Armenia (name)
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The name ''Armenia'' enters English via Latin, from Ancient Greek . The
Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...
endonym for the Armenian people and country is ''hayer'' and ''Hayastan'', respectively. The exact etymologies of the names of Armenia are unknown, and there are various speculative attempts to connect them to older
toponyms Toponymy, toponymics, or toponomastics is the study of '' toponyms'' (proper names of places, also known as place names and geographic names), including their origins, meanings, usage and types. Toponym is the general term for a proper name of ...
or ethnonyms.


Armenia/Armenians

''Armenia'' and ''Armenians'' are the most common names used internationally to refer to the country Armenia and the
Armenian people Armenians ( hy, հայեր, '' hayer'' ) are an ethnic group native to the Armenian highlands of Western Asia. Armenians constitute the main population of Armenia and the ''de facto'' independent Artsakh. There is a wide-ranging diaspora ...
.
Armenians Armenians ( hy, հայեր, '' hayer'' ) are an ethnic group native to the Armenian highlands of Western Asia. Armenians constitute the main population of Armenia and the ''de facto'' independent Artsakh. There is a wide-ranging diasp ...
themselves do not use it while speaking
Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...
, making it an
exonym An endonym (from Greek: , 'inner' + , 'name'; also known as autonym) is a common, ''native'' name for a geographical place, group of people, individual person, language or dialect, meaning that it is used inside that particular place, group, ...
.


Etymology

Multiple theories and speculations exist about the origin of the name ''Armenia'', but no consensus has been reached by historians and linguists. Armenologist
Nicholas Adontz Nicholas Adontz (, ''Nikoghayos Adonts’'', also spelled Adonts; ; January 10, 1871 – January 27, 1942) was an Armenian historian, specialist of Byzantine and Armenian studies, and philologist. Yuzbashyan, Karen. s.v. Adonts', Nikoghayos ...
has rejected some of the speculations in his 1946 book.' The earliest unambiguous and universally accepted attestation of the name dates to the 6th century BC, from the trilingual Behistun Inscription, where the names '' Armina'' (in Old Persian), ''Harminuya'' (in
Elamite Elamite, also known as Hatamtite and formerly as Susian, is an extinct language that was spoken by the ancient Elamites. It was used in what is now southwestern Iran from 2600 BC to 330 BC. Elamite works disappear from the archeological record ...
), and ''Urashtu'' (in Babylonian) and their equivalent demonyms are used in reference to Armenia and people from Armenia. In
Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
, (meaning ''Armenians'') is attested from about the same time, perhaps the earliest reference being a fragment attributed to Hecataeus of Miletus (c. 476 BC).


From Indo-European ''*ar-''

Some authors have connected ''Armenia'' to the
Indo-European The Indo-European languages are a language family native to the overwhelming majority of Europe, the Iranian plateau, and the northern Indian subcontinent. Some European languages of this family, English, French, Portuguese, Russian, Dutc ...
root ''*ar-'' meaning "to assemble".


From ''Armani'' and/or ''Armânum''

