On April 30, the 83rd meeting of the Carahunge Armenological Cultural Center was held, in cooperation with the National University of Architecture and Construction of Armenia.
Topic: “The Issue of Armenian Words of Unknown Origin in the Context of Nostratic Linguistics (in comparison with Finno-Ugric languages)”
Speaker: Gohar Nikoghosyan, PhD in Philology, Associate Professor at the Department of Foreign Languages of the National Polytechnic University of Armenia.
On April 23, the 82nd meeting of the Carahunge Armenological Center was held in cooperation with the National University of Architecture and Construction of Armenia.
Topic: “Quantum Universe and Life as an Illusion.”
Speaker: Doctor of Physical and Mathematical Sciences, Professor Ashot Gevorgyan (National Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Armenia).
On April 18, the team of the Carahunge Armenological Center hosted 10th-grade students from Yerevan’s Manuel Kajuni High School No. 54. The initiative for the meeting came from the mathematics teacher, who approached our Center with a request for our specialists to introduce the students to Carahunge, as they were working on a project that included the study of the Carahunge observatory. It is worth noting that the students had already read a considerable amount of material about the Carahunge observatory and came well prepared.
The Armenological Center team gladly accepted the proposal, convinced that the preservation and proper appreciation of Carahunge cannot be fully achieved without educating and engaging the younger generation. We are always pleased to share our knowledge with them.
During the meeting, the Director of the Carahunge Armenological Center, Nana Heruni, presented the Carahunge observatory in detail, discussing its scientific and cultural significance, as well as its connection to cosmic phenomena. Presentations were also delivered by Center members Hrachik Hakobjanyan and Garnik Stepanyan.
We hope that the students gained new knowledge that evening, and that their interest in ancient historical monuments—particularly the Carahunge observatory—will continue to grow in the future. They also expressed their willingness to stay connected with the Center and to participate in the celebration of the summer solstice.
On April 17, the 81st meeting of the Carahunge Armenological Center took place in collaboration with the National University of Architecture and Construction of Armenia.
Topic: “The Ancient Layers of Ritual Songs and Their Symbolism”
Speaker: Marianna Tigranyan — musicologist, folklorist, Senior Researcher at the Institute of Arts of the National Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Armenia, Candidate of Art Studies, Associate Professor at the Yerevan Komitas State Conservatory, and Researcher at the Komitas Museum-Institute.
On April 10, the 80th meeting of the Carahunge Armenological Center took place at the National University of Architecture and Construction of Armenia.
Topic: “The Proto-Languages of the World and Their Places of Origin from the Perspective of Different Sciences.”
The lecture was devoted to examining the issue that in the 19th century, the world’s languages were classified into approximately 60 language families without considering whether there were, in fact, around 60 corresponding regions on Earth where humans could have originated and survived under favorable conditions. A broad-scale study is conducted and presented, suggesting that only 5–8 such regions can be identified, although paleoanthropology has recognized only East Africa as the cradle of humankind.
Speaker: Hrachik Hakobjanyan, linguist, Candidate of Philological Sciences, Associate Professor at the Department of Linguistics of Yerevan Brusov State University, and founding member of the Carahunge Armenological Center.
On March 28, members and friends of the Carahunge Armenological Center visited Hasmik Baghramyan’s “Tonatsuyts” guesthouse in Byurakan to celebrate, albeit with a slight delay, the spring equinox—the victory of the Sun—as well as the feast of Tsarazardar / Tsaghkazard (Palm Sunday).
We set out in the morning and, before reaching Byurakan, made a stop in Agharak to connect with the storks, as this is the most favorable time of year to do so—the season of Bird Arrival. We stood before their nests and began singing traditional Armenian songs for them. Then something remarkable happened. The storks responded to our singing, joining us and soaring above our heads. That moment turned into a unique and living dialogue between humans and nature.
After this impressive encounter, we also visited the ancient site of Tukh Manuk in Agharak, where, for a moment, we once again felt the breath of the earth and time.
Our next stop was a field of galanthus, where we performed another special ritual. We spoke to the flowers, and then each of us picked a galanthus and touched it to our eyes, with the intention that our sight remain bright throughout the year and that we always see beauty.
Finally, we arrived at the “Tonatsuyts” guesthouse and, as it was the feast of Tsaghkazard, we established our center’s Tree of Life and decorated it together. Afterwards, we sat down at a table filled with dishes prepared according to ancient—even pre-Christian—recipes, in harmony with the spirit of the holiday. We tasted, among others, sour makhokh, bean soup, wild sorrel soup, chickpea koftas, malted grain (hatik atsik), rice pilaf with lettuce and mushrooms, and fasting halva.
As always, we had engaging conversations, sang songs dedicated to the Bird Arrival, and performed traditional shoror dances—krngotsi.
In the evening, we returned to Yerevan filled with the impressions of the day, with warmth and a special inner joy that stays with a person for a long time—reminding us how important it is, at times, to step away from everyday haste and return to our roots.
