The rich and bountiful poetry of Armenia is presented in this collection, adeptly and sensitively translated to English to preserve the expressive beauty in the verses. Armenian poems are rich with passionate expression, sometimes voicing pride in the national culture, history and identity. Some of the poems are outright romantic; celebrating the beauty, aesthetics and emotive intensity of youthful courtship. Other verses celebrate Armenia's martial prowess; with differing cultures on multiple sides, the land often saw battle. The importance of the country's location at the border between the European and Asian continents finds allusion, as authors nod to past glories, and predict future prowess. Reference to the scenic lands of Armenia, its local dances and the way of life abound in the verse, the poetry often brimming with cultured allusions. Significantly, this anthology includes the most famed and celebrated works by the lauded national poets, together with older poetry and hymns dating back as far as the early-Medieval era. The reader thus acquires an acute impression of how Armenian poetic works evolved through the centuries.

These folk-tales were told by simple people--vine-dressers, farm-laborers, millers--and were preserved by word of mouth, to be repeated for entertainment in the coffee-house, or at home during the long, hard winters. There are fables here, too, selected from the collections of medieval scholars and philosophers, while the expressive and often humorous proverbs show the ways of the world through shrewd Armenian eyes.

The book containing 7 Armenian legends is the result of a study conducted by Louis A. Boettiger which have been selected from a larger mass of material. Of particular interest is the Legend of Haik or Hayk. In the account by Moses of Chorene, Hayk emigrated from Babylon to the region near Mount Ararat after Titanid Bel made himself king over all. Considering this occurred in circa 2500BC and that Hayk had an extended household of over 300, moving his hosehold a distance of 1,160km/720 miles is a significant undertaking. However, Titanid Bel did not like this snub and after refusing to return, sent an army to recapture or kill Hayk. The two armies, if Hayk’s force can be called an army, met on the shores of Lake Van. During the battle Hayk slew Bel with a nearly impossible shot using a long bow, sending the king's forces into disarray. Hayk named the site of the battle Hayots Dzor in current day Turkey. It is out of this victory that the nation of Armenia was born. Herein you will find the legends of: The Legend Of Haic, or Hayk, The Legend Of Ara And Semiramis, The Legend Of Vahakn, Legends Of Artasches And Artavasd, Legends Of The Conversion To Christianity, Legends Of Abgar, Thaddeus, And St. Bartholomew Legends Of Rhipsime And Gregory Also included is information on the localities of the legends, in particular - Ararat, Khor-Virap and Erzerum which has enable Boettiger to place each legend in the setting from which it originated. ============= TAGS: Armenia, folklore, legends, myths, Haic, Hayk, Ara And Semiramis, Vahakn, King, Artasches, Artavasd, Conversion To Christianity, Abgar, Thaddeus, St. Bartholomew, Rhipsime, Gregory, Titanid Bel, Lake Van, Mount Ararat, Moses of Chorene, Haykashen, Haykashen, Battle of Giants, Navasard, Julamerk, Dastakert, Gerezmank, martyr, Haykaberd, Haykashen, Taron

Byron's English translations of Armenian texts, historical and biblical; with anonymous Armenian translations of his letters and poetry, accompanied in each case by the original text.