Early 20th century Armenologists have suggested that Old Persian 𐎠𐎼𐎷𐎡𐎴 ''a-r-mi-i-n(a)'' and the Greek ''Armenoi'' are continuations of an Assyrian toponym ''Armânum'' or ''Armanî''. There are certain
Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second prin ...
records identified with the toponym in both Mesopotamian and
Egyptian Egyptian describes something of, from, or related to Egypt. Egyptian or Egyptians may refer to: Nations and ethnic groups * Egyptians, a national group in North Africa ** Egyptian culture, a complex and stable culture with thousands of years of ...
sources. The earliest is from an inscription which mentions '' Armânum'' together with ''
Ibla Ragusa (; scn, Rausa ; la, Ragusia) is a city and ''comune'' in southern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Ragusa, on the island of Sicily, with 73,288 inhabitants in 2016. It is built on a wide limestone hill between two deep valley ...
'' as territories conquered by
Naram-Sin of Akkad Naram-Sin, also transcribed Narām-Sîn or Naram-Suen ( akk, : '' DNa-ra-am D Sîn'', meaning "Beloved of the Moon God Sîn", the "𒀭" being a silent honorific for "Divine"), was a ruler of the Akkadian Empire, who reigned c. 2254–2218 BC ...
in c. 2250 BC identified with an Akkadian colony in the Diarbekr region. Many historians, such as Wayne Horowitz, identify ''Armanî'' which was conquered by Naram-Sin of Akkad, with the Syrian city of Aleppo. ''Armenia'' has also been claimed as a variant of ''Urmani'' (or ''Urmenu''), attested epigraphically in an inscription of
Menuas of Urartu Menua ( ariations exist hy, Մենուա), also rendered Meinua or Minua, was the fifth known king of Urartu from c. 810 BC to approximately 786 BC. In Armenian, Menua is rendered as ''Menua''. The name Menua may be connected etymologically to t ...
. It is possible that the name ''Armenia'' originates in ''Armini'', Urartian for "inhabitant of Arme" or "Armean country." The Arme tribe of Urartian texts may have been the Urumu, who in the 12th century BC attempted to invade Assyria from the north with their allies the
Mushki The Mushki (sometimes transliterated as Muški) were an Iron Age people of Anatolia who appear in sources from Assyria but not from the Hittites. Several authors have connected them with the Moschoi (Μόσχοι) of Greek sources and the Geor ...
and the
Kaskians The Kaska (also Kaška, later Tabalian Kasku and Gasga,) were a loosely affiliated Bronze Age non-Indo-European tribal people, who spoke the unclassified Kaskian language and lived in mountainous East Pontic Anatolia, known from Hittite sour ...
. The Urumu apparently settled in the vicinity of
Sason Sason ( hy, Սասուն, translit=Sasun, ku, Qabilcewz, ar, قبل جوز; formerly known as Sasun or Sassoun) is a district and town in the Batman Province of Turkey. It was formerly part of the sanjak of Siirt, which was in Diyarbakır vi ...
, lending their name to the regions of Arme and the nearby lands of Urme and Inner Urumu.


From ''Har-Minni''

Alternatively, ''Armenia'' is interpreted by some as ''ḪARMinni'', that is, "the mountainous region of the Minni". ''Minni'' (מנּי) is also a Biblical name of the region, appearing in the Bible () alongside Ararat and Ashchenaz, probably the same as the ''Minnai'' of Assyrian inscriptions, corresponding to the
Mannai Mannaea (, sometimes written as Mannea; Akkadian: ''Mannai'', Biblical Hebrew: ''Minni'', (מנּי)) was an ancient kingdom located in northwestern Iran, south of Lake Urmia, around the 10th to 7th centuries BC. It neighbored Assyria and Urartu, ...
. The
Elamite Elamite, also known as Hatamtite and formerly as Susian, is an extinct language that was spoken by the ancient Elamites. It was used in what is now southwestern Iran from 2600 BC to 330 BC. Elamite works disappear from the archeological record ...
name for Armenia was inscribed as ''har-mi-nu-ya''.


From ''Erimena''

The name ''Erimena'' appears in Urartian inscriptions as the father of king
Rusa III Rusa III was king of Urartu. He was called "Rusa Erimenahi" ("the son of Erimena"). He may have been the nephew or cousin of Rusa II. Little is known about his reign; his name was inscribed on a massive granary at Armavir and on a series of bron ...
, which can be interpreted to mean "Rusa, son of the Armenian".


''Armen'' tribe hypothesis

There have been further speculations as to the existence of a Bronze Age tribe of the ''Armens'' (''Armans'', ''Armani'';
Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...
: , ), either identical to or forming a subset of the
Hayasa-Azzi Hayasa-Azzi or Azzi-Hayasa ( hit, URUḪaiaša-, hy, Հայասա) was a Late Bronze Age confederation in the Armenian Highlands and/or Pontic region of Asia Minor. The Hayasa-Azzi confederation was in conflict with the Hittite Empire in t ...
.Elisabeth Bauer. ''Armenia: Past and Present'' (1981), p. 49 In this case, ''Armenia'' would be an ethnonym rather than a
toponym Toponymy, toponymics, or toponomastics is the study of '' toponyms'' (proper names of places, also known as place names and geographic names), including their origins, meanings, usage and types. Toponym is the general term for a proper name of ...
. Attestations of such a tribe have never been found.


