Top 5 facts about Armenia
Facts about Armenia
- Chess is a compulsory subject in schools
Interesting huh? All students have to take chess as a compulsory subject in school and there are even exams for it! The photo below shows the renowned Tigran Petrosian Chess House in Yerevan where many huge international chess tournaments have been held.
- Armenia was the first country to have adopted Christianity as its state religion
Today, 97% of the population today are Christians and Armenia has one of the most beautiful churches in the world. Check out our post on the 10 most beautiful Armenian churches that you must visit. The country was converted to Christianity back in 301AD by St Gregory Illuminator and since then, many churches have been built under his name. There are so many beautiful churches in Armenia and we have come up with our own list of the top 10 most beautiful churches in Armenia.
- Armenia is one of the only mono ethnic countries in the world
97% of the people living in Armenia are Armenians and the remaining small percentage is made up of different ethnic minorities such as the Yazidis, Russians, Ukranians, Kurds, and more.
- The first church in the world was built in Armenia
Holy Etchimiadzin was the first state church built in the world back in the early 4th century. This place is also the headquarter of all the churches in Armenia and it’s one of the most visited pilgrimage site in the world. Unfortunately this beautiful building has been under construction for the past few years and we were unable to capture a nice shot of it.
- An estimated 1.5 million Armenians were killed during the Genocide
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