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Nairi (people)

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Nairi (Armenian: Նայիրի in TAO or Նաիրի in RAO) is the Assyrian word rivers, given to a Late Bronze Age to Early Iron Age (13th to 10th centuries BC) nation corresponding in the territory of the later kingdom of Urartu, located around Lake Van, in what is now the East Anatolia Region (between Hakkari to Dersim), southeastern Turkey.

The Nairi were considered a force strong enough to tackle both the Assyrians and Hittites. This nation was mentioned first by the Assyrians in the 13th century BC as 'Nairi' (Land of 'Rivers' in Assyrian).

The Nairi fought against the southern incursions of the Assyrians and would later unite into Urartu. The names of twenty-three Nairi lands were recorded by Tiglath-Pileser II (10th century BC) their southern point was Tumme, known to have been south-west of Lake Urmia, and their northern one Dayaenu.

They may have been a Hurrian tribe, related to contemporary Mitanni (so Götze 1936; skeptically Benedict 1960). The Egyptians referred to the Mitanni "Naharin".

Influence on Modern Armenians

Since the late nineteenth century, Nairi has come to stand as a synonym for Armenia among Armenians, who tend to see Nairi as one of their most ancient ancestors. In 1916, Vahan Terian published a bundle of poems entitled Land of Nairi (in Armenian: Yerkir Nairi), in which he uses Nairi in place of Armenia. Likewise in 1923, Yeghishe Charents wrote a satirical novella entitled Land of Nairi, using once again Nairi as a synonym for Armenia. Hayastan Yeghiazarian, interestingly, used Nairi Zarian as his pen-name, replacing his first name, Hayastan (which is what Armenians call Armenia in their own language since the Late Middle Ages) with Nairi.

In the course of the twentieth and twenty-first century, Nairi has become a popular first name for both girls and boys in Armenia and the Armenian Diaspora. Variations, like Naira, exist side by side variations in spelling, including Nayiri, Nayri, and Nyree.

Armenians also use the name Nairi for many products and businesses ranging from restaurants to movie theaters, magazines to publishing houses, hotels to cognac, and even computers. In the United States, especially in areas where there are large Armenian communities, many businesses, including beauty-salons, bakeries, and grocery stores bear the name Nairi. The most famous example of this would be the "Nairi" brand of Armenian brandy produced by the Yerevan Brandy Company.

See also

References

  • Albrecht Götze, Hethiter, Churriter und Assyrer, Instituttet for Sammenlignende Kulturforskning, Serie A: Forelesninger XVII (Oslo, 1936).
  • Warren C. Benedict, Urartians and Hurrians. Journal of the American Oriental Society 80/2, 1960, 100-104.
  • Ralf-Bernhard Wartke, Urartu Das Reich am Ararat, Verlag Philipp von Zabern, Mainz/Rhein 1993



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