From ''Aram'' and/or ''Arame''

Armenian tradition has an
eponymous ancestor An origin myth is a myth that describes the origin of some feature of the natural or social world. One type of origin myth is the creation or cosmogonic myth, a story that describes the creation of the world. However, many cultures have sto ...
,
Aram Aram may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Aram'' (film), 2002 French action drama * Aram, a fictional character in Japanese manga series '' MeruPuri'' * Aram Quartet, an Italian music group * ''Aram'' (Kural book), the first of the three ...
, a lineal descendant of Hayk (), son of Harma and father of
Ara the Beautiful Ara the Handsome ( hy, Արա Գեղեցիկ ''Ara Gełec‘ik'') is a semi-legendary Armenian hero and king. Ara is notable in Armenian literature for the popular legend in which he was so handsome that the Assyrian queen Semiramis waged war agai ...
(according to classical Armenian historian
Moses of Chorene Movses Khorenatsi (ca. 410–490s AD; hy, Մովսէս Խորենացի, , also written as ''Movses Xorenac‘i'' and Moses of Khoren, Moses of Chorene, and Moses Chorenensis in Latin sources) was a prominent Armenian historian from the late a ...
).''History of Armenia'' by Father Michael Chamich from B.C. 2247 to the Year of Christ 1780, or 1229 of the Armenian era, Bishop's College Press, Calcutta, 1827, page 19: "
ram Ram, ram, or RAM may refer to: Animals * A male sheep * Ram cichlid, a freshwater tropical fish People * Ram (given name) * Ram (surname) * Ram (director) (Ramsubramaniam), an Indian Tamil film director * RAM (musician) (born 1974), Dutch * ...
was the first to raise the Armenian name to any degree of renown; so that contemporary nations ... called them the Aramians, or followers of
Aram Aram may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Aram'' (film), 2002 French action drama * Aram, a fictional character in Japanese manga series '' MeruPuri'' * Aram Quartet, an Italian music group * ''Aram'' (Kural book), the first of the three ...
, a name which has been corrupted into Armenians; and the country they inhabited, by universal consent, took the name of Armenia." A much older
Aram Aram may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Aram'' (film), 2002 French action drama * Aram, a fictional character in Japanese manga series '' MeruPuri'' * Aram Quartet, an Italian music group * ''Aram'' (Kural book), the first of the three ...
, the son of
Shem Shem (; he, שֵׁם ''Šēm''; ar, سَام, Sām) ''Sḗm''; Ge'ez: ሴም, ''Sēm'' was one of the sons of Noah in the book of Genesis and in the book of Chronicles, and the Quran. The children of Shem were Elam, Ashur, Arphaxad, Lu ...
, is also mentioned from the
Book of Genesis The Book of Genesis (from Greek ; Hebrew: בְּרֵאשִׁית ''Bəreʾšīt'', "In hebeginning") is the first book of the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Old Testament. Its Hebrew name is the same as its first word, ( "In the beginning" ...
, Historian
Flavius Josephus Flavius Josephus (; grc-gre, Ἰώσηπος, ; 37 – 100) was a first-century Romano-Jewish historian and military leader, best known for '' The Jewish War'', who was born in Jerusalem—then part of Roman Judea—to a father of priestly ...
, and the
Dead Sea Scrolls The Dead Sea Scrolls (also the Qumran Caves Scrolls) are ancient Jewish and Hebrew religious manuscripts discovered between 1946 and 1956 at the Qumran Caves in what was then Mandatory Palestine, near Ein Feshkha in the West Bank, on the ...
, as being the sovereign over "all the land of Mesopotamia between the
Tigris The Tigris () is the easternmost of the two great rivers that define Mesopotamia, the other being the Euphrates. The river flows south from the mountains of the Armenian Highlands through the Syrian and Arabian Deserts, and empties into the ...
and the
Euphrates The Euphrates () is the longest and one of the most historically important rivers of Western Asia. Together with the Tigris, it is one of the two defining rivers of Mesopotamia ( ''the land between the rivers''). Originating in Turkey, the Eup ...
to the north of the Chaldees to the border of the mountains of Asshur and the land of 'Arara." ''
Aram Aram may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Aram'' (film), 2002 French action drama * Aram, a fictional character in Japanese manga series '' MeruPuri'' * Aram Quartet, an Italian music group * ''Aram'' (Kural book), the first of the three ...
'' is sometimes equated with
Arame of Urartu Arame or Aramu ( Armenian: Արամե; ruled 858–844 BC) was the first known king of Urartu. Living at the time of King Shalmaneser III of Assyria (ruled 859–824 BC), Arame fought against the threat of the Assyrian Empire. His capital at A ...
, the earliest known king of
Urartu Urartu (; Assyrian: ',Eberhard Schrader, ''The Cuneiform inscriptions and the Old Testament'' (1885), p. 65. Babylonian: ''Urashtu'', he, אֲרָרָט ''Ararat'') is a geographical region and Iron Age kingdom also known as the Kingdom of V ...
. The endonym ''Hayk’'' (from Classical Armenian) in the same tradition is traced to Hayk himself. The names ''Armen'' and ''Arman'', feminine ''Arminé'', are common given names by Armenians. ''Armin'' is also a
Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...
given name.


