Oshakan ( hy, Օշական) is a major village in the

Aragatsotn Province Aragatsotn ( hy, Արագածոտն, ) is a province ('' marz'') of Armenia. It is located in the western part of the country. The capital and largest city of the province is the town of Ashtarak. The Statistical Committee of Armenia reported ...

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 8 kilometers southwest from

Ashtarak Ashtarak (Armenian language, Armenian: ), is a town and urban municipal community in the Aragatsotn Province of Armenia, located on the left bank of Kasagh River along the gorge, northwest of the capital Yerevan. It is the administrative centre of ...

. It is well known to historians and pilgrims of the

Armenian Apostolic Church , native_name_lang = hy , icon = Armenian Apostolic Church logo.svg , icon_width = 100px , icon_alt = , image = Էջմիածնի_Մայր_Տաճար.jpg , imagewidth = 250px , a ...

as the site of the

grave A grave is a location where a dead body (typically that of a human, although sometimes that of an animal) is buried or interred after a funeral. Graves are usually located in special areas set aside for the purpose of burial, such as grave ...

Mesrop Mashtots Mesrob or Mesrop ( hy, Մեսրոպ) is an Armenian given name. Mesrob / Mesrop may refer to: *Mesrop Mashtots, also Saint Mesrop, Armenian monk, theologian and linguist. Inventor of the Armenian alphabet **Mesrop Mashtots Institute of Ancient Manu ...

, the inventor of the

Armenian alphabet The Armenian alphabet ( hy, Հայոց գրեր, ' or , ') is an alphabetic writing system used to write Armenian language, Armenian. It was developed around 405 AD by Mesrop Mashtots, an Armenian linguist and wikt:ecclesiastical, ecclesiast ...

History

During the

Arsacid Dynasty The Parthian Empire (), also known as the Arsacid Empire (), was a major Iranian political and cultural power in ancient Iran from 247 BC to 224 AD. Its latter name comes from its founder, Arsaces I, who led the Parni tribe in conque ...

of the Kingdom of Armenia, it served as the main town of

Ayrarat Ayrarat () was the central province of the ancient kingdom Armenia, located in the plain of the upper Aras River. Most of the historical capitals of Armenia were located in this province, including Armavir, Yervandashat, Artashat, Vagharshapat ...

province and the capital of its Aragatsotn canton from which the

Amatuni Amatuni ( hy, Ամատունի) is an ancient Armenian noble family, known from the 4th century in the canton of Artaz, between lakes Van and Urmia, with its center at Shavarshan (latter-day Maku), and subsequently also at Aragatsotn, west of ...

noble family ruled. However, Oshakan is best known for the

Saint Mesrop Mashtots Church Saint Mesrop Mashtots Church ( hy, Սուրբ Մեսրոպ Մաշտոց եկեղեցի) is an Armenian Apostolic church in Oshakan that contains the grave of Mesrop Mashtots, the inventor of the Armenian alphabet. It is one of Armenia's better kno ...

which is the burial place of Saint Mesrop Mashtots, the creator of the

. The church houses his grave and was rebuilt by Catholicos

George IV George IV (George Augustus Frederick; 12 August 1762 – 26 June 1830) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from the death of his father, King George III, on 29 January 1820, until his own death ten y ...

in 1875. Wall paintings on the interior were done in 1960 by the artist H. Minasian. Saint Mesrop Cathedral is the seat of the Aragatsotn Diocese of the

. Just to the south of the town is the Didikond Hill, where excavations have uncovered a fort and five palaces built around the 7th to 5th centuries BC. To the north of town located in the Mankanots Valley is Saint Sion Church dating from the 7th century AD. It is believed to mark the grave of

Byzantine Emperor This is a list of the Byzantine emperors from the foundation of Constantinople in 330 AD, which marks the conventional start of the Eastern Roman Empire, to its fall to the Ottoman Empire in 1453 AD. Only the emperors who were recognized as le ...

Mauricius Maurice is a traditionally masculine given name, also used as a surname. It originates as a French name derived from the Latin Mauritius or Mauricius and was subsequently used in other languages. Its popularity is due to Mauritius, a saint of the ...

or his mother, as one historian claims he came from Oshakan. Adjacent to the church is a pillar on a plinth dated to the 6th or 7th century. West of Oshakan is a bridge dated to 1706 that crosses over the Kasagh River. On a hilltop overlooking the town there is a Tukh Manuk Shrine with a large

khachkar A ''khachkar'', also known as a ''khatchkar'' or Armenian cross-stone ( hy, խաչքար, , խաչ xačʿ "cross" + քար kʿar "stone") is a carved, memorial stele bearing a cross, and often with additional motifs such as rosettes, in ...

monument adjacent that sits within a large cemetery. The portion of the cemetery higher upon the hill is the older section while the lower portion contains a recent cemetery. There are Iron Age tomb fields around the area. Higher upon the same hill may be seen the shrine of Saint Grigor. Nearby are also the shrines of S. Sargis, S. Tadevos the Apostle, and a rock-cut Astvatsatsin. The village of Oshakan is mentioned in a 13th-century inscription on the southern wall of the Katoghike Church of the Astvatsnkal Monastery built between the 5th and 13th centuries. It reads, Oshakan is known to have had a brief visit during October 1734 by

Abraham Kretatsi Catholicos Abraham III (also Abraham of Crete or Abraham Kretatsi d. 1737) was the Catholicos of the Armenian Apostolic Church between 1734 and 1737. Born in Heraklion, Crete, to a Greek mother, he was bishop of Rodosto, Thrace and then Armenian p ...

during the time while he was serving the Catholicos Abraham II. He wrote a short passage speaking of his previous days stay at

Mughni Mughni ( hy, Մուղնի) is a village in the Aragatsotn Province of Armenia. It is located just to the north of Ashtarak town and belongs to its municipality. Until the Russian conquest, it was the southernmost town in the district of Aparan ...

to visit the Monastery of Surb Gevorg, "In the morning, after services, we went down to Oshakan."

Sister cities

Alfortville Alfortville () is a commune in the Val-de-Marne department in the southeastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris. History The commune of Alfortville was created on 1 April 1885 from part of the commune of Maisons ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

Gallery

Image:Oshakan Mesrop Mashtots Church 1875.JPG, Saint Mesrop Mashtots Cathedral built in 1875-79 Image:Oshakan Mesrop Mashtots Church.JPG, The front facade of Saint Mesrop Cathedral Image:Oskan kacha.jpg, Armenian Alphabet khachkars at the Saint Mesrop Cathedral yard Image:Tukh Manuk Shrine.JPG, Tukh Manuk shrine with the large khachkar adjacent, while the Surp Grigor Chapel is also seen in the background Image:Oshakan Cemetery.JPG, Cemetery below Didi Kond Hill with the shrine of Surb Grigor in the background File:Oshakan Shrine of Saint Grigor.JPG, The shrine of Surp Grigor on Didi Kond Hill overlooking the village File:Oshakan tower.jpg, The

memorial in Oshakan

References

*
World Gazetteer: Armenia
– World-Gazetteer.com
Report of the results of the 2001 Armenian Census

Oshakan

Bibliography

* * *Kiesling, ''Rediscovering Armenia'', pp. 14, available online at th
US embassy to Armenia's website

External links

Places of interest in the village Oshakan
{{Authority control Populated places in Aragatsotn Province Yazidi populated places in Armenia