Gugark

For the village, see Gugark, Armenia.

Gugark (Armenian: Գուգարք, Latin: Gogarene, Ancient Greek: Γογαρινή) was the 13th province of the ancient kingdom of Armenia. It now comprises parts of northern Armenia, northeast Turkey, and southwest Georgia.^[1]

Գուգարք
Province of the ancient kingdom of Armenia
189 BC–13th century
Capital	Ardahan
History
• Artaxias I declaring himself independent	189 BC
• Disestablished	13th century
Today part of	Armenia Turkey Georgia (country)

Etymology

Etymologically, Gugark in Armenian language denotes land of Gugars. word "Gugar" being a root and suffix -k meaning "land of". Strabo clearly wrote Gugars were Iberians and land of Iberians that was annexed by Seleucids during their northern expansion. Strabo made clear Armenia was a small country before and expanded and took Iberian territory.

History

In ancient Urartian inscriptions dating to 785 BC, the territory of Gugark is referred to as Zabaha, which is known today as Javakheti (Javakhk in Armenian).^[2] In the beginning of IV century BC, (302BC) the territory was under Caucasian Iberia, but during Artaxias I's reign it was conquered.^[3] During the reign of the Artaxiad and Arshakuni kings of Armenia, Gugark was ruled by one of the kingdom's four bdeashkhs. The bdeashkh of Gugark was responsible for protecting the state's northern border. During the 4th century, the region was ruled by members of a branch of the House of Mihran.^[4] In 387, Armenia was partitioned between the Byzantine and Sassanid empires and Gugark, with the exception of the canton of Tashir, was annexed to Caucasian Iberia. The ruler of the region around 425 was Arshusha. In 652, the Armenian prince Theodore Rshtuni was allowed by the Arabs to unite Gugark with his realms.

In the following centuries, Gugark and its cantons fell under the sway of several rulers. In the 8th century, it became a part of Emirate of Tbilisi. In the middle of the 9th century, it was taken by the Georgian Bagrationis, while the Armenian Bagratunis took over its eastern cantons.^[1]

Inhabitants

Armenian catholicos and historian Hovhannes Draskhanakerttsi says in his history that the majority of this region was Armenian people with minority of Iberian people. Also an Armenian historian Ghazar Parpetsi mentions Arshusha V, bdeashkh of the Iberians.

Cantons

• Dzoropor
• Tsobopor
• Treghk
• Artahan
• Javakhk
• Upper Javakhk
• Tashir
• Kangark
• Kagharjk
• Nigal
• Mrugh
• Mrit
• Shavshet
• Koghbopor
• Kvishapor
• Boghnopor
• Tashran
• Manglyats
• Ashotsk

List of bdeashkhs

Based on available sources, Cyril Toumanoff deduced an incomplete list of the ruling Mihranid bdeashkhs of Gugark.^[5]

Name	Reign
Peroz	330–361?
Bakur I	after 394–430
Arshusha I	after 430–?
Bakur II	mid 5th-century
Arshusha II	?–470
Varsken	470–482
Arshusha III	482–after 540/1
Arshusha IV	ca. first decade of the 7th-century
Vahram-Arshusha V	late 620s
Arshusha VI	mid 8th-century

See also

• Shushanik