Nakhichevan – An Integral Part of Yerevan Province

After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the struggle for the liberation of Karabakh may have forced Armenians to forget the history of another native Armenian land, Nakhichevan.

When the Armenian region was created as part of the Russian Empire in 1828, Nakhichevan was naturally included in this purely Armenian territorial-administrative unit. From 1849 to 1917, Nakhichevan was an integral part of the Yerevan province.

In this regard, I would like to present a set of bilateral geographical cards “Gubernias of the Russian Empire” which were printed in 1856 in St. Petersburg. The set consists of 82 illustrated cards, the purpose of which was to present various kinds of information about the provinces of the Russian Empire in a concise and accessible way.

On the map depicting the Yerevan province, Armenians are designated as its primary population. The minorities were mentioned as well – Persians and Lezgins. And in the “Cities” section, the five cities of the province are represented in this order: “Yerivan (Yerevan), Alexandropol [now Gyumri], Nakhichevan (ancient capital of Armenia), Ordubad, New Byazet [now Gavar].” As you can see, a remarkable description is given to Nakhichevan.

It should also be noted that the Armenian province of Surmalou (Iğdır), which finally passed to Turkey in 1921, is also marked on the map of the Yerevan province.

In 1918-1920, Nakhichevan has already been part of the First Republic of Armenia. However, unfortunately, the political situation in the region associated with the rapprochement of Kemalist Turkey and Soviet Russia had a negative impact on the fate of Nakhichevan. And in 1923, this Armenian region was included in the newly-established Soviet Azerbaijan as the Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic.

Ruben Shukhyan

Our comment: This is one of the reasons why the president of Azerbaijan, a country created by Bolsheviks and Turks now declares from all the tribunes that the Yerevan province is part of nonexistent historical Azerbaijan.

Otherwise, there is no way to explain the fact that a natural and integral region of Armenia, such as Nakhichevan, is part of another newly-established Turkish republic. And for this reason, Aliyev’s statements should be taken very seriously, and the world community should be informed about this.