ARMENOPOLI. – An Armenian city in Transylvania, founded in 1700 by Armenians who had emigrated from Ani as early as the 13th century. The city’s plan was laid out by the Armenian engineer Alexanian, whom Bishop Verzerian (Verzeresko), head of the emigrated Armenians, had brought with him from Rome. A. is situated on the eastern bank of the river Kis Samos, near the ruins of an ancient Roman colony. It constitutes an apostolic administration of the Armenian Catholics of Romania (5 June 1930), immediately subject to the Holy See. In 1932 it counted 36,000 faithful and 18,000 dissidents. A. is also known as Armenierstadt, Szamos-nyvár, and Gherla.
BIBL.: C. Lukacsi, *Historia Armenorum Transilvaniae a primordiis gentis usque ad nostram memoriam*, Vienna 1859, p. 18; G. Kovrighian, *Descrizione di Gherla A.*, ibid. 1896, pp. 1-348; *Statistica... della Gerarchia e dei fedeli di rito Orientale*, Vatican City 1932, p. 86 sq.; Serafino Akelian.