User:Yerevantsi/sandbox/Hayer
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Armenians (Armenian: հայեր, hayer [hɑˈjɛɾ])[upper-alpha 4] are an ethnic group native to the Armenian Highlands. Their number is estimated at around 8 million, of which over 3 million live in the Republic of Armenia and the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, while the rest are scattered around the world forming the Armenian diaspora.
Total population | |
---|---|
8 million[1][2][3] | |
Regions with significant populations | |
Armenian population by country | |
Armenia | 2,961,514[4] |
Russia | 1,182,388—2,500,000[5][6][7] |
United States | 483,366—1,500,000[8][9] |
France | 250,000—750,000[7][10] |
Georgia[upper-alpha 1] | 248,929[11] |
Nagorno Karabakh[upper-alpha 2] | 137,380[12] |
Iran | 70,000—180,000 |
Lebanon | 70,000—100,000 |
Ukraine | 100,000[13] |
Turkey[upper-alpha 3] | 50,000—80,000[14] |
Languages | |
Armenian | |
Religion | |
† Christianity predominantly Armenian Apostolic Church Catholic and Protestant minorities |
Armenians were formed as a distinct group by the sixth century BC as a result of various demographic processes that took place since the second millennium BC. The ancient Kingdom of Armenia reached its greatest extent under Tigranes the Great in the first century BC. In 301 AD, Armenia became the first country in the world to officially adopt Christianity as its national religion, thus becoming "the first Christian nation."[20][21] The last Armenian kingdom, Cilician Armenia, on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea fell in the 14th century. By the 19th century, the Armenian homeland was divided between the Ottoman and Russian empires. During World War I, the Armenians living in the Ottoman Empire were systematically exterminated in the Armenian Genocide. The Armenian presence in a large part of their homeland thus largely terminated.
The Armenian language is a separate branch of the Indo-European languages. It is written in the Armenian alphabet, invented by Mesrop Mashtots in 405 AD to prevent the assimilation of the Armenian people. The modern Armenian language has two standardized forms: Eastern Armenian, which is the official language of the Republic of Armenia and the Western Armenia, spoken in Western Armenia (eastern Turkey) prior to the genocide of 1915 and today mostly in the diaspora. Most Armenians today are adherents of the independent Monophysite Oriental Orthodox Armenian Apostolic Church (simply called the "Armenian Church"). Since the 18th century, small number of Armenians have been followers of Armenian Catholic and Armenian Evangelical churches. Armenians are often considered an ethnoreligious group as adherence of the Armenian Apostolic Church has historically been equated to being Armenian. Their uniqueness in religion and language are important basis of the Armenian collective self-identity.[22]