Cartographic war

Each of the researchers considered the “Armenian Highland” with different approaches. The result is a region that includes different areas. It should be noted that many toponyms in the Highland were used incorrectly. In the 19th century, the eastern part of Armenia came under the rule of the Russian Empire, and intensive cartographic work began. Most of the topographical names were mentioned under foreign names, without taking into account the Armenian historical toponyms.

Geographical names

Geographical names are one of the most important heritage for the indigenous people living in this territory. That is why the empires that invaded Armenia at different times tried to change and eradicate the Armenian toponyms that came from the depths of millennia, and with which the Armenian people are so connected. Describing historical events, Armenian historians noted the names of countries, administrative units, settlements, but the physical and geographical names sometimes remained outside the pages of history and over time they were forgotten and remained nameless, and later acquired foreign names. Today, the cartographic war has been declared to the term “Armenian Highland”, which is not a political, but a geographical term that refers to a physical and geographical territory.

In the course of history, on the political map, the Republic of Armenia got only the small northeastern part of the vast Highland. But Armenia’s neighbors still avoid the term “Armenian Highland”.

Common mistakes

I think it is necessary to talk about several common mistakes that have a political origin and are mistakenly used as a geographical term. These are the name Eastern Anatolia, given to the highland, and the names South Caucasus, Transcaucasia, or Lesser Caucasus, given to its northeastern part. The latter is used as a geographical name for the northeastern mountain ranges of the Highland.

Armenian Highland is not a part of Anatolia. The term “Eastern Anatolia” has appeared to replace the term “Western Armenia”, which is not scientific. This is a political term, which is an attempt to eradicate the geographical term “Armenian Highlands” from today’s Turkey.

Armenian Highland, not Eastern Anatolia

In professional literature, the name Anatolia is used in a broader sense only in connection with Asia Minor. Anatolia is translated from Greek as East. Since Asia Minor is located west of the Armenian Highland, the name of Anatolia (with any part of it, western, central or eastern), both in the scientific and in the broader sense, cannot be used outside of Asia Minor. Therefore, it can not be used to describe the eastern or any other part of the Armenian Highland.

Armenia is not the Caucasus

The next common mistake is the term Transcaucasia or the South Caucasus, which is mainly applied to the north-eastern part of the Armenian Highland and has a political nature. From the physical and geographical point of view, the Caucasus is only the Caucasus Mountains with their slopes. Armenia is not the Caucasus. By mistakenly including Armenia in the Caucasus, Armenians are also considered Caucasians. But Armenian Highland has its own separate geographical position and culture. Therefore, Armenians cannot be Caucasians. Armenians come from the Armenian Highlands and are part of the Indo-European cultural world.

Lesser Caucasus is a coined term

Another coined term appeared on the maps of the Russian Empire and is mistakenly used to this day. This is a classification of the north-eastern mountain ranges of the Armenian Highland in the Small Caucasus mountain system. The term “Small Caucasus” was coined to mark the mountain ranges located south of the Caucasus in the maps of the Russian Empire.

Article by Tigran Varag

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Armenian Highland