According to the biblical version of the emergence of a new post-flood civilization, Noah and his family found shelter in the Ararat mountains after the water had receded.
“and in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, the ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat. And the waters continued to abate until the tenth month; in the tenth month, on the first day of the month, the tops of the mountains were seen” (Genesis 8: 4-5).
As for the Earthly Paradise, according to the Bible, it was located near the Byurakan Mountains where 4 biblical rivers originated – Gihon, Pishon, Araks, and the Euphrates.
The birth of the last civilization in the territory of the Armenian Highlands is also evidenced by a number of geographical names, the emergence of which is directly connected with the appearance of Noah. Other nations do not have such names (for example, Nakhichevan or Yerevan).
For the scientific substantiation of the foregoing, three methods can be applied.
Comparative linguistics
This relatively young area of science began to actively develop in the 1960s. Comparing the roots of Indo-European languages, scientists attempted to find out where a single Indo-European language had been formed. They have searched in Afghanistan, Central Asia, Russia, but not in the territory of the Armenian Highlands.
In the 1970s, linguist Rafael Ishkhanyan found almost a hundred Akkadian and Sumerian words in modern Armenian. This became a scientific sensation which substantiated the fact that the first state of the world Akkad (Sumer) was neighbored by the Armenian state of Aratta in the 4th millennium BC. A language exchange between countries is possible only with close political, cultural, and economic contacts.
In 1975, famous linguists Vyacheslav Ivanov and Tamaz Gamkrelidze in a two-volume monograph “The Indo-European Language and Indo-Europeans” (1984) compared Indo-European roots in Iranian, Greek, Indian, and Armenian languages and concluded that more than 500 of these roots are used in modern Armenian. Furthermore, they concluded that the possible area of occurrence of a single proto-language covers the Armenian Highlands, the Iranian Plateau, and Northern Mesopotamia.
The process of the formation of the proto-language was as follows – it first originated in 10,000 BC. In 6,000 BC, an ethnic boom occurred – that is, the carriers of a single language and civilizational values began to gradually migrate from their ancestral homeland and spread throughout the world.
For 1,000 years, in their new homelands, mingling with the inhabitants of these regions, they formed national states and new languages. For example, modern Basques use more than 1,000 Armenian words, and there have been Armenian geographical names in the Basque Country since the early Middle Ages. At an official level, the above is accepted only by Spain. Informally, it is accepted by Greek, Jewish, German, and Austrian scholars.
Comparative anthropology
This direction appeared in the 18th century in Europe, pursuing one goal: to find the area of the origin of the Indo-European civilization. To this end, German anatomist Hubert von Luschka conducted archaeological excavations in the territory of the Armenian Highlands and Northern Mesopotamia.
He concluded that this area has been continuously inhabited by a single anthropological type, which was given the name “Armenoid.” By the way, skulls of the Armenoid type have been found only in this region.
Thus, the area of settlement of the Aryan race was found, which had the following features – well-developed tertiary hair, prominent nose with a protruding nasal ridge and low ala, brachycephalia, low and relatively wide face, flat nape, large eye section (the external corner of eye below the internal), and medium height.
Comparison of wealth
Archaeological values discovered several thousand years ago in the territory of the Armenian Highlands very closely resemble those found in much later periods. For example, a 6,000 years old jug from Van was found to be identical to a 4th-century jug from Yerevan. This proves that in different periods, these values were created by Armenians, as well as serves as evidence of the existence of the Armenian civilization in the territory of the Armenian Highlands.
The oldest structures
In the Armenian Highlands, the most ancient structure is the Karahunj temple of Sun and observatory which dates back to the middle of 8,000 BC. In Soviet times, Karahunj was called Zorats Karer – “Mighty Stones”.
Armenian specialists, including Stepan Malkhasyants, believed that Zorats Karer was the burial site of a tribal leader. However, it would be later discovered that this site had no graves.
Academician and astrophysicist Paris Herouni dedicated the last 20 years of his life to studying this monument. He came to the conclusion that Karahunj is not just a temple of the Sun but also an observatory.