Hayastan/Hayk/Hayer

Armenian people Armenians ( hy, հայեր, '' hayer'' ) are an ethnic group native to the Armenian highlands of Western Asia. Armenians constitute the main population of Armenia and the ''de facto'' independent Artsakh. There is a wide-ranging diaspora ...
use names derived from the stem ''hay-'' as their endonym. ''Hay'' (singular) and ''Hayer'' (plural) is used to refer to the Armenian people. ''Hayastan'' (H''ay'' + '' -a-'' + ''
-stan The suffix -stan ( fa, ـستان, translit=''stân'' after a vowel; ''estân'' or ''istân'' after a consonant), has the meaning of "a place abounding in" or "a place where anything abounds" in the Persian language. It appears in the names of ...
'') is used to refer to their country, while ''Hayk'' was used historically and is still used today romantically.


Etymology


From ''Hatti''

According to Diakonoff, the ethnonym may derive from the unattested
Proto-Armenian Proto-Armenian is the earlier, unattested stage of the Armenian language which has been reconstructed by linguists. As Armenian is the only known language of its branch of the Indo-European languages, the comparative method cannot be used to re ...
name ''*hatiyos or *hatyos → *hayo → hay,'' related to
Urartian Urartian or Vannic is an extinct Hurro-Urartian language which was spoken by the inhabitants of the ancient kingdom of Urartu (''Biaini'' or ''Biainili'' in Urartian), which was centered on the region around Lake Van and had its capital, Tushpa, ...
𒆳𒄩𒀀𒋼 (''KURḫa-a-te'', "the land of Hittites"), from Hittite 𒄩𒋾 (ḫa-ti /
Proto-Indo-European_ Proto-Indo-European_(PIE)_is_the_reconstructed_common_ancestor_of_the__Indo-European_language_family._Its_proposed_features_have_been_derived_by_linguistic_reconstruction_from_documented_Indo-European_languages._No_direct_record_of_Proto-Indo-_...
_intervocalic_''*-t-''_drops_and_yields_/y/._Compare_''wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/ph₂tḗr.html" ;"title="Proto-Indo-European_language.html" "title="Ḫatti/). In the Armenian language, the Proto-Indo-European_ Proto-Indo-European_(PIE)_is_the_reconstructed_common_ancestor_of_the__Indo-European_language_family._Its_proposed_features_have_been_derived_by_linguistic_reconstruction_from_documented_Indo-European_languages._No_direct_record_of_Proto-Indo-_...
_intervocalic_''*-t-''_drops_and_yields_/y/._Compare_''wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/ph₂tḗr">*ph₂tḗr''_→_''*hatir''_→_''*hayir''_→_'' Proto-Indo-European_ Proto-Indo-European_(PIE)_is_the_reconstructed_common_ancestor_of_the__Indo-European_language_family._Its_proposed_features_have_been_derived_by_linguistic_reconstruction_from_documented_Indo-European_languages._No_direct_record_of_Proto-Indo-_...
_intervocalic_''*-t-''_drops_and_yields_/y/._Compare_''wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/ph₂tḗr">*ph₂tḗr''_→_''*hatir''_→_''*hayir''_→_''wikt:հայր#Old_Armenian">hayr''_("father")._Other_examples_include_''wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/h₂eh₁ter-.html" ;"title="wikt:հայր#Old_Armenian.html" ;"title="Proto-Indo-European language">Proto-Indo-European Proto-Indo-European (PIE) is the reconstructed common ancestor of the Indo-European language family. Its proposed features have been derived by linguistic reconstruction from documented Indo-European languages. No direct record of Proto-Indo- ...
