Yerevan

ERIVAN. — City of the district of Kotajkh, situated about 10 km from Eghmiadzia, to the east, on the Zanga River, on a plain more than 1,000 m high in the Caucasus. Before the 7th century there is no information concerning E. The katholikós Abramo I (607–615/17), at the synod he held at Dwin in 609, classifies E. among the principal centres of monasticism. From the 8th century onward the Arabs, the Tartars, and the Idh of Persia repeatedly destroyed and plundered II.
In E. the churches of S. Giacomo Nisibeno and S. Sergio Martire, and the hermitage called Anapai, were renowned. E. is now the capital of the Soviet Republic of Armenia. Since becoming the capital, it has acquired a university, a conservatory, numerous scientific institutes, and a rich library.