About

Located in eastern Armenia, this province covers an area of 5,348 km2, making it the largest in the country. Its capital is Gavar, and it borders Azerbaijan to the east. It includes the exclave of Artsvashen, a territory involved in territorial disputes. Lake Sevan is located here. In ancient times, Urartu formed its northeastern border starting from Lake Sevan, and it was a battlefield during the wars with the Scythians. Around the 3rd century BC, it belonged to the territory of the ancient Kingdom of Armenia, and the regions of Ayrarat and Syunik were located where the current Gegharkunik Province stands. After the fall of the Arshakuni dynasty, Armenia was ruled by various empires and suffered many invasions for several centuries. Nevertheless, the Armenians living in this region did not abandon their Armenian Apostolic Church faith and built various religious structures, such as the Sevanavank Monastery established in the 9th century. During the Soviet era, the water level of Lake Sevan was artificially lowered, leading to environmental changes in the Gegharkunik region. At that time, Gegharkunik was composed of five districts: Sevan, Kamo, Krasnoselsk, Martuni, and Vardenis. This structure continued after Armenian independence until 1995, when administrative reforms merged them all into the single Gegharkunik Province. During the 2020 Armenia-Azerbaijan war, clashes occurred along the Gegharkunik border, and large and small battles also took place during the 2022 Armenia-Azerbaijan border crisis. The province surrounds the entirety of Lake Sevan, which covers 1,260 km2 and accounts for 23.5% of Gegharkunik's total area. Lake Sevan is vital not only to Gegharkunik but to all of Armenia as it supplies water to the landlocked nation. Rivers such as the Getik and Gavaraget originate from Lake Sevan. Like other Armenian provinces, the terrain is mountainous. It is surrounded on all sides by the massive mountain ranges of the Armenian Highlands, resulting in high altitudes. The highest point is Mount Azhdahak, reaching 3,597m above sea level. Lake Akna is located within the mountain's caldera. The climate is characterized by cold, snowy winters and warm, humid summers. Annual precipitation ranges from 500-600mm in areas below 2,000m altitude and reaches up to 1,000mm in mountainous regions.