 intervocalic ''*-t-'' drops and yields /y/. Compare '' *ph₂tḗr''_→_''*hatir''_→_''*hayir''_→_''wikt:հայր#Old_Armenian">hayr''_("father")._Other_examples_include_''wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/h₂eh₁ter-">*h₂eh₁ter-''_→_''wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Iranian/ātr-.html" ;"title="wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/ph₂tḗr">*ph₂tḗr'' → ''*hatir'' → ''*hayir'' → '' hayr''_("father")._Other_examples_include_''wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/h₂eh₁ter-">*h₂eh₁ter-''_→_''wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Iranian/ātr-">*ātr-''_→_''*ayr''_→_'' hayr''_("father")._Other_examples_include_''wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/h₂eh₁ter-">*h₂eh₁ter-''_→_''wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Iranian/ātr-">*ātr-''_→_''*ayr''_→_''wikt:այրեմ#Old_Armenian">ayrem''_("burn"),_''wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/bʰréh₂tēr.html" ;"title="wikt:այրեմ#Old_Armenian.html" ;"title="wikt:հայր#Old Armenian">hayr'' ("father"). Other examples include '' *h₂eh₁ter-''_→_''wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Iranian/ātr-">*ātr-''_→_''*ayr''_→_''wikt:այրեմ#Old_Armenian">ayrem''_("burn"),_''wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/bʰréh₂tēr">*bʰréh₂tēr''_→_''wikt:եղբայր#Old_Armenian.html" ;"title="wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/h₂eh₁ter-">*h₂eh₁ter-'' → ''wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Iranian/ātr-">*ātr-'' → ''*ayr'' → ''wikt:այրեմ#Old Armenian">ayrem'' ("burn"), ''wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/bʰréh₂tēr">*bʰréh₂tēr'' → ''wikt:եղբայր#Old Armenian">ełbayr'' ("brother"). The name Ḫāte was given by Urartians to all lands west of
Euphrates The Euphrates () is the longest and one of the most historically important rivers of Western Asia. Together with the Tigris, it is one of the two defining rivers of Mesopotamia ( ''the land between the rivers''). Originating in Turkey, the Eup ...
, including the territory around Malatya (a region assumed to be occupied by speakers of Proto-Armenians). Diakonoff theorized that when the Urartians were assimilated among the Proto-Armenians, they took over their Indo-European language and called themselves by the same name of the "Hittites".


From ''Hayasa''

Others suggest that the etymology of the ''hay-'' stem derives from the name of a realm in proximity to the Armenian Highlands called ''Ḫayaša''. The presumption is that the name ''Hayk would derive from ''Hayasa'', but Diakonoff considers this "not provable and in its very essence not probable." According to Kapantsjan, the suffix ''-sa'' in ''Hayasa'' as the ancient
Luwian The Luwians were a group of Anatolian peoples who lived in central, western, and southern Anatolia, in present-day Turkey, during the Bronze Age and the Iron Age. They spoke the Luwian language, an Indo-European language of the Anatolian sub-fam ...
toponymical suffix ''-ssas'', widely in use throughout all of
Anatolia Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The ...
, but this suffix is not present in the Armenian language. It is also argued that the initial ''ḫ'' in ''Ḫayaša'' yielding ''/h/'' in Armenian is improbable. However, Vartan Matiossian and others argue that since Hayasa is a Hittite (or Hittite-ized) exonym applied to a foreign land, the ''-asa'' suffix can still mean "land of."Matiossian, Vartan (2009). "Azzi-Hayasa on the Black Sea? Another Puzzle of Armenian Origins". In Hovannisian, Richard G (ed.). Armenian Pontus : the Trebizond-Black Sea communities. UCLA Armenian History and Culture Series. p. 75. Additionally, a pronunciation like "Ḫayasa" (i.e. "Khayasa") can be reconciled with ''Hay'' as the Hittite ''h'' and ''kh'' phonemes are interchangeable, a feature present in certain Armenian dialects as well.


