ARMENIA, a mountainous region of western Asia with an area of about 140,000 square miles. It is now partitioned among Turkey, Persia and Russia, their boundaries meeting at Little Ararat.
The plateau of which Armenia chiefly con sists is a continuation of the Great Tranian plateau. It is bounded on the north by the Black Sea, descends abruptly to the lowlands of Mesopotamia on the south and more grad ually on the east and west to the plateaus of Persia and Asia Minor. It has a mean eleva tion of about 6,000 feet and is mountainous and volcanic. The ridges, of which there are four principal, are generally parallel to each other, running, with sundry deviations, east and west, and between them are broad that of the Aras, at Mount Ararat, being 2,890 feet and many others 5,000 to 7,000 feet above the sea-level. The mountains are mainly com posed of stratified rocks, with slate, lime stone, etc., appearing on the sides of the chains. Granite is also met with but is not frequent; and in the north Paleozoic and in the south later sedimentary rocks are super imposed on archaic rocks. Its volcanoes are all quiescent, unless we except Ararat, of which an eruption took place in 1840, accom panied by a disastrous earthquake. A few mountains, as Ararat, 17,000 feet, Alaghez and Bingol Dagh, rise above the line of perpetual snow but this is not generally the case; and there are no passes but such as can be crossed in a single day. Saltpetre, lead, iron and cop per are found in the mountains; and the last two have to some extent been wrought in modern times. Rock salt is plentiful and is exported in considerable quantities to Persia and elsewhere. Mineral waters abound but little or nothing is known of their qualities. Several important rivers take their rise in Armenia, namely the Kur or Cyrus, and its tributary the Aras or Araxes, flowing cast to the Caspian Sea; the Churuk Su, or Tchorak and the Halys or Kelkid Irmak, flowing north to the Black Sea; and the Tigris and Euphrates, which flow into the Persian Gulf.
There are also several minor tributary streams. The only considerable lakes are those of Van, in Turkish Armenia, 78 miles in length and about 32 in breadth; Goukcha or Sevan north east of Erivati, in Russian Armenia, about 40 miles long by 15 broad; and Urumiyah or Urmia, in Persian Armenia, 80 miles long and 24 broad. It is abnormally salty, while Lake Van is heavily charged with soda.
The climate of Armenia is very severe, presenting a marked contrast to that of the warm regions of the Lower Euphrates and to the mildness prevalent on the shores of the Black Sea. Winter in Armenia continues from October to May, spring and harvest a month each, and the change to the summer is very rapid. The heat, especially in the val leys during summer, is great and rain seldom falls. In Erivan, which is a degree of lati tude south from Trebizond, the thermometer in winter falls 36° F. lower than it does in the latter; and in summer it rises 24° F. higher. On the plateaus of Erzerum, Gumri, etc., the difference is still greater; indeed, in the town of Erzeroom the snow lies in the streets for eight months of the year. East and southeast winds in summer, west winds in spring and northeast storm winds in winter, are most prevalent. The soil of Armenia is reckoned on the whole productive, though in many places it would be quite barren were it not for the great care taken to irrigate it. Wheat, barley, tobacco, hemp, grapes and cotton are raised; and in some of the valleys apricots, aches, mulberries and walnuts are grown. From the nature of the country the rearing of stock is carried on to a greater extent than agriculture. The horses are spirited, fleet and fiery. Pines, birches, poplars and beeches flourish but there are no thick forests except in the northern parts of the country. The flora is not so varied as might be expected in such an Alpine country; in several respects it resembles the vegetation of the Alps of Tyrol and Switzerland.