ARMENIA (Assyrian Ura•tu, Old Persian Aruaniya, Persian Arming). A high table land in Western Asia, situated to the southwest of the Caucasus range, stretching southward toward the lowlands of Mesopotamia. and ex tending from the highlands of Asia Minor on the west to the vicinity of the Caspian Sea. Armenia, in the widest sense of the name, is included between the parallels of 37° 30' and 41° 45' north latitude, and the meridians of 37° and 49° east longitude. It embraces the north east corner of Asiatic Turkey, the southern part of Transcaucasia (Asiatic Russia), and the northwest corner of Persia. The principal por tion. having an area in round numbers of about 70.000 square miles, belongs to Turkey (Map: Turkey in Asia, 2), and is included in the vilayets of Erzerum, Van, Bitlis, Mamuret-fil Aziz. and Diarbekr. The Russian portion (ac quired in part from Persia in 1828, and in part from Turkey in 1S78) is included in the govern ments of Erivan. Yelisavetpol, and Tiflis, and the territory of Kars. Persian Armenia forms part of the Province of Azerbaijan. A great part of the region called Kurdistan is included in Southern Armenia. In antiquity Armenia was divided into Greater and Lesser Armenia, the latter (a small fraction of the whole) being separated from the former by the western head st•eam of the Euphrates. Between the Arme nian table-land and the Caucasus Range is the broad depression of the Kur Valley. The sur face is covered with a series of mountain ranges, mostly of volcanic origin, inclosing elevated plateaus, some of which are as much as 6000 or 7000 feet above the sea, and the surface of which consists in great part of pasture land. From these plateaus rise great conical mountain peaks. Mount Ararat, situated where the frontiers of Russia. Turkey. and Persia meet, has an altitude of nearly 17.000 feet. Armenia is watered chiefly by the Euphrates, Kur, and Aras. It contains three extensive salt lakes—Van, in Turkish Ar menia (elevation over 5000 feet), Urunnah, in Persian Armenia (elevation over 4000 feet), and Gokteha. in Russian Armenia.
The climate of Armenia is generally healthful, but the temperature is very unsteady. Long and
severe winters arc followed by very short springs, beginning in April. The summers are hot, and grains and fruit ripen very early. The rainfall is generally scant, and artificial irrigation has been resorted to for centuries past. The flora varies considerably, in accordance with the eleva tion of the surface. Trees are found at an alti tude of nearly 9000 feet, and even higher on the southern slopes. Wheat grows freely as high as 7000 feet above the sea. Southern fruits, such as olives and figs, are cultivated successfully in the vanner regions, while the common fruits are found everywhere. Tobacco, flax, and cotton are also cultivated. The domestic animals of Arme nia, and especially horses and sheep. are well known for their good qualities, while the wild animals, such as the bear, wolf, tiger, hyena, leopard, etc., are still found in the woods. The soil of Armenia is generally fertile and well adapted for agricultural purposes.
The turbulent state of the country under the despotic rule of Turkey, however, has always been a serious obstacle to the natural develop ment of the region, and as a resnit agriculture is very much neglected. Armenia has consider able mineral wealth. The chief minerals are marble, saltpetre, iron, copper, quicksilver, lead, and gold. The population of Turkish Armenia (the chief city of which is Erzerum) is between 2,000,000 and 2,500,000. Of this number, about 650,000 are Armenians, the hulk of the popula tion consisting of Turks and Kurds. The Ar menians in Transcaucasia number nearly 1,000, 000. The number of Armenians in European Turkey is estimated at about 400,000, and there is a considerable Armenian population in Asiatic Turkey outside of Armenia. Persia is supposed to contain about 100,000 Armenians, and there are about 30.000 in Ciscaucasia. Hungary. Tran sylvania. and Galicia have about 15,000, and there are several thousand in India and also in Africa. Since the recent massacres by the Turks, con siderable numbers have emigrated to the United States.