Martuni, Nagorno-Karabakh

Martuni (Armenian: Մարտունի) or Khojavend (Azerbaijani: Xocavənd (listen)) is a town de facto in the breakaway‎ Republic of Artsakh as the centre of its Martuni Province, and the de jure centre of the Khojavend District of Azerbaijan, in the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh. It is approximately 41 kilometers east of the regional capital, Stepanakert. It has a population of 5,700 as of 2015.[1]

For other uses, see Martuni.
Martuni / Khojavend
Մարտունի / Xocavənd
Street in Martuni
Martuni / Khojavend
Martuni / Khojavend
Coordinates: 39°47′43″N 47°06′47″E
Country (de facto) Artsakh
 • ProvinceMartuni
Country (de jure) Azerbaijan
 • DistrictKhojavend
Elevation
390 m (1,280 ft)
Population
 (2015)[1]
 • Total5,700
Time zoneUTC+4 (AMT)
Area code(s)(+374) 478

The town has an ethnic Armenian-majority population, and also had an Armenian majority in 1989.[2]

Etymology

The name Martuni originates from the nom de guerre of Armenian Bolshevik revolutionary and official Alexander Miasnikian. The name Khojavend is of Persian origin.[3]

History

Martuni was founded by local Armenians as a village named Khonashen (Armenian: Խոնաշեն), where shen means village and khona, depending on the source, allows different interpretations (namely, “village, dwelling” or “reservoir, well, spring”). In 1925, the settlement was transformed into a city and renamed Martuni.[4]

Excavations in the settlement have uncovered a number of tombs dating to the Neolithic and Bronze Ages. Martuni is also home to several ruined medieval churches and remains of settlements, and khachkars have also been preserved.[5]

During the Soviet period, Martuni was the capital of the Martuni District in the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast. The population of the town, grouped into kolkhozes, largely occupied itself with raising livestock, grape growing, wheat cultivation, and gardening.[5]

Martuni, and the district itself, became a frontline city during the latter stages of the First Nagorno-Karabakh War. In early February 1992, Vazgen Sargsyan, then Defence Minister of Armenia, appointed Monte Melkonian as Chief of Headquarters and assigned him to lead the defense of Martuni and the surrounding regions.[6] On October 2, 1992, Armenian armed forces captured the region around Martuni. According to an Azerbaijani source, considerable damage was done to the infrastructure of 10 villages settled by Azerbaijanis in the region during the war.[7] Melkonian remained as regional commander until he was killed in combat in June 1993.[8]

Historical and cultural heritage

The town has a house of culture commonly called "The Opera", and the Church of St. Nerses the Great, opened in 2004. The Russian 19th-century Gevorgavan Church is located near Martuni.[9]

Economy and culture

The population mainly works in different state institutions as well as with agriculture and animal husbandry. As of 2015, Martuni has a municipal building, a house of culture, two schools, a music school, two kindergartens, a youth centre, 36 commercial enterprises, two factories and a regional hospital. The community of Martuni includes the villages of Kajavan and Kakavadzor.[10]

  • Church of St. Nerses the Great in Martuni, opened in 2004
  • A street in Martuni
  • A memorial in Martuni
  • Martuni Museum
  • Martuni House of Culture ("The Opera")
  • Municipal building

Climate
Climate data for Martuni (Khojavend)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Average high °C (°F) 5.5
(41.9)		 6.4
(43.5)		 10.1
(50.2)		 17.5
(63.5)		 21.7
(71.1)		 26.6
(79.9)		 29.8
(85.6)		 29.7
(85.5)		 24.8
(76.6)		 19.1
(66.4)		 12.6
(54.7)		 8.0
(46.4)		 17.7
(63.8)
Average low °C (°F) −1.7
(28.9)		 −1.0
(30.2)		 1.8
(35.2)		 7.6
(45.7)		 12.1
(53.8)		 16.4
(61.5)		 19.5
(67.1)		 18.4
(65.1)		 15.2
(59.4)		 10.2
(50.4)		 4.9
(40.8)		 0.6
(33.1)		 8.7
(47.6)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 20
(0.8)		 26
(1.0)		 36
(1.4)		 49
(1.9)		 68
(2.7)		 55
(2.2)		 23
(0.9)		 23
(0.9)		 28
(1.1)		 44
(1.7)		 31
(1.2)		 25
(1.0)		 428
(16.8)
Source: http://en.climate-data.org/location/21894/

Demographics
Historical ethnic composition of Martuni (town)
Ethnic group 1939[11] 1970[12] 1979[13] 2005[14]
Number % Number % Number % Number %
Armenian1,70189.23,12067.03,58865.34,86399.7
Azerbaijani522.71,48231.81,86233.900.0
Russian1367.1440.9410.780.2
Ukrainian70.430.110.010.0
Other100.550.250.160.1
TOTAL1,906100.04,654100.05,497100.04,878100.0

References
  1. "Figures" (PDF). stat-nkr.am. 2015.
  2. Андрей Зубов. "Андрей Зубов. Карабах: Мир и Война". drugoivzgliad.com.
  3. Arsène Saparov (2017-09-01). "Contested spaces: the use of place-names and symbolic landscape in the politics of identity and legitimacy in Azerbaijan". Central Asian Survey. 36 (4): 534–554. doi:10.1080/02634937.2017.1350139. S2CID 149221754.
  4. Поспелов Е. М. (1998). Географические названия мира: Топонимический словарь: Свыше 5 000 единиц. М.: «Русские словари». Отв. ред. Р. А. Агеева. p. 262. ISBN 5-89216-029-7.
  5. (in Armenian) Anon. «Մարտունի» (Martuni). Armenian Soviet Encyclopedia. vol. vii. Yerevan: Armenian Academy of Sciences, 1981, p. 352.
  6. See Markar Melkonian (2005). My Brother's Road: An American's Fateful Journey to Armenia. New York: I.B. Tauris, pp. 207ff. ISBN 1-85043-635-5.
  7. "25 years pass since occupation of Khojavend region".
  8. Melkonian 2005, p. 264.
  9. Kiesling, Brady; Kojian, Raffi (2019). Rediscovering Armenia: An in-depth inventory of villages and monuments in Armenia and Artsakh (3rd ed.). Armeniapedia Publishing.
  10. Hakob Ghahramanyan. "Directory of socio-economic characteristics of NKR administrative-territorial units (2015)".
  11. Ethno-Caucasus, Этнодемография Кавказа: Мартунинский район (1939 г.)
  12. Ethno-Caucasus, Этнодемография Кавказа: Мартунинский район (1970 г.)
  13. Ethno-Caucasus, Этнодемография Кавказа: Мартунинский район (1979 г.)
  14. "Национальный состав населения самопровозглашённой Нагорно-Карабахской Республики по переписи 2005 года". Population statistics of Eastern Europe & former USSR.
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