1.
In the Geological Museum of Armenia you can see the skeleton of a trogontherium elephant which dates back 1.000.000 years. This fossil was found in semigravel in the vicinity of Gyumri
2.
Yerevan, the capital of Armenia, is one of the oldest cities in the world. According to cuneiform inscription, Yerevan was founded in 782 BC and is 29 years older than Rome
3.
Armenia was first mentioned by name in 520 BC by Darius the Great of Persia in his Behistun inscription
4.
Historical Armenia occupied an area of about 300,000 square kilometers. Over the centuries, Armenians lost almost 90% of their historical territories as a result of foreign invasions, including the 1915 Armenian Genocide. The present Republic of Armenia covers an area of approximately 30,000 square kilometers
5.
In the first century BC, the Armenian king Tigran the Great created a huge empire, the borders of which stretched from Egypt to the Black and Caspian Seas
6.
Armenia is the first country in the world to adopt Christianity as a state religion. This happened in 301 AD during the reign of King Tiridates III
7.
Etchmiadzin Cathedral, which was built between 301-303 AD, is the oldest cathedral in the world
8.
Statues of the First Catholicos of the Armenian Apostolic Church, Gregory the Illuminator(302-325) and the greatest medieval Armenian poet and philosopher Grigor Narekatsi(951-1003) are installed in the Vatican
9.
The Armenian king Varazdat became Olympic champion in boxing in 369 A.D. Varazdat is considered the last known recorded champion in the Ancient Olympic Games. In 1998, in honor of King Varazdat, his marble bust was installed at the International Olympic Academy in Olympia, Greece
10.
The ancient Armenian musical instrument duduk sounds in the movie Gladiator
11.
The Armenian alphabet was created in 405 AD. The first sentence translated and written in Armenian was "To know wisdom and gain instruction; to discern the words of understanding"
12.
Khachkar (cross-stone) is an exclusively Armenian type of fine art. It is a 1.5 meters tall carved, memorial stele bearing a cross. There are several thousand cross-stones, each distinguished by its unique pattern
13.
In the territory of Armenia there are about 25 thousand historical and cultural monuments. Indeed, many call Armenia an open-air museum
14.
The main national symbol of Armenia, Mount Ararat, is located in the territory of another state – Turkey
15.
More than 6 million Armenians live in the diaspora, twice as many as in Armenia
16.
In 1915-1923, the Ottoman Empire organized and committed one of the greatest crimes against humanity - the Armenian Genocide. Approximately one and a half million Armenians were killed. More than 30 countries have already recognized and condemned the Armenian Genocide, but Turkey still denies it
17.
During the Tehran Conference in 1943, Germany was planning an assassination attempt on the "Big Three" - Stalin, Roosevelt and Churchill - codenamed «Long Jump». Upon learning of this, Moscow instructed terrorism prevention to a group led by 19-year-old Armenian intelligence officer Gevork Vartanian. They perform their task brilliantly
18.
In 1945, during the Yalta conference, Joseph Stalin presented Winston Churchill with "Dvin" brandy produced by Yerevan Brandy Company ARARAT
19.
NOY Brandy Factory was founded in 1877. In 1912 the company became the Supplier of The Russian Imperial Court for the highest quality of its products. At present it is also the official supplier of the Kremlin
20.
During the excavations of the ancient settlement of Lchashen in 1956-1974, the world's oldest carriages and carts were discovered, which are made of wood and date back to 15-14 centuries BC. Some of them are preserved in excellent condition and are exhibited in the History Museum of Armenia
21.
A 6100-year-old winery was discovered in 2007 in the Areni-1 cave complex by a team of Armenian and Irish archaeologists. The winery is the oldest in the world
22.
In 2008, the oldest leather shoe in the world dating back to 5500 years was found in the same cave. Тhe Areni-1 shoe is now on display at the History Museum of Armenia
23.
World's most famous people of Armenian descent include beloved singers such as Charles Aznavour, Cher, Serj Tankian and other members of the SOAD rock band, the greatest master of the marine art Ivan Aivazovsky, professional tennis player Andre Agassi, reality television star Kim Kardashian and others. Many of them are descendants of Armenian genocide survivors
24.
The Armenians form 98% of the total population in Armenia
25.
The climate and geography of the small territory of Armenia are very different. There are 5 landscape zones from semi-desert to snowy, from dry subtropical to cold mountain climate
26.
In the Middle Ages, during an enemy attack, alarm bells rang in the bell tower of the Tatev monastery, the sound of which spread in a radius of about 50 km, informing of the imminent danger
27.
Tatev ropeway is recorded in the Guinness Book of Records as the longest reversible cableway in the world. The length of the cable track is 5752 meters
28.
In 2019, the British "The Independent" newspaper included the building of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia in the top 10 most beautiful parliament buildings in the world
29.
According to surveys, a total of 98 percent of tourists leave Armenia with satisfaction
30.
Nevertheless, Armenia remains one of the least recognized and discovered countries