Simeon I of Yerevan or Simeon Yerevantsi ( hy, Սիմէոն Ա Երեւանցի; 1710 – July 26, 1780) was the Catholicos of All Armenians from 1763 to 1780. In 1771, he founded a printing press at the

Etchmiadzin Cathedral Etchmiadzin Cathedral) or simply Etchmiadzin. Alternatively spelled as Echmiadzin, Ejmiatsin, and Edjmiadsin. ( hy, Էջմիածնի մայր տաճար, Ēǰmiatsni mayr tačar) is the mother church of the Armenian Apostolic Church, located i ...

, the first in Armenia. According to Rouben Paul Adalian, the pontificate of Simeon I of Yerevan marked the reemergence of Etchmiadzin as a "truly important center of Armenian national affairs".

Biography

Simeon I was born in 1710 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 ...

, then under Safavid Iranian rule. According to his contemporaries and 19th-century sources, his family was of noble origin. He received his education at the monastic school in

Etchmiadzin Vagharshapat ( hy, Վաղարշապատ ) is the 4th-largest city in Armenia and the most populous municipal community of Armavir Province, located about west of the capital Yerevan, and north of the closed Turkish-Armenian border. It is comm ...

, where he studied with his predecessor as catholicos, Hakob Shamakhetsi, and eventually joined the teaching staff. As a legate of the Holy See of Etchmiadzin, he travelled to

Istanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...

, New Julfa and

Madras Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...

, the last of which was an important center of Armenian intellectual activity at the time. He was elected catholicos at Etchmiadzin in 1763. At the time, due to the remoteness of Etchmiadzin in a frontier province of Iran, the Armenian Patriarchate of Istanbul had become the most important see of the Armenian Church. Simeon took active efforts in order to increase the role of the See of Etchmiadzin and reassert its primacy over the other sees, including by establishing a printing press in 1771, the very first on the territory of historical Armenia. Four years later he established a paper factory to meet the growing needs and costs of the printing press. He furthermore improved the monastic school, which would become a major center of theological learning in the 19th century. Catholicos Simeon was particularly hostile towards

Armenian Catholics , native_name_lang = hy , image = St Elie - St Gregory Armenian Catholic Cathedral.jpg , imagewidth = 260px , alt = , caption = Cathedral of Saint Elias and Saint Gregory the Illuminat ...

and sought to prevent the spread of Catholicism among Armenians, frequently and harshly criticizing them in his written works. He was opposed to the activities of Indian Armenians

Shahamir Shahamirian Shahamir Shahamirian (; 1723–1797) was an 18th-century Armenian writer, philosopher, and wealthy merchant in Madras. Born in New Julfa, Iran, he moved to India where he became an affluent merchant and an active member of the Armenian community o ...

and

Joseph Emin Joseph Emin (, Hovsep Emin; 1726 – 2 August 1809) was an Indo-Armenian traveler, writer and patriot who sought to achieve the liberation of Armenia from Persian and Ottoman rule. He wrote an autobiography titled ''The Life and Adventures of J ...

, who envisioned the reestablishment of an independent Armenian state. Simeon I died on July 26, 1780 on the holiday of

Vardavar Vardavar or Vartavar ( hy, Վարդավառ, Homshetsi: ''Vartevor'' or ''Behur'')) is an Armenian festival in Armenia where people drench each other with water. Origin Vardavar's history dates back to pagan times. The ancient festival is trad ...

. In accordance with his wishes, his former student Ghukas I Karnetsi was elected his successor as catholicos.

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* * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Simeon 01 of Yerevan 1710 births 1780 deaths Catholicoi of Armenia Persian Armenians 18th-century people of Safavid Iran