Atabekians — Armenian Princely (

Meliq Мelik (also transliterated as ''Meliq'') ( ''melikʿ''; from ar, ملك ''malik'' (king)) was a hereditary Armenian noble title, in various Eastern Armenian principalities known as ''melikdom''s encompassing modern Yerevan, Kars, Nakhichev ...

ly) house of Lords of the

Jraberd Jraberd ( hy, Ջրաբերդ) or Chilabord ( az, Çiləbörd or ) is a village ''de facto'' in the Martakert Province of the breakaway Republic of Artsakh, ''de jure'' in the Tartar District of Azerbaijan, in the disputed region of Nagorno-Kara ...

principality (Meliqdom) in Artsakh, which ruled in the 19th century. The most renowned representative of this family was

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. T ...

Hovhannes (Vani) Atabekian,

of Jraberd, who took an active part in the

Russo-Persian War (1804–13) The Russo-Persian Wars or Russo-Iranian Wars were a series of conflicts between 1651 and 1828, concerning Iran, Persia (Iran) and the Russian Empire. Russia and Persia fought these wars over disputed governance of territories and countries in th ...

The Atabekians are descendants of

Ivane-Atabek I Hasan-Jalalian, son of

Hasan-Jalalian, the Lord of

Khachen The Principality of Khachen ( hy, Խաչենի իշխանություն, Khacheni ishkhanutyun) was a medieval Armenian principality on the territory of historical Artsakh (present-day Nagorno-Karabakh). The provinces of Artsakh and Utik were ...

. His offspring, Prince Atabek III, settled in the north-eastern part of the paternal domain, along the banks of the Tartar and Kusapat rivers and there gave birth to a new

dynasty A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family,''Oxford English Dictionary'', "dynasty, ''n''." Oxford University Press (Oxford), 1897. usually in the context of a monarchical system, but sometimes also appearing in republics. A ...

. Therefore, the Atabekians consider themselves to be a dynastic branch of the House of Hasan-Jalalian, and through them trace their ancestry to the noble houses of the Vakhtangian, Aranshahik, Syuni, and the Haykazuni. DNA studies in 2009 also revealed kinship between the Atabekians and princes Argutian of Lori, Meliq-Yeganians of

Dizak Dizak (), also known as Ktish after its main stronghold, was a medieval Armenian principality in the historical province of Artsakh and later one of the five melikdoms of Karabakh, which included the southern third of Khachen (present-day Nago ...

and Meliq-Dadians of

Goris Goris ( hy, Գորիս) is a town and the centre of the urban community of Goris, in Syunik Province at the south of Armenia. Located in the valley of the Goris (or Vararak) River, it is 254 km from the Armenian capital Yerevan and 67 ...

; all mentioned families belong to R1b1b2a haplogroup.

Princes of the House of Atabekian

* Atabek I (mentioned in 1411, the fifth son of Prince Jalal III the Great Hasan-Jalalian) * Aytin (mentioned in 1495) * Sargis I unknown lords * Atabek II Jraberdci (1678) * Hovhannes-Vani I and Ghuli (the branch of Prince Vani I moved to Russia, Ghuli became the Houselord) * Sargis II * Harutyun (Tuni) (end of the 18th century) * Hovhannes (Meliq Vani) II of Jraberd (1766 — 7 March 1854) * Hovsep-bek (1815—1861) (The family tree splits between Armenian provinces of Jraberd and Tavush)

Famous Atabekians

* Meliq-Vani (Prince Hovhannes Atabekian, Lord of

) * General Andrey Atabekov * Alexander_Atabekian

political figure Aleksander Atabekian * Miqayel Atabekian, Minister of Education of

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 ' ...

(1918-1920) * Academician Hovsep Atabekian * Атабеков_Иосиф81

Member of Russian Duma (Parliament) Hovsep Atabekian Sr. * Professor and musician Angela Atabekian * Engineer Prince Hrach Atabekian * Engineer Suren Atabekian

The present-day state of the House of Atabekians

Currently, the Princely House of Atabekians is one of the well-organized and active clans of

Armenian nobility The Armenian nobility ( hy, Հայ ազնվականություն) was a class of persons which enjoyed certain privileges relative to other members of society under the laws and customs of various regimes of Armenia. Governments which recognized o ...

. The Atabekians regularly organise clan gatherings (''tohmahavaq''); the latest ones were held on 8 October 1983 in Meliqgyugh and on 19 April 2014 in

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

. The last clan gathering elected

Hrach Atabekian Hrach (), also spelled Hratch or Herach, is an Armenian male or female given name meaning "eyes of flame." Origin is Hrachia or Hrachya ( hy, Հրաչյա). People with the given name include: * Hrachia Adjarian (1876–1953), Armenian linguist *Hr ...

as the Head (''tohmapet'') of the House of Atabekians. On 27 July 2012, the Atabekians were among the four aristocratic houses that initiated the restoration of the alliance of the traditional princely dynasties of the

n Artsakh,

Melikdoms of Karabakh The Five Melikdoms of Karabakh, also known as Khamsa Melikdoms (), were Armenian feudal entities on the territory of modern Nagorno-Karabakh and neighboring lands, from the dissolution of the Principality of Khachen in the 15th century to the ...

, by creating

the Armenian Meliq Union ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

Literature

Potto, Vassili. The First Volunteers of Karabakh. Tiflis, 1902

Maghalyan, Artak. "Meliqdoms and Meliqly Houses of Artsakh". Yerevan, 2007

The Court Hearings of the Atabekians, "Archives of Armenia", 2008, # 1, pp. 3-27.

"The Roots of the Tree", "Aniv", 08.09.2008 # 5 (14)

Karapetyan, Armen. Critical Remarks regarding A.Maghalyan's "Meliqdoms and the Meliqly Houses of Artsakh". Historical-Philological Journal of the Armenian National Academy Of Science. 2009, # 1(243), p.246
# Archbishop Sergius Hasan-Jalaliants. A History of the Land of Artsakh. (Edited with an Introduction by Robert H. Hewsen). Costa Mesa 2013.

References

External links

Official website of the House of Atabekians
{{Royal houses of Armenia Armenian nobility