Arshakavan

Arshakavan (Արշակավան) A historical city in the Kogovit district of the Ayrarat province of Greater Armenia, located “at the foot of Mount Masis,” lay on the ancient caravan transit route Tavriz – Daroynk – Karin (Erzurum) – Trebizon (now within the territory of Turkey). It was situated on a trade route leading toward Persia. It was founded by King Arshak II at the beginning of 350s.

== Etymology == The name Arshakavan (Armenian: Արշակավան) is a compound of two elements: Arshak (Արշակ), the name of its founder, King Arshak II, and the suffix -avan (-ավան), a common Armenian toponymic element denoting "town" or "settlement"․This naming convention paralleled other Armenian cities such as Artashat (Artaxias’ settlement) and Vagharshapat (Vologases’ settlement), reflecting dynastic patronage. The 7th-century geographer Anania Shirakatsi recorded the city as Arshakavan in his Ashkharhatsuyts (Geography), linking it explicitly to the Arsacid lineage. Medieval chroniclers occasionally used the variant Arshakert ("built by Arshak"), though Arshakavan remained dominant in historiographical texts. The suffix -avan derives from the Old Armenian word avan (աւան), meaning "hamlet" or "dwelling," and shares linguistic roots with the Persian term ābād (آباد), used to signify cultivated or inhabited places.Alternative names for the city, such as Arshakashen (Արշակաշեն) and Arshakert (Արշակերտ), follow similar naming conventions in Armenian historiography. The suffix "-ashen" (-աշեն) means "built by," while "-kert" (-երտ) derives from the Old Iranian *kr̥ta- ("made, created"), commonly used in Armenian city names (e.g., Tigranocerta). The multiplicity of names reflects Arshak II's efforts to legitimize his rule through urban patronage, a practice common among Hellenistic and Near Eastern monarchs.