His astronomical conclusions prove that the ancient inhabitants in Sisian possessed astronomical knowledge as far back as in 8,000 BC. That is, they were aware of the cycles of rotation of the Earth, the Moon, the movements of our galaxy, and constellations. In fact, drawings of constellations have been discovered on Ukhtasar and Sepasar mounts near Sisian. The ancient people also called this structure Karahunj.
Another notable structure can be found near Metsamor in Armavir Province. Dating back to the 3rd millennium BC, this structure – which essentially is a castle – features all the attributes of an Aryan civilization – a temple of the Sun, huge stone steles which with the adoption of Christianity turned into khachkars, women’s belts depicting lions and the sun, and ideograms describing the process of copper and iron smelting.
Throughout the Armenian Highlands can also be found pictograms dating back to the 7th–3rd millennia BC.
In the territory of the present-day Republic of Armenia and Artsakh, a female shoe dating back to the 6th millennium BC was found. The oldest human brain has been discovered here as well. Now, it is being studied in France.
The oldest literary works
The existence of Aratta is evidenced by ancient poems and legends. Among them is Babylonian creation myth Enûma Eliš.
This myth tells about a long struggle between two oceans, Tiamat and Apsu, which at the same time appear to be gods. As evidenced by sources from the 3rd millennium BC, these deities were female.
Ultimately, a third generation god Ea (Enki, Haya) joined Tiamat. Together, they beheaded Apsu, from whose neck the two rivers of the universe – Tigris and Euphrates – began to flow. And since the Tigris and Euphrates are the rivers of the universe, it means that the territory of their sources (the Armenian Highlands) is the center of the universe. By the way, the people of Artsakh still call their grandmothers “Haya”, and the Abkhazians call themselves “Apsu.”
Another notable Sumerian writing is “Enmerkar and the Lord of Aratta”, which dates back to the 3rd millennium BC. Here, Sumer King Emmerkar gave the state of Aratta the highest titles, including “The sacred country”, “the country of the gods”, “the country of arts”, etc.
This may be the first and only case when one state or civilization elevated another state and honored it as the beginning of everything. For example, Emmerkar complained that “for a very long time, architects from the northern country of Aratta hadn’t visited them, that they left their houses unattended, that they no longer brought gold, lapis lazuli, and copper…”
Lastly, the Epic of Gilgamesh dating back to the 2nd millennium BC should also be noted.
For some reason, The King and god of Babylon Gilgamesh in search of justice and eternity crossed the Northern mountains of Masyus and ended up in the “Land of Eternity”, that is, Armenia (as there had been no other countries north of Babylon). Moreover, through the mediation of Noah, Gilgamesh had a dialogue with God.
This is evidenced by the three-volume work “Babylon” written by Babylonian priest and scholar Berossus in the 3rd century BC. Roman historians have managed to preserve only a few excerpts from this work, among whom was Josephus:
“Before the Flood, Noah asked God: ‘Where are we going?’ To which God replied, ‘To the country of the Gods.’ After Noah found himself in the country of the Gods, God answered the repeated question, ‘In Armenia.’”
These excerpts were published 8 years ago in Berlin. This also proves the fact that many of the oldest texts about the universe have not been included in the modern edition of the Old Testament.
The oldest maps of the world
And, finally, all maps of the world testify to the existence of an Armenian state since ancient times. The first map known to mankind was made in Akkad in the 3rd-4th millennia BC in the form of a rock-carved image. On it, Aratta is depicted north of Akkad between two rivers.
In a Babylonian map from the 6th century BC, all geographical objects are placed within two circles. These circles denote the world ocean. The parallel lines inside the circles represent the Euphrates. One of the objects marked on the map is Urartu (northeast of Babylon).
Then comes the 4th-century BC map of the world by Gekateos of Miletus from the city of Miletus. This map shows Greater (Major) and Lesser (Minor) Armenia. Interestingly, Greece is not on this map, the reason for this being the disagreements between the city-state Miletus and Greece.
The world map of Ptolemy dating back to the 2nd century BC is also interesting, where Greater and Lesser Armenia are indicated. Even on an Ottoman Map from 1806, the territory of Western Armenia is designated “Ermenistan.”
Thus, all maps of the world known to mankind feature Armenia, even at time periods when Armenians had no statehood.
