Lovers' Park ( hy, Սիրահարների Այգի (''Siraharneri Aygi'') is a public park in

Yerevan Yerevan ( , , hy, Երևան , sometimes spelled Erevan) is the capital and largest city of Armenia and one of the world's List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest continuously inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Y ...

Armenia Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''Ox ...

, located on

Baghramyan Avenue Marshal Baghramyan Avenue ( hy, Մարշալ Բաղրամյան Պողոտա) is an avenue in the central Kentron and the northwestern Arabkir districts of Yerevan, Armenia. The avenue is named after the Soviet Armenian commander and Marshal of ...

. It occupies an area of 2.5 hectares in the central

Kentron District Kentron ( hy, Կենտրոն վարչական շրջան, translit=Kentron varčakan šrĵan), is one of the Districts of Yerevan, 12 districts of Yerevan, the capital of Armenia. It comprises the downtown, the commercial centre of the city. As of ...

of the city. The park was entirely renovated between 2005 and 2008 and reopened in November 2008 by the efforts of benefactor Albert Boghossian, head of Boghossian Foundation.

Overview

The park dates back to the 18th century, known as Kozern Park named after the Kozern district, a northwestern suburb of old Yerevan. It was well known for its medieval cemetery and its chapel. After the

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, the park was redesigned in 1949 and renamed Pushkin Park by the decision of the Council of Ministers of the Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic, as part of the celebration of the 150th anniversary of the birth of the renowned

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

n poet

Alexander Pushkin Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin (; rus, links=no, Александр Сергеевич ПушкинIn pre-Revolutionary script, his name was written ., r=Aleksandr Sergeyevich Pushkin, p=ɐlʲɪkˈsandr sʲɪrˈɡʲe(j)ɪvʲɪtɕ ˈpuʂkʲɪn, ...

. Later in 1970, the park was named Barekamutyun (Friendship) as a tribute to the friendship of all

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

member nations. In 1995, following the independence of Armenia, by the decision of the presidency of Yerevan City Council’s civil representatives, the park was renamed Lovers' Park Yerevan, based on the fact that the park had been a favorite rendezvous for many couples, during the second half of the 20th century.Parks in Yerevan
In 2005, by the initiative of benefactor Albert Boghossian, the Boghossian Foundation assumed the renovation of the park, within the frames of Boghossian Gardens project. Following a year of research, French designer architect ''Pierre Rambach'' presented the sketches of the new Lovers' Park project in 2006 and received the approval of the

Yerevan City Council The Yerevan City Council () is the lawmaking body of the city of Yerevan, the capital and largest city of Armenia. It has 65 members elected by Party-list proportional representation system, headed by the Mayor of Yerevan. The Council serves as a ...

. Pierre Rambach has visited Armenia several times to explore Armenian landscapes and find the best solutions to enable the combination of rigorous Japanese landscaping principles with the spirit of Armenia. After being entirely renovated between 2005 and 2008, the Lovers' Park Yerevan was opened in November 2008. The park has no steps in order to enable an easy access of wheelchairs to all parts. It has a small café with many outdoor seats. The park is also home to a small amphitheatre with a capacity of 215 seats and a stage surface of 100 m², named after Robert Boghossian. The following events are held in the park: *celebrations of the national holidays and feasts of Armenia *open air movie screenings of The Golden Apricot International Film Festival *open-air reading festivals *music festivals *live concerts *exhibitions In 2010, the statue of prominent Armenian poet

Gevorg Emin Gevorg Emin (, September 30, 1919 – June 11, 1998) was an Armenian poet, essayist, and translator. Biography Emin, the son of a school teacher, was born in the town of Ashtarak. In 1927, his family moved to Yerevan, the capital of Sovie ...

-designed by sculptor Ashot Aramyan- was erected in the park. In 2014, the presentation of the art installation “Obsidian Heart” by artist Jean-Michel Othonie took place in the park. The Marshal Baghramyan underground station stands at the northwestern corner of the Lover's Park since 1981.

Facts and figures

*Total area: 1.6 hectare. *Green area: 1.05 hectare. *Number of trees: 370. *Water surface: 0.11 hectare. *Number of waterfalls: 4.

References

{{Golden Apricot Yerevan International Film Festival , state=expanded Parks in Yerevan Urban public parks