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Index

Armenia

The Urartu Civilisation

Victory for Independence

Artashisian Dynasty on the Armenian Throne

Armenia caught between Rome and the Arsacids

The Acceptance of Christianity

Defending Christianity

Armenia Under the Bagratouni Dynasty

Cilicia - the New Armenia

Armenia Under Turanian Rule

The Renaissance or the Resurrection of Armenia

The Eastern Question

Russia in the Caucasus

The Armenian Question

Battle on Two Fronts

Tsarist Russia Against the Armenians

The Revolution of the Young Turks and the Armenian People on the Eve of World War I

The First World War

The Resurrection of Armenia

Armenia on the Road to Independence, 1918

- Armenia on the Road to Independence, 1918

Eastern Armenia

Western Armenia

"The Fateful Years" (1914-1917)

"Hopes and Emotions" (March-October, 1917)

The Bolshevik Revolution and Armenia

Transcaucasia Adrift (November, 1917

Dilemmas (March-April, 1918)

War and Independence (April-May, 1918)

The Republics of Georgia, Azerbaijan, and Armenia

The Suppliants (June-October, 1918)

In conclusion

Soviet Armenia

The Second Independent Republic of Armenia

Epilogue

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The Arrival of the Indo-European Armenians

The Indo-European groups started to appear in Europe and Asia sometime between 2000 and 1000 B.C. As well as all the indigenous peoples in present Europe, Armenians, Iranians and part of the population of India are members of this ethnic group.

However, there are different theories about the origins of the Indo-European tribes. The oldest theory, which was accepted until the middle of the 19th century AD, held that these tribes started from the plains of Pamir in Central Asia, after which one section migrated towards Europe while the other stayed in India: hence the name Indo-Europeans. Other researchers claim that these tribes originated in the great plain between the Danube and Volga 53/21 and even in Siberia. 54 A third, more recent theory, claims that the Indo-European people actually origin from the Armenian Highland itself and have migrated via Asia Minor to Europe and to Middle East 54a Nevertheless, the common denominator in this discussion is that European researchers have claimed Europe to be the home of the Indo-European people, while their Asian colleagues have claimed the oppisite.

In any case the migration was a very significant event. The invasion must have been made possible by the help of a new weapon or tool which allowed these new tribes to gain the upper hand over the native peoples relatively quickly. P. Rohrbach thinks that this surprising new aid was the horse.

The arrival of the Indo-Europeans in the Middle East meant the end of the great kingdoms of that time, among them the Hittites and the Chaldeans.

The Armenians belong to the Indo-European ethnic family, but the date of their arrival in the region is uncertain although it was probably during the 8th or 7th century BC. They may have arrived during the reign of Urartu from the east, after having crossed the Caucasus together with the Cimmerians who were another tribe of Indo-European people; or from the west after having wandered through the Balkans and Asia Minor, together with another Indo-European people, called the Phrygians. The latter theory is gaining in popularity among present historical and scientific circles.

The Armenian tribes subsequently gained control over the Armenian plateau. An American author wrote: "The original Armenians must have been very adventurous. Their brothers, i.e. the other Indo-European tribes, went towards north or south, towards more fertile areas in Europe and India, while some decided to stay in Persia. But these Armenians went even further, in the heart of these impassable mountain regions and climbed as high as they could." 57

According to legend the leader of the Armenians was a man by the name of Hayk, whom the Armenians regard as their tribal father and therefore call themselves r "hay" (hay), i.e. the sons of Hayk, 60 and their country Hayastan (the country of Hayk). Another more scientific explanation about the naming of the Armenian people is based on the original tribes which make up the presentday Armenian population. . The local people who lived in the area at the time of the arrival of the Indo-European tribes were called the Arme-Shupria people (the people of King Arame). The invading Indo-Europeans called themselves the Hayatsa people and came in time to dominate the Armenian highland and assimilate the Arme-Shuprias. Based on the names of these two people, the Armenians called themselves by the name of the dominant tribal name, i.e. "Hay" and the country Hayastan, while their neighbours called them by their old name: Armenians and their country Armenia. Another theory simply suggests that the name Armenian is a corruption of "Aryan men", the name given by the natives to the newly arrived Indo-Europeans.