From ''Hayk''

According to Armenian historiographic tradition, the endonym ''Hayk’'' (Հայք) comes from the legendary
eponymous ancestor An origin myth is a myth that describes the origin of some feature of the natural or social world. One type of origin myth is the creation or cosmogonic myth, a story that describes the creation of the world. However, many cultures have sto ...
of the Armenian nation, Hayk (Հայկ).


From ''*h₂éyos''

''Hay'' may derive from the
Proto Indo-European Proto-Indo-European (PIE) is the reconstructed common ancestor of the Indo-European language family. Its proposed features have been derived by linguistic reconstruction from documented Indo-European languages. No direct record of Proto-Indo-E ...
word ''*h₂éyos'' (or possibly ''*áyos''), meaning "metal." According to this theory, Hayasa meant "land of metal," referring to the early metallurgy techniques developed in the region. According to
Hittitologist Hittitology is the study of the Hittites, an ancient Anatolian people that established an empire around Hattusa in the 2nd millennium BCE. It combines aspects of the archaeology, history, philology, and art history of the Hittite civilisation. ...
J.G. Macqueen, the region of Hayasa-Azzi was rich in metallic ores. The presence of this resource piqued the interest of the Hittites and led to frequent clashes between Hayasa-Azzi and Hatti, who needed Hayasa's metals to produce weapons. The Armenian Highlands and Pontus-region were famous for bronze and iron smelting techniques into the Classical-era. The Ancient Greeks and Romans made mention of a people to the immediate north of Armenia called
Chalybes The Chalybes ( grc, Χάλυβες/Χάλυβοι, ka, ხალიბები, Khalibebi) and Chaldoi ( grc, Χάλδοι, ) were peoples mentioned by classical authors as living in Pontus and Cappadocia in northern Anatolia during Classical ...
(Χᾰ́λῠψ). Some scholars have theorized this name means "steel."


From ''*poti''

19th century linguists Friedrich Spiegel and
Heinrich Kiepert Heinrich Kiepert (July 31, 1818 – April 21, 1899) was a German geographer. Early life and education Kiepert was born in Berlin. He traveled frequently as a youth with his family and documented his travels by drawing. His family was friends wit ...
proposed that ''hay'' might derive from
*poti
', Proto-Indo-European for "lord, master, husband." According to this theory, the name, with plural suffix, developed from ''*potiio''→''*hetiyo''→''*hatiyo''→''hay''. The ''p→h'' and ''t→y'' consanant shifts are common in Armenian. For example, the Proto-Indo-European word ''*pH₂tér-'' (father) became ''hayr'' in Armenian. Additionally, a vowel shift from ''o''→ ''a'' is explicable as it is present in other Indo-European languages, such as
Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...
''patih'' (master, husband) and Lithuanian ''patis'' (husband), both descended from Proto-Indo-European ''*poti''. According to Armen Petrosyan, ''hay'' has been used to mean "husband, chief of family" in several Armenian dialects. Petrosyan suggests that
Etiuni Etiuni ( hy, Էթիունի, other names Etiuḫi, Etiu, Etio) was the name of an early Iron Age tribal confederation in northern parts of Aras (river), Araxes rivers, roughly corresponding to the subsequent Ayrarat Province of the Kingdom of Arme ...
, the name of a powerful tribal confederation to the immediate north of Urartu, may reflect a Urartian-language form of ''*hetiyo'' or ''*hatiyo''.


Somkheti/Somekhi

This form, and forms derived from it, is used by Georgians and some peoples of the Caucasus.


Etymology

According to Diakonoff, the name is derived by metathesis from the name of the country called ''Suḫmu'' in Akkadian and ''Zuhma'' in Hittite, located in the upper Euphrates valley, close to South-Caucasian tribes, and is presumed to have been inhabited by Proto-Armenians. According to Professor James R. Russell of Harvard University, Somekhi refers to the
Mushki The Mushki (sometimes transliterated as Muški) were an Iron Age people of Anatolia who appear in sources from Assyria but not from the Hittites. Several authors have connected them with the Moschoi (Μόσχοι) of Greek sources and the Geor ...
, who Diakonoff suggested were Armenian-speakers.


Ararat/Urartu

Used historically as a synonym for ''Armenia'', in the forms of ''
Urartu Urartu (; Assyrian: ',Eberhard Schrader, ''The Cuneiform inscriptions and the Old Testament'' (1885), p. 65. Babylonian: ''Urashtu'', he, אֲרָרָט ''Ararat'') is a geographical region and Iron Age kingdom also known as the Kingdom of V ...
'' in the Assyrian dialect of Akkadian and ''Urashtu'' in the Babylonian dialect, as well as '' Ararat'' in Biblical Hebrew. The name ''Ararat'' was changed to ''Armenia'' in the
Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts ...
as early as the 1st century AD in historiographical works and very early Latin translations. This name was attested as ''Uruatri'' as early as the 13th century BC by
Assyrian king The king of Assyria (Akkadian: ''Išši'ak Aššur'', later ''šar māt Aššur'') was the ruler of the ancient Mesopotamian kingdom of Assyria, which was founded in the late 21st century BC and fell in the late 7th century BC. For much of its ear ...
Shalmaneser I Shalmaneser I (𒁹𒀭𒁲𒈠𒉡𒊕 md''sál-ma-nu-SAG'' ''Salmanu-ašared''; 1273–1244 BC or 1265–1235 BC) was a king of Assyria during the Middle Assyrian Empire. Son of Adad-nirari I, he succeeded his father as king in 1265 BC. Accord ...
, and it was used interchangeably with ''Armenia'' until the last known attestation from the 5th century BC by Xerxes in his XV Inscriptions. Sometime during the early periods of
Classical Antiquity Classical antiquity (also the classical era, classical period or classical age) is the period of cultural history between the 8th century BC and the 5th century AD centred on the Mediterranean Sea, comprising the interlocking civilizations of ...
, the use of ''Urartu'' declined and was fully replaced with ''Armenia''. The name continued to be used in the form of ''
Ayrarat Ayrarat () was the central province of the kingdom of Armenia (antiquity), ancient kingdom Armenia, located in the plain of the upper Aras (river), Aras River. Most of the historical capitals of Armenia were located in this province, including Arm ...
'' for the central
province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman '' provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...
of
Ancient Armenia Ancient Armenia refers to the history of Armenia during Antiquity. It follows Prehistoric Armenia and covers a period of approximately one thousand years, beginning at the end of the Iron Age with the events that led to the dissolution of the King ...
(also attested as ''Aurarat'' by Strabo), as a scarcely used alternative name for the First Republic of Armenia (''Araratian Republic''), and for a short-lived and self-proclaimed
Kurdish Kurdish may refer to: *Kurds or Kurdish people *Kurdish languages *Kurdish alphabets *Kurdistan, the land of the Kurdish people which includes: **Southern Kurdistan **Eastern Kurdistan **Northern Kurdistan **Western Kurdistan See also * Kurd (dis ...
state known as the
Republic of Ararat The Republic of Ararat, or Kurdish Republic of Ararat,Abbas Vali, ''Essays on the origins of Kurdish nationalism'', Mazda Publishers, 2003, p. 199./ref> ( ku, کۆماری ئارارات, translit=Komara Agiriyê and ku, Komara Araratê) was ...
. Today, ''Ararat'' is used as one of the names given to the twin-peaked mountain in the Armenian Highlands, in modern-day
Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula in ...
, and for a province by the same name in the
Republic of Armenia A republic () is a "state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th c ...
. It's also a common
given name A given name (also known as a forename or first name) is the part of a personal name quoted in that identifies a person, potentially with a middle name as well, and differentiates that person from the other members of a group (typically a ...
used by
Armenians Armenians ( hy, հայեր, '' hayer'' ) are an ethnic group native to the Armenian highlands of Western Asia. Armenians constitute the main population of Armenia and the ''de facto'' independent Artsakh. There is a wide-ranging diasp ...
.


Modern names


References

*Horace Abram Rigg, Jr., ''A Note on the Names Armânum and Urartu'' Journal of the American Oriental Society, Vol. 57, No. 4 (Dec., 1937), pp. 416–418.


External links


Armenian History; Tacentral.comHistory of Armenia
{{DEFAULTSORT:Name Of Armenia History of Armenia
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 ' ...