Vardan Aygektsi or Vardan of Aygek ( hy, Վարդան Այգեկցի, died 1250) was an

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 ' ...

monk A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedica ...

. Among his works is ''his Fables and a Geography'', both of which have been mistakenly attributed by some to

Vardan Areveltsi Vardan ( hy, Վարդան; Vartan in Western Armenian transliteration, pronounced in both Eastern and Western Armenian), Varden ( ka, ვარდენ) in Georgian, is an Armenian name of Middle Persian origin (from Mid. Pers. Wardā), popu ...

. Aygektsi was born in Ma'arrata, a village near Afrin. Vardan lived for a time in Tluk in

Cilician Armenia The Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia (Middle Armenian: , '), also known as Cilician Armenia ( hy, Կիլիկեան Հայաստան, '), Lesser Armenia, Little Armenia or New Armenia, and formerly known as the Armenian Principality of Cilicia ( hy, ...

. He was educated in the Monastery of Arkakaghin and received the title of

vardapet A vardapet or vartabed ( hy, վարդապետ, in Western Armenian or aɾda'pεtin Eastern Armenian) is a highly educated archimandrite in the Armenian Apostolic Church and the Armenian Catholic Church traditions who holds a Doctorate in Theol ...

. In 1198, he took part in the coronation ceremony of King Levon II. From 1210, he was at the monastery of Aygek on the Amanus Mountains. His fables, commonly known as ''Aghvesagirq'' ('' Book of the Fox''), are said to have been only in part from his pen, many additions having been made by others. He died in 1250. In 1668, an extensive collection of Aygektsi's fables, under the title ''Aghvesagirq'' (''Book of the Fox'') was published in Amsterdam. The naming of the collection was based on the fact that the key character in most of the fables was a fox.

Modern interpretations

In 1825 the French academic

Antoine-Jean Saint-Martin Antoine-Jean Saint-Martin (17 January 1791 – 17 July 1832) was a French academic, orientalist, and pioneer in the field of what would be known as Armenian Studies. Biography Antoine-Jean Saint-Martin was born in Paris on 17 January 1791, th ...

published a French translation of the Fables. In 1975, Soviet-era director Robert Sahakyants made a 10-minute animated film, The Fox Book, based on Aigektsi's Fables. In association with the Hover Chamber Choir of Armenia, contemporary Armenian composer Stepan Babatorosyan created Six Fables, an original composition based on Aigektsi's Fables, with contemporary lyrics by Yuri Sahakyan. It won the 2004 Armenian Music Awards – Best Choir/Chorus Album. The Hover Chamber Choir of Armenia has also presented an outdoor musical-theatrical production based on Aigektsi's Fables.

References

External links

* , Paris, Librairie orientale de Dondey-Dupré Père et Fils, 1825. Armenian text, French translation by

Year of birth missing 1250 deaths Syrian people of Armenian descent Syrian monks Syrian writers 13th-century Armenian writers Armenian priests Middle Eastern Christians Armenian Christian monks Armenian fabulists People of the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia Armenian Christians Syrian Christians {{Armenia-reli-bio-stub

Modern interpretations

See also

References

External links