by the Ottoman Turkish empire to wipe out its Armenian population.  This infamous act—the first genocide of the 20th century—cost the lives of one and one-half million Armenians, and scattered the remnant across the globe.

In the wake of World War I, from 1918 to 1920, a short-lived independent Republic of Armenia emerged, but was overthrown when Russia conquered the eastern part of historic Armenia, establishing the Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic.  The country’s Soviet period lasted 70 years; but the eventual dissolution of the Soviet Union changed the political landscape of the world—and Armenia was directly affected.  After centuries of subordination, annexation, and colonialization, Armenia emerged as an independent republic in 1991: an equal partner alongside the community of nations.

In the decade that has elapsed since the independence referendum, Armenia has performed relatively well.  Despite difficulties—the earthquake of 1988 which devastated 40% of the country, the ongoing struggle in Nagorno-Karabagh, and a long economic blockade imposed by neighboring Azerbaijan—optimism for the future persists, as self-determination and full sovereignty mark the beginning of an unprecedented new era for the Armenian people.