Armenian Legends

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Transcript of Armenian Legends

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The Legend

of Hayk and

Bel

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Hayk’s monument in Abovyan, ArmeniaHayk or Hayg,  also known as Haik Nahapet  is the legendary patriarch and founder of the Armenian nation. His story is told in the History of Armenia attributed to the Armenian historian Moses of Chorene.

In Moses of Chorene's account, Hayk son of Torgom had a child named Armanak while he was living in Babylon. After the arrogant Titanid Bel made himself king over all, Hayk emigrated to the region near Mount Ararat with an extended household of at least 300 and settled there, founding a village he named Haykashen. On the way he had left a detachment in another settlement with his grandson Kadmos. Bel sent one of his sons to entreat him to return, but was refused. Bel decided to march against him with a massive force, but Hayk was warned ahead of time by Kadmos of his pending approach. He assembled his own army along the shore of Lake Van and told them that they must defeat and kill Bel, or die trying to do so, rather than become his slaves. In his writings Movses states that:Hayk was a handsome, friendly man, with curly hair, sparkling eyes, and strong arms. He was a man of giant stature, a mighty archer and fearless warrior. Hayk and his people, from the time of their forefathers Noah and Japheth, had migrated south toward the warmer lands near Babylon. In that land there ruled a wicked giant, Bel. Bel tried to impose his tyranny upon Hayk's people. But proud Hayk refused to submit to Bel. As soon as his son Aramaneak was born, Hayk rose up, and led his people back to the land of his forefathers, the land of Ararat. At the foot of the mountains, he built his home, Haykashen.

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Hayk Nahapet ( by Mkrtum Hovnatyan)

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The Battle of Giants and defeat of Bel

Hayk and his men soon discovered Bel's army

positioned in a mountain pass (Moses of Chorene

located the site as Dastakert), with the king in the

vanguard.

At Dyutsaznamart( "Battle of Giants"),near

Julamerk southeast of Lake Van, on August 11,

2492 BC (according to the Armenian traditional

chronology) or 2107 BC (according to "The

Chronological table" of Mikael Chamchian), Hayk

slew Bel with a nearly impossible shot using a long

bow, sending the king's forces into disarray.

The hill where Bel with his warriors fell, Hayk

named Gerezmank meaning "tombs".

He embalmed the corpse of Bel and ordered it to

be taken to Hark where it was to be buried in a

high place in the view of the wives and sons of the

king.Soon after, Hayk established the fortress of

Haykaberd at the battle site and the town of

Haykashen in the Armenian province of Taron

(modern-day Turkey). He named the region of the

battle Hayk, and the site of the battle Hayots Dzor.

Hayk defeats Bel with an arrow.

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The figure slain by Hayk's arrow is variously given as Bel or Nimrod. Hayk is also the name of the Orion constellation in the Armenian translation of the Bible. Just as Hayk fled from Babylon because of Bel, whom he eventually killed, so Zeus had escaped to the mountains of the Caucasus, later to return to Sicily and hurl fatal arrows into the bodies of his titanic foes. Some Armenians hold that the Greek stories of Hercules are based on Hayk

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Ara the Beautiful and  Semiramis

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This is a magnificent story of Love and Loyality. The

Most beautiful and evil woman of her time, Shamiram,

the Queen of Asuristan, falls in love with godlike king of

Armenia, Ara. But Ara refuses her and stays loyal to his

wife- armenian beauty Nuard.When Shamiram promises

him all her kingdom and Ara refuses again, Shamiram

begins a war.

This drama based on an Ancient Armenian legend,

which can be found in Movses Khorenatsi's 'History of

Armenia'Ara the Beautiful and Semiramis

Are the Beautiful  (also Ara the Handsome or Ara the

Fair; Armenian:  Արա Գեղեցիկ Ara Geghetsik) is a

legendary Armenian hero. He is notable in Armenian

literature for the popular legend in which he was so

handsome that the Assyrian queen Semiramis waged

war against Armenia just to get him.

He is sometimes associated with the historical 

king of Ararat known as Arame who ruled in the 9th

century BC.

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Semiramis

Armenian tradition portrays her as a homewrecker and a

harlot. These facts are partly to be explained by observing

that, according to the legends, in her birth as well as in her

disappearance from earth, Semiramis appears as a

goddess, the daughter of the fish-goddess Atargatis, and

herself connected with the doves of Ishtar or Astartë.

One of the most popular legends in Armenian tradition

involves Semiramis and an Armenian king, Ara the

Beautiful. In the 20th century, the poet Nairi Zarian retold

the story of Ara the Beautiful and Shamiram, in a work

considered to be a masterpiece of Armenian literary

drama.

According to the legend, Semiramis had heard about the

fame of the handsome Armenian king Ara, and she lusted

after his image. She asked Ara to marry her, but he

refused; upon hearing this, she gathered the armies

of Assyria and marched against Armenia.

During the battle, which may have taken place in the Ararat

valley, Ara was slain. To avoid continuous warfare with the

Armenians, Semiramis, reputed to be a sorceress, took his

body and prayed to the gods to raise Ara from the dead.

When the Armenians advanced to avenge their leader, she

disguised one of her lovers as Ara and spread the rumor

that the gods had brought Ara back to life, ending the war.

[9]

Although many different versions of the legend exist, they

agree that Ara never came back to life.

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THANK YOU

FOR ATTENTION

Presentation created by

Gayane Stepanyan and Anna Pepanyan