Armenia (country)

C

Natural Resources

Natural resources in Armenia include copper, molybdenum, zinc, gold, perlite (a lightweight aggregate used in concrete and plaster), and granite. The country lacks deposits of petroleum, natural gas, and coal, and must import these fuel resources. Armenia’s rivers, especially the Hrazdan, provide considerable hydroelectric power.

D

Climate

The climate of Armenia varies by elevation but is predominantly dry and continental, with long, hot summers and moderate winters. The elevated plateaus, which are less sheltered by mountains than the inland plains, have more inclement weather in winter. The sun shines frequently in Armenia. Precipitation varies by location and is heaviest in autumn. Mountainous areas receive the most precipitation, in the form of rain and snow. The most arid region of the country is along the Aras River.

E

Environmental Issues

Armenia’s environment became severely polluted during the Soviet period. The Soviet government introduced heavy industries—which emit more pollution than light industries—on a massive scale throughout the Soviet Union. The government long ignored the environmental harm caused by these industries, but in the 1980s liberalizing political reforms in the USSR resulted in the formation of environmental groups, which began to express concerns about the state of the environment. Because of pressure from these groups, several factories in Armenia that were sources of severe pollution were closed beginning in 1989. One of these factories, a rubber and chemical plant in Nairit, reopened in 1992 because Armenia needed the income generated by exporting the plant’s products. Although national environmental laws have been put into effect in Armenia since it became independent, no comprehensive environmental protection program has emerged, and environmental initiatives are typically addressed on an ad hoc basis.

In an attempt to offset a six-year energy crisis caused by blockades by Azerbaijan and Turkey, the Armenian government in 1995 reactivated a nuclear power plant at Metsamor, which had closed in 1988 after a catastrophic earthquake in northern Armenia. Environmental groups opposed the reopening because the plant poses an environmental threat. Although it is in an earthquake-prone area, it was not built to withstand earthquakes. Portions of Armenia also were rapidly deforested during the winters of 1992, 1993, and 1994, as trees were often the only available source of fuel.

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III

The People of Armenia

The population of Armenia is 2,971,650 (2007 estimate), giving the country’s land area a population density of 105 persons per sq km (271 per sq mi). Armenia is highly urbanized, with 64 percent of all residents living in cities or towns. Population is concentrated in river valleys, especially along the Hrazdan River, where Yerevan, the capital and largest city, is located. Armenia’s second-largest city is Gyumri (formerly Leninakan), the site of a devastating earthquake in 1988.

A

Ethnic Groups and Languages

Armenia was the most ethnically homogeneous republic of the 15 republics that made up the USSR, and the country is still characterized by a high degree of ethnic homogeneity. Ethnic Armenians, or Hay, constitute more than 90 percent of the population. Kurds and Russians are the next two largest ethnic groups in the republic, each making up less than 2 percent of Armenia’s total population. Small numbers of Ukrainians, Assyrians, Greeks, and Georgians also live in Armenia. Azerbaijanis were the largest minority group during the Soviet period, but in the early 1990s nearly the entire Azerbaijani population fled or was forcibly deported from Armenia because of ethnic tension brought on by a secessionist conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh, a region inhabited predominantly by Armenians in western Azerbaijan. In the reverse direction, many Armenian refugees entered Armenia from Azerbaijan during the conflict.

Armenia’s official state language is Armenian, an Indo-European language with no surviving close relatives. It has a unique 38-letter alphabet that dates from the early 5th century. Of its many spoken dialects, the most important are Eastern or Yerevan Armenian (the official language) and Western or Turkish Armenian (see Armenian Language). Armenia’s ethnic minorities also speak their own native languages, mainly Russian and Kurdish.