Arakül

Arakul / Arakel
Arakül / Առաքել
The church of Surb Astvatsatsin in the village
The church of Surb Astvatsatsin in the village
Arakul / Arakel is located in Azerbaijan
Arakul / Arakel
Arakul / Arakel
Arakul / Arakel is located in Karabakh Economic Region
Arakul / Arakel
Arakul / Arakel
Coordinates: 39°26′16″N 46°59′51″E / 39.43778°N 46.99750°E / 39.43778; 46.99750
Country Azerbaijan
DistrictKhojavend
Population
 (2015)[1]
 • Total
134
Time zoneUTC+4 (AZT)

Arakul (Azerbaijani: Arakül, also Aragül) or Arakel (Armenian: Առաքել) is a village in the Khojavend District of Azerbaijan, in the region of Nagorno-Karabakh. The village had an ethnic Armenian-majority population prior to the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war, and also had an Armenian majority in 1989.[2]

Etymology

Village gate

According to local tradition, the village is named "Arakel" (which means "apostle" in Armenian) because Thaddeus (Jude the Apostle), the patron saint of the Armenian Apostolic Church, stayed in the area.[3]

History

The modern village was founded in 1828.[3] During the Soviet period, the village was part of the Hadrut District of the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast. After the First Nagorno-Karabakh War, the village was administrated as part of the Hadrut Province of the breakaway Republic of Artsakh. The village was captured by Azerbaijan on 9 November 2020, during the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war.[4]

In January 2021, footage of Azerbaijani soldiers destroying an Armenian cross-stone (khachkar) monument in the village was shared by the spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Armenia.[5]

Historical heritage sites

Historical heritage sites in and around the village include the village of Hin Arakel (Armenian: Հին Առաքել, lit. 'Old Arakel') from between the 16th and 19th centuries, a cemetery from between the 17th and 19th centuries, and the church of Surb Astvatsatsin (Armenian: Սուրբ Աստվածածին, lit. 'Holy Mother of God') built between 1902 and 1907.[1]

Demographics

The village had 1,235 inhabitants in 1912,[3] 106 inhabitants in 2005,[6] and 134 inhabitants in 2015.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b c Hakob Ghahramanyan. "Directory of socio-economic characteristics of NKR administrative-territorial units (2015)".
  2. ^ Андрей Зубов. "Андрей Зубов. Карабах: Мир и Война". drugoivzgliad.com.
  3. ^ a b c Kiesling, Brady; Kojian, Raffi (2019). Rediscovering Armenia: An in-depth inventory of villages and monuments in Armenia and Artsakh (3rd ed.). Armeniapedia Publishing.
  4. ^ "Ильхам Алиев объявил об освобождении сел между Шушой и Ханкенди - Обновлено".
  5. ^ Ghazanchyan, Siranush (12 January 2021). "Azerbaijanis destroy Armenian cross-stone in occupied Artsakh village". Public Radio of Armenia.
  6. ^ "The Results of the 2005 Census of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic" (PDF). National Statistic Service of the Republic of Artsakh.
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