Vanadzor, city (1989 pop. 75,616), in N Armenia, at the junction of the Pambak, Tandzut, and Vanadzoriget rivers. A rail center and a major chemical producer, it also manufactures textiles and foodstuffs. In 1935 the city was renamed Kirovakan, after Sergey Kirov. The city was devastated by the Armenian earthquake of Dec., 1988. The name Vanadzor was adopted in 1992.
Vanadzor
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- For the village in Azerbaijan, see Binədərəsi.
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  Vanadzor
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| Coordinates: 40°48′46″N 44°29′18″E / 40.81278°N 44.48833°E | |||
| Country |  Armenia |
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| Marz | Lori | ||
| Government | |||
| - Mayor | Samvel Darbinyan | ||
| Elevation | 1,424.6 m (4,674 ft) | ||
| Population (2008) | |||
| - Total | 116,929 | ||
| Time zone | GMT +4 (UTC+4) | ||
| - Summer (DST) | GMT+5 (UTC+5) | ||
| Area code(s) | 322 | ||
| Website | www.vanadzor.ru | ||
Coordinates: 40°48′46″N 44°29′18″E / 40.81278°N 44.48833°E Vanadzor (Armenian: Վանաձոր; formerly, Karaklis, Karakilis, Karakhs, Kirovakan, Gharak’ilisa, Karakilisa, Mets Karakilisa, Korovakan, and Kirowakan) is the third-largest city in Armenia with a population of 107,394 (2001 census) and the capital of the Lori Province. It was previously known as Kirovakan (Armenian: Կիրովական, after Sergey Kirov) during the Soviet era and as Karakilisa during the Tsarist period. The city is considered to be one of the most picturesque in the entire country, having beautiful summer homes or dachas. Vanadzor is dominated by a large chemical plant.
Vanadzor's history dates back to the Bronze Age, with interesting tombs and other material finds now, in principle, housed in the local museum. The city received its name possibly as early as the 13th century, from a black stone church on a nearby hill. Totally destroyed in 1826 by Hasan Khan during the Russo-Persian war, the city enjoyed considerable uplift from the opening of the railroad to Tbilisi in 1899. The vicinity of the city was the site of the Battle of Karakilisa when in May 1918, General Tovmas Nazarbekian's outnumbered troops successfully defended it from the invading Turkish Army, pushing them back just a few days after the crucial battle of Sardarapat.[1] On the North side of the Spitak-Vanadzor highway, about 2 km West of the city, there is a little shrine in the ruins of a church, site of a planned monument to that battle.
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Geography
Vanadzor, the capital of Lori, is located 128 km north of Yerevan and 64 km east of Gyumri.
At an altitude of 1424 meters , the city is built next to the valley of Pambak river and is surrounded by mountains that have an altitude of over 2500 meters. To the south and east, they are densely forested while to the north and west, they are more dry and often only covered by bushes and plants.
Vanadzor, like Gyumri and Spitak (25 km west), received a considerable amount of damage from the 1988 Spitak earthquake during which 564 people died. But unlike the other cities, the majority of buildings, large avenues and the central park were unscathed from the earthquake.
Education
Vanadzor has several educational institutions that serve not only the city of Vanadzor, but all the citizens of Lori and Tavush regions. Vanadzor has two major higher educational centers: the Vanadzor State Pedagogical Institute and Mkhitar Gosh Armenian-Russian International University. Branches of Yerevan State University were also opened in Vanadzor.
6 technical intermediate colleges, 32 public education schools and 20 nurseries are currently operating in Vanadzor (2009).
Notable people
- Stepan Zoryan, an Armenian writer
- Suren Aghababyan, a literary critic
- Shavarsh Karapetyan, a Soviet Armenian finswimmer
- Vic Darchinyan, World unified boxing champion and the former IBF and IBO champion
- Gor Mkhitarian, an Armenian rock-musician
- Tigran Sargsyan, Prime Minister of Armenia
Sister cities
Bagneux, France (since 1968)
Pasadena, California, United States
Batumi, Georgia
Podolsk, Russia
Gallery
 Downtown |
 Downtown |
 Downtown |
 Vanadzor Dusk |
 Vanadzor Dusk |
 Chemical plant of Vanadzor |
 Black church |
 Black church |
 New church |
 Russian church |
 Appartments with backyards in Vandzor |
 Nature around the city |
References
- ^ Hohanissian, Richard G. (1997) The Armenian People from Ancient to Modern Times. New York. St. Martin's Press, 299
- Vanadzor at GEOnet Names Server
- Report of the results of the 2001 Armenian Census, National Statistical Service of the Republic of Armenia
- World Gazeteer: Armenia – World-Gazetteer.com
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Category:Vanadzor |
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 | Columbia Encyclopedia. The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition Copyright © 2003, Columbia University Press. Licensed from Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. www.cc.columbia.edu/cu/cup/. Read more |
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