Nubarashen District

Nubarashen

Նուբարաշեն
Nubarashen Նուբարաշեն
	The entrance to Nubarashen
Country	Armenia
Marz (Province)	Yerevan
Founded	1932
Government
• Mayor of District	Artur Kirakosyan
Area
• Total	18 km2 (7 sq mi)
Population (2011 census)
• Total	9,561
• Density	530/km2 (1,400/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+4 (AMT)

40°05′31″N 44°32′57″E / 40.09194°N 44.54917°E / 40.09194; 44.54917

Nubarashen (Armenian: Նուբարաշեն վարչական շրջան, Nubarashen varčakan šrĵan), is one of the 12 districts of Yerevan, the capital of Armenia. It is situated at the southeastern part of the city. It is bordered by Shengavit and Erebuni districts from the north and Ararat Province from the east, south and west.^[1]

Overview

With an area of 18 km² (8.07% of Yerevan city area), Nubarashen is the 5th largest district of Yerevan in terms of area. The Nubarashen Central Park and the nearby Ghevond Alishan №85 School (opened in 1932) are situated at the centre of the district. The Nubarashen Military Base occupies a large portion of the eastern half of the district.

As of 2016, the population of the district is around 9,800.

History

After the Sovietization of Armenia, the Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU) became the only diaspora organization that was permitted to operate within the Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic. The permission was granted to the AGBU in 1923.

In 1926, during the Philadelphia meeting of the USA branches of the Armenian General Benevolent Union]] (AGBU), a decision was taken to fund the construction of a new residential settlement in the Socialist Soviet Republic of Armenia, in honor of the the founder of AGBU; the Armenian benefactor Boghos Nubar. The main goal of the project was directed towards the repatriation of the Armenian families who survived the Armenian Genocide and dispersed all over the Middle East and Europe.

The original plan of Nubarashen, designed by Alexander Tamanian

For the fulfillment of the project, an amount of US$ 250,000 was envisaged to raise until April 30, 1931, in order to launch the project in the 25th anniversary of the AGBU organization. US$ 102,000 was donated form Armenians in New York, and US$ 25,000 was received from Chicago. However, many of the Armenian wealthy donors became victims of the Great Depression of 1929. Thus, only US$ 153,000 was secured by the end of 1929.

The Communist government of Armenia has proposed many locations for the initiative, including Yeghvard, Sardarapat and Metsamor. Finally, the location of the settlement was chosen to be at the southeastern outskirts of the capital Yerevan, to the south of Noragavit neighbourhood.^[2]

Boghos Nubar donated US$ 100,000 for the project, and finally an agreement was settled between the Communist government of Armenia and the AGBU in April-May 1930, for the "construction of Nubarashen residential settlement". Soon after in the same year, the construction process was launched at the south of Yerevan, based on the urban plan designed by architect Alexander Tamanian.

The main street in Nubarashen

In July 1931, around 100-120 residential buildings were ready to put in service. In 1932, the settlement was officially founded and named Nubarashen (meaning town of Nubar). The first residents of the newly-founded settlement were repatriated Armenian families from Greece, followed by genocide survivals from Bulgaria, France, Lebanon and Syria. Almost 50% of the project was completed by the end of 1936. In summer 1937, around 1,000 repatriated Armenians were living in Nubarashen.

In 1938, the settlement was renamed as Sovetashen [Սովետաշեն, meaning Soviet town] Error: {{Lang-xx}}: text has italic markup (help). With the gradual growth of Yerevan, Nubarashen was eventually absorbed by the capital city. In 1989, the district was renamed back with its original name.

Demographics

Holy Martyrs Church

As of the 2011 census, the district had a population of 9,561 (0.9% of Yerevan city population). According to the 2016 official estimate, the population of the district is around 9,800, making Nubarashen the least populous district of Yerevan.

Shengavit is mainly populated by Armenians who belong to the Armenian Apostolic Church. The district is home to the Holy Martyrs Church opened in 2015 in honor of the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide.