Gyumri (
ArmenianThe Armenian language is an Indo-European language spoken by the Armenian people. It is the official language of the Republic of Armenia as well as in the region of Nagorno-Karabakh. The language is also widely spoken by Armenian communities in the Armenian diaspora...
: Գյումրի, also Romanized as
Kumayri,
Kümri,
Gumry,
Gumri,
Gimri,
Kyumayri, and
Kyumri) is the capital and largest city of the Shirak Province in northwest
ArmeniaArmenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
. It is located about 120 km from the capital
YerevanYerevan is the capital and largest city of Armenia and one of the world's oldest continuously-inhabited cities. It is situated on the Hrazdan River, and is the administrative, cultural, and industrial center of the country...
, and, with a population of 168,918 (2008; up from 150,917 reported at the (2001 census), is the second-largest city in Armenia.
The name of the city has been changed many times in history. It was first known as
Kumayri or
Gyumri, then
Alexandropol (also,
Alexandrapol,
Alexandropol’,
Aleksandropol’,
Alek’pol,
Alek’sandrobol, and
Alek’sandrapol, 1840–1924), then
Leninakan (Armenian: Լենինական , 1924–1990), then again as
Gyumri.
History
Gyumri is one of the oldest localities in Armenia. The region of Gyumri is mentioned in different
UrartianUrartu Urartu Urartu (natively ; , Assyrian: , corresponding to Ararat, or Kingdom of Van was an Iron Age kingdom centered around Lake Van in the Armenian Highland....
inscriptions since 8th century BC. The first settlement at the location occupied by today's city of Gyumri is believed to have been founded some time in the 5th century BC, perhaps ca. 401 BC, by
GreekThe Greeks , also known as Hellenes, are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighbouring regions, who can also be found in diaspora communities around the world....
colonists . An alternative theory suggests that the city was founded by
CimmeriansThe Cimmerians or Kimmerians were ancient equestrian nomads of Indo-European origin.According to Herodotus, they originally inhabited the region north of the Caucasus and the Black Sea, in what is now Ukraine and Russia, in the 8th and 7th centuries BC. Although Herodotus's view was widely...
, based on the fact that Cimmerians conquered the region in 720 BC and that the original name of the city was Kumayri . Historians believe that
XenophonXenophon , son of Gryllus, of the deme Erchia of Athens, also known as Xenophon of Athens and Xenophon of Thebes, was a soldier, mercenary, and a contemporary and admirer of Socrates...
passed through Gyumri during his return to the Black Sea, immortalized in his
AnabasisAnabasis is an expedition from a coastline up into the interior of a country. Katabasis, by contrast, is a trip from the interior down to the coast.Two classic texts are titled with "anabasis":...
.
During the
Middle AgesThe Middle Ages of European history is a period of European history covering roughly a millennium in the 5th century through 16th centuries. More specific starting and ending points are sometimes adopted by scholars to suit their respective specializations or current focus...
Gyumri was known as a great settlement, and the center of Armenian rebellion against the Islamic regime (733-755).
Gyumri continued to develop in the 19th century, when, along with its surroundings, it became part of Russia, as a result of the
Russo-Persian War (1804-1813)The 1804-1813 Russo-Persian War, one of the many wars between the Persian Empire and Imperial Russia, began like many wars as a territorial dispute. The Persian king, Fath Ali Shah Qajar, wanted to consolidate the northernmost reaches of his Qajar dynasty by securing land near the Caspian Sea's...
. Gyumri came under Russian control in 1804 around 25 years earlier than the rest of
Eastern ArmeniaEastern Armenia was the portion of Ottoman Armenia and Persian Armenia that was ceded to the Russian Empire following the Russo-Turkish War, 1828-1829...
. During this period it was one of the best-known cities of the Trans-Caucasus region. In 1829, on the heels of the
Russo-Turkish WarThe Russo–Turkish War of 1828–1829 was sparked by the Greek War of Independence. The war broke out after the Sultan, incensed by the Russian participation in the Battle of Navarino, closed the Dardanelles for Russian ships and revoked the Akkerman Convention.When the hostilities erupted, the...
there was a major influx of population as about 3000 families from the Eastern Turkish cities like Kars,
ErzurumErzurum is a city in eastern Anatolia, Turkey. The name "Erzurum" derives from "Arz-u Rûm"...
,
DoğubeyazıtDoğubeyazıt is a city and district of Ağrı Province of Turkey, and is Turkey's most eastern district, the border crossing to Iran. Elevation 1625 m. Area 2.383 km²...
and other places in the
Ottoman EmpireThe Ottoman Empire or Ottoman State , also known by its contemporaries as the Turkish Empire or Turkey , was an empire that lasted from 1299 to November 1, 1922 The Ottoman Empire or Ottoman State (Ottoman Turkish: دَوْلَتِ عَلِیَّهِ عُثْمَانِیَّه Dawlet-il ʿAliyyat-il ʿOs̠māniyye, Modern Turkish:...
settled in Gyumri.
Russian poet Alexander Pushkin visited Gyumri during his journey to
ErzurumErzurum is a city in eastern Anatolia, Turkey. The name "Erzurum" derives from "Arz-u Rûm"...
in 1829.
In 1837 Russian
Czar Nicholas INicholas I , , was the Emperor of Russia from 1825 until 1855, known as one of the most reactionary of the Russian monarchs. On the eve of his death, the Russian Empire reached its historical zenith spanning over 20 million square kilometres.Nicholas I was born in Gatchina to Emperor Paul I and...
arrived in Gyumri and renamed the town Alexandropol. The name was chosen in honor of Czar Nicholas I's wife, Princess
Charlotte of PrussiaAlexandra Feodorovna, born Princess Charlotte of Prussia , was Empress consort of Russia. She was the wife of Tsar Nicholas I, and mother of Tsar Alexander II.-Princess of Prussia:...
, who had changed her name to
Alexandra Fyodorovna after converting to
Orthodox ChristianityThe Orthodox Church, also officially called the Orthodox Catholic Church and commonly referred to in English speaking countries as the Eastern Orthodox Church, is the world's second largest Christian communion, estimated to number 225 million members...
.
During the Soviet era Gyumri was renamed Leninakan in Lenin's honor
A major
RussiaRussia , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia . It is a semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n fortress was built on the site in 1837. In 1840's, Aleksandrapol (a town since 1840) was quickly growing. It was an important outpost for the Imperial Russian military in the Transcaucasus, where their military barracks were established (Poligons, Severski, Kazachi Post).
Main sights
There are five churches, one
conventA convent is either a community of priests, religious brothers, religious sisters, or nuns, or the building used by the community, particularly in the Roman Catholic Church and in the Anglican Communion...
, and one
RussiaRussia , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia . It is a semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n
chapelA chapel is a building used as a place for fellowship and of worship for Christians. It may be attached to an institution such as a large church, a college, a hospital, a palace, a prison or a cemetery, or may be an entirely free-standing building, sometimes with its own grounds...
in Gyumri. One of the most important historical churches is the Church of the Holy Saviour of All (
Sourb Amenaprkich), resembling Ani Mother Cathedral. Construction of the church began in 1859 and was completed in 1873. It was greatly damaged by the 1988 Spitak earthquake and is currently being reconstructed. A restoration project has since been spearheaded by
EarthwatchEarthwatch Institute is an international non-profit organization that was founded in 1971 near Boston to promote action and understanding necessary to sustain the Natural environment...
to preserve the city's unique architecture.
Geopolitics
During the
Turkish-Armenian WarThe Turkish–Armenian War was a conflict fought between the Democratic Republic of Armenia and Turkish Revolutionaries of the Turkish National Movement which lasted from 24 September to 2 December, 1920 and largely took place in present-day northeastern Turkey and northwestern Armenia.- Background...
,
TurkeyTurkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey
, is a Eurasian country that stretches across the Anatolian peninsula in Western Asia and Thrace in the Balkan region of southeastern Europe...
attacked Gyumri and occupied the city on November 7, 1920, after winning the
Battle of AlexandropolThe Battle of Alexandropol was a conflict between the Democratic Republic of Armenia and Turkish Revolutionaries of the Turkish National Movement which was on November 7 1920 at Alexandropol.-Background:...
. After the battle, the Turkish forces were headquartered in Gyumri. From this city the Turks presented the
ArmeniansThe Armenians are a nation and ethnic group which originated in the Caucasus and the Armenian Highland. It is estimated that there are 8 million Armenians around the world. There is a large concentration of Armenians in the Caucasus, especially in Armenia, and there is a significant presence in...
with an ultimatum that Armenia was forced to accept—otherwise Turkey would have invaded Yerevan, Armenia's capital, from their headquarters in Gyumri. Armenia was forced to sign the
Treaty of AlexandropolThe Treaty of Alexandropol was a peace treaty between the Democratic Republic of Armenia and the Grand National Assembly of Turkey ending the Turkish-Armenian War, signed on December 2 1920, before the declaration of the Republic of Turkey. It was the first treaty signed by Turkish revolutionaries...
to stop the Turkish advance towards Yerevan, the capital of
Democratic Republic of ArmeniaThe Democratic Republic of Armenia was the first modern establishment of an Armenian republic. The republic was established in the former territory of Eastern Armenia in the Russian Empire following the Russian Revolution of 1917...
, thus ending the Turkish-Armenian War. Turkish forces withdrew from Alexandropol after
Treaty of KarsThe Treaty of Kars was a friendship treaty between the Grand National Assembly of Turkey, which in 1923 declared the Republic of Turkey, and representatives of Soviet Armenia, Soviet Azerbaijan and Soviet Georgia with participation of Bolshevist Russia...
.
In 1924 the name was changed to Leninakan after the deceased Soviet leader
Vladimir LeninVladimir Ilyich Lenin , born Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov , was the Bolshevik Leader of the 1917 October Revolution, and the first Head of State of the Soviet Union; in the course of his political career, he used the pseudonyms Lenin, V. I. Lenin, Nikolai Lenin, and N. Lenin...
. Leninakan was a major industrial center for the Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic and its second largest city, after Yerevan, the capital. The city suffered major damage during the 1988 Spitak Earthquake, which devastated large parts of the country.
The current name of the city was chosen in 1990, at the time of the breakup of the Soviet Union. The Russian 102nd military base is located in the city. Today, Gyumri is Armenia's second largest city.
Demographics
Population of city of Gyumri by years.
| Year |
Population |
| 1829 |
~600 |
| 1830 |
4,000 |
| 1850 |
15,000 |
| 1873 |
20,000 |
| 1886 |
24,000 |
| 1897 |
30,600 |
| 1914 |
51,300 |
| 1923 |
58,600 |
| 1926 |
42,400 |
| 1939 |
67,700 |
| 1959 |
108,400 |
| 1970 |
164,966 |
| 1980 |
210,000 |
| 1984 |
222,000 |
| 1989 |
122,587 |
| 2001 |
150,917 |
| 2006 |
147,823 |
Culture
During the centuries Gyumri, the "city of trades and arts", has been famous for its schools, theatres,
gusansGusans were creative and performing artists - singers, instrumentalists, dancers, storytellers, and professional folk actors in public theaters of Parthia and ancient and medieval Armenia....
and
ashoughs. The first opera performance in Armenia took place in Gyumri in 1912, and the first Armenian opera theatre was also opened here in 1923.
Gyumri is also considered as the
capital of Armenian humour.
Transportation
Alexandropol was considered to be the third most important trade and cultural center in the Trans-Caucasus after
TiflisTbilisi is the capital and the largest city of Georgia, lying on the banks of the Mt'k'vari River. The name is derived from an early Georgian form Tp'ilisi and it was officially known as Tiflis until 1936...
and
BakuBaku , sometimes known as Baqy, Baky, Baki or Bakou, is the capital, the largest city, and the largest port of Azerbaijan and all the Caucasus. Located on the southern shore of the Absheron Peninsula, the city consists of two principal parts: the downtown and the old Inner City...
(
YerevanYerevan is the capital and largest city of Armenia and one of the world's oldest continuously-inhabited cities. It is situated on the Hrazdan River, and is the administrative, cultural, and industrial center of the country...
would not rise to prominence until being proclaimed the capital of the independent
Republic of ArmeniaArmenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
in 1918 and
Armenian SSR in 1920). At the end of the 19th century, the population of Alexandropol reached 32,100 residents, mostly Armenians. From 1858-1876, St. Prkich (Saviour) church was erected, designed to resemble the
Cathedral of AniThe Cathedral of Ani is an Armenian church built in 1001 A.D by the architect Trdat in the ruined ancient Armenian capital of Ani, located in what is now the extreme eastern tip of Turkey, on the border with modern Armenia. It offers an example of a cruciform domed church within a rectangular plan...
. The first rail link to Alexandropol was finished in 1899, which was the Tiflis-Alexandropol railway. The rail line was then extended from Alexandropol to Yerevan,
JolfaJolfa, جلفا, is a small town located in North of Tabriz, in the province of East Azarbaijan Province, Iran and is home to approximately 56,000 people living on 35 kilometers of urban and rural areas...
(in 1906), and
TabrizTabriz is the fourth largest city of Iran and the capital of East Azerbaijan Province. Situated at an altitude of 1,350 meters at the junction of the Quri River and Aji River, it was the second largest city in Iran until the late 1960s, one of its former capitals and residence of the crown prince...
. As a result, Alexandropol became an important rail hub.
Air transportation
Gyumri is served by the
Shirak AirportShirak Airport is an international airport serving Gyumri and the province of Shirak. It is located about 5 km from the center of Gyumri. The airport was inaugurated in 1961, and is the second largest airport in the country, after Yerevan's Zvartnots International Airport...
, located about 5 km from the center of town. The airport offers regular flights to Moscow, Sochi and Rostov-on-Don. It also serves as an alternate airport to Yerevan's
Zvartnots International AirportZvartnots International Airport is located near Zvartnots, west of Yerevan, the capital city of Armenia. The airport was built in 1961. The draftsmen of the airport included architects M. Khachikyan, A. Tarkhanyan, J. Sheqhlyan, L. Cherkezyan and designers H. Tigranyan, A. Meschyan, and...
.
Shirak airport was closed for renovations from June 20 til October 20, 2007, during which time the runway was repaved and work was done on the airport lighting and the main terminal.
Sports
Gyumri is home to the
ArmeniaArmenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
n
football (soccer)Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of eleven players using a spherical ball...
team
FC ShirakShirak Football Club , is an Armenian football club, playing in the town of Gyumri . The home stadium for Shirak is the Gyumri City Stadium.-History:...
. They play their home games at
Gyumri City StadiumGyumri City Stadium is an all-seater football stadium in Gyumri, Armenia. It is currently used mostly for football matches and is the home ground of Shirak FC. The stadium can serve around 3,000 supporters, was built in 1924 and reconstructed in the late 90s....
, built in 1924. Other teams from Gyumri are
AragatsAragats Gyumri was an Armenian football club from Gyumri. The club dissolved in 2002 and is currently inactive from professional football.-League Record :...
and
KumairiKumairi Gyumri was an Armenian football club from Gyumri. The club dissolved in 1997 and is currently inactive from professional football.-League Record :-References:...
.
Sister cities
AlexandriaAlexandria is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 128,283. Located along the Western bank of the Potomac River, Alexandria is approximately 6 miles south of downtown Washington, D.C.Like the rest of northern Virginia, as...
,
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
KutaisiKutaisi is Georgia's second largest city and the capital of the western region of Imereti. It is 221 km to the west of Tbilisi.-Geography:...
,
GeorgiaGeorgia Georgia Georgia is a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Situated at the juncture of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the south by Turkey and Armenia, and to the east by Azerbaijan...
KarsKars is a city in northeast Turkey and the capital of Kars Province.-History:As Chorzene, the town appears in Roman historiography as part of ancient Armenia....
,
TurkeyTurkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey
, is a Eurasian country that stretches across the Anatolian peninsula in Western Asia and Thrace in the Balkan region of southeastern Europe...
NardòNardò is town of 31,185 inhabitants and comune in the southern Italian region of Apulia, in the province of Lecce.-History:Traces of human presence in the area dates from Palaeolithic times. The settlement was founded by the Messapi around the year 1000 BC. The Romans conquered it in 269 BC and...
,
ItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia. Italy shares its northern, Alpine boundary with France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia...
OsascoOsasco is a municipality and city in São Paulo State,Brazil, is located in the Greater São Paulo and ranking 5th in population among São Paulo municipalities. The current mayor is Emidio Pereira de Souza ....
,
BrazilBrazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is a country in South America. It is the fifth largest country by geographical area, occupying nearly half of South America, the fifth most populous country, and the fourth most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Atlantic Ocean...
PlovdivPlovdiv is the second-largest city in Bulgaria after Sofia, with a population of 380,312. Known in ancient times as Philippoupolis, it is the administrative center of Plovdiv Province in southern Bulgaria and three municipalities and Bulgaria's Yuzhen tsentralen planning region , as well as the...
,
BulgariaBulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a country in the Balkans in south-eastern Europe. Bulgaria borders five other countries: Romania to the north , Serbia and the Republic of Macedonia to the west, and Greece and Turkey to the south...
Famous natives
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Anania Shirakatsi was an Armenian mathematician, astronomer and geographer. His most famous works are Geography , and Cosmography .-Life:...
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- Sergey Merkurov
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, sculptor
- Sheram
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, gusan, poet and composer
- Avetik Isahakyan
Avetik Isahakian , Ghazarapat, near Aleksandropol, current Gyumri, Russian Empire – October 17 1957, Yerevan) was a prominent Armenian lyric poet, writer, academian and public activist.-Biography:...
, poet
- Armen Tigranian
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, composer ("Anush" opera)
- Olga Chekhova
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, actress
- Khachatur Avetisyan, composer
- Shushanik Kurghinian
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, poet
- Ruben Zaryan
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, Art historian
- Hovhannes Shiraz
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, poet
- Frunzik Mkrtchyan
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, actor
- Albert Mkrtchyan, film director
- Svetlana Svetlichnaya
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, film actress
- Edmond Keosayan
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, film director
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- Levon Mkrtchyan
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, film director
- Vazgen Manukyan
Vazgen Manukyan was Prime Minister of Armenia from 1990 to 1991. From 1992 to 1993 Manukyan was acting Minister of Defense.Manukyan was born in Gyumri, Armenia and holds a PhD in mathematics and physical science...
, politician, Armenia's former Prime Minister
- Yurik Vardanyan, Hero of the Olympics
- Robert Emmiyan
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, European long jump record holder
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, mixed martial artist (UFC)
- Ara Abrahamian
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, wrestler
- Bambir
Bambir-1 is an Armenian folk-rock band, formed in 1978 in Gyumri, who have gained acknowledgement in Armenia and abroad. They have performed in Armenia, Georgia, Moldova, Russia and the United States. Their repertoire also includes traditional Armenian songs, modern arrangements of Komitas and...
, folk-rock band
- Arthur Sarkissian (artist)
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Footnotes
See:
Encyclopedia Britannica
- Adrian Room, Placenames of the World: Origins and Meanings of the Names for Over 5000 Natural Features, Countries, Capitals, Territories, Cities and Historical Sites, McFarland, 1997, ISBN 0-7864-1814-1 (pbk) p. 192 See http://www.gyumri.am/eng/history.html
External links