Urtekhe-urtekhini And Artsakh

[shaunt]

Did the proper name "Artsakh" originate from the Urartian word for the region, Urtekhe-Urtekhini? Phonetically they sound similar (at least to me).

 

And what does the word "Artsakh" mean?

[Karen]

Did the proper name "Artsakh" originate from the Urartian word for the region, Urtekhe-Urtekhini? Phonetically they sound similar (at least to me).

 

And what does the word "Artsakh" mean?

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It's the same as to ask what word Hayastan means, or what Taron means, or what Vaspurakan means.... Do you know? I don't. I only know that Artsakh is an ancient Armenian name. One can be sure only of it's Armenian extraction, hence the "AR". See, ARtsakh, TARon, VaspURakan, ARARat, etc. That gives you the basics of common Armenian-Aryan extraction....

Some speculate that Artsakh ment "tree" in ancient Armenian, given the forested mountains of the region.

[Arpa]

Did the proper name "Artsakh" originate from the Urartian word for the region, Urtekhe-Urtekhini? Phonetically they sound similar (at least to me).

 

And what does the word "Artsakh" mean?

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Good question!

The answers may be all the way from the ridiculous to the sublime.

Basically there is no answer, most everybody gives up and some just attempt highly amateurish solutions. Most play on the "ar" syllable as symbolizing "Armen" or "Ararat". One goes as far as, that "ar" stands for Armanyak/Armenak, son of Haik who was gifted the land by his father and that the land was named to mean "forests of ar", playing on "tsakh" to mean forest. "tsakh" has never meant forest even if it has to do with wood/twigs and brush.

As to the other variants like Urtikh, Urtekheh, not to forget Utik. They are of Urartian origin. True they are official variants. This is where one needs to go deeper. Question has been raised as to what really is the name of Urartu. Is the U actually an U or is it supposed to sound like A as Ararat. The Urartian alphabet was not IE