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Yerevan (; (アルメニア語:Երևան) (:jɛɾɛˈvɑn), ), is the capital and largest city of Armenia, and one of the world's oldest continuously inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Yerevan is the administrative, cultural, and industrial center of the country. It has been the capital since 1918, the thirteenth in the history of Armenia, and the seventh located in or around the Ararat plain. The history of Yerevan dates back to the 8th century BC, with the founding of the fortress of Erebuni in 782 BC by king Argishti I at the western extreme of the Ararat plain. Erebuni was "designed as a great administrative and religious centre, a fully royal capital." During the centuries long Iranian rule over Eastern Armenia that lasted from the early 16th century up to 1828, it was the center of Iran's Erivan khanate administrative division from 1736. In 1828, it became part of Imperial Russia alongside the rest of Eastern Armenia who conquered it from Iran through the Russo-Persian War (1826-1828). After World War I, Yerevan became the capital of the First Republic of Armenia as thousands of survivors of the Armenian Genocide in the Ottoman Empire settled in the area. The city expanded rapidly during the 20th century as Armenia became part of the Soviet Union. In a few decades, Yerevan was transformed from a provincial town within the Russian Empire, to Armenia's principal cultural, artistic, and industrial center, as well as becoming the seat of national government. With the growth of the economy of the country, Yerevan has been undergoing major transformation as many parts of the city have been the recipient of new construction since the early 2000s, and retail outlets as much as restaurants, shops, and street cafes, which were rare during Soviet times, have multiplied. As of 2011, the population of Yerevan was 1,060,138, making up to 35.1% of the total population of Armenia. Yerevan was named the 2012 World Book Capital by UNESCO. Yerevan is an associate member of Eurocities.〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://www.eurocities.eu/eurocities/members/members_list&country=armen&memcat= )〕 ==Etymology and symbols== One theory regarding the origin of Yerevan's name is the city was named after the Armenian king, Yervand IV (the Last), the last leader of the Orontid Dynasty, and founder of the city of Yervandashat.〔 However, it is likely that the city's name is derived from the Urartian military fortress of Erebuni (Էրեբունի), which was founded on the territory of modern-day Yerevan in 782 BC by Argishti I.〔 As elements of the Urartian language blended with that of the Armenian one, the name eventually evolved into ''Yerevan'' (Erebuni = Erevani = Erevan = Yerevan). Scholar Margarit Israelyan notes these changes when comparing inscriptions found on two cuneiform tablets at Erebuni: Early Christian Armenian chroniclers attributed the origin of the name, "Yerevan," to a derivation from an expression exclaimed by Noah, in Armenian. While looking in the direction of Yerevan, after the ark had landed on Mount Ararat and the flood waters had receded, Noah is believed to have exclaimed, "Yerevats!" ("it appeared!").〔 Baghdasaryan A., Simonyan A, et al. ''"Երևան"'' (Yerevan). Soviet Armenian Encyclopedia. vol. iii. Yerevan, Armenian SSR: Armenian Academy of Sciences, 1977, pp. 548–564.〕 In written sources, Yerevan was also mentioned as Erevan, Erivan, Erewan, Ervan, Eruan, Arevan, Iravan, Revan and Ayravan.〔Soviet Armenian Encyclopedia, Vol.3 page 550, Yerevan 1977〕 The principal symbol of Yerevan is Mount Ararat, which is visible from any area in the capital. The seal of the city is a crowned lion on a pedestal with the inscription "Yerevan." The lion's head is turned backwards while it holds a scepter using the right front leg, the attribute of power and royalty. The symbol of eternity is on the breast of the lion with a picture of Ararat in the upper part. The emblem is a rectangular shield with a blue border.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Symbols and emblems of the city )〕 On 27 September 2004, Yerevan adopted an anthem, "Erebuni-Yerevan", written by Paruyr Sevak and composed by Edgar Hovhanisyan. It was selected in a competition for a new anthem and new flag that would best represent the city. The chosen flag has a white background with the city's seal in the middle, surrounded by twelve small red triangles that symbolize the twelve historic capitals of Armenia. The flag includes the three colours of the Armenian National flag. The lion is portrayed on the orange background with blue edging.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Yerevan (Municipality, Armenia) )〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Yerevan」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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