Gai ( ), known as Khatunarkh until 1978 (and also spelled Guy or Gay), is a village in the
Armavir Province
Armavir (, ), is a administrative divisions of Armenia, province (''marz'') in the western part of Armenia. Located in the Ararat plain dominated by Mount Ararat from the south and Mount Aragats from the north, the province's capital is the tow ...
of Armenia. It was founded in the 1670s, and named for the wife of
Sefi Khan,
Safavid
The Guarded Domains of Iran, commonly called Safavid Iran, Safavid Persia or the Safavid Empire, was one of the largest and longest-lasting Iranian empires. It was ruled from 1501 to 1736 by the Safavid dynasty. It is often considered the begi ...
governor of
Chokhur-e Sa'd.
[Հակոբյան Տ.Խ., Մալիք Բախշյան փ.Տ., Բարսեղյան Օ.Խ. Հայաստանի և շրջակա գավառների տեղանունների բառարան. I գ., Ա.Դ., Երևան, «Իրավանի համալսարան», 1986. էջ 778] In 1978, it was renamed in honour of
Russian Civil War
The Russian Civil War () was a multi-party civil war in the former Russian Empire sparked by the 1917 overthrowing of the Russian Provisional Government in the October Revolution, as many factions vied to determine Russia's political future. I ...
hero
Hayk Bzhshkian, whose
nom-de-guerre
A ''nom de guerre'' (, 'war name') is a pseudonym chosen by someone to use when they are involved in a particular activity, especially fighting in a war.
In ''ancien régime'' France it would be adopted by each new recruit (or assigned to them by ...
was ''Gai''.
[Kiesling, ''Rediscovering Armenia'', p. 40, available online at th]
US embassy to Armenia's website
References
*
World Gazetteer: Armenia– World-Gazetteer.com
*
Populated places in Armavir Province
Populated places established in the 1670s
{{ArmavirAM-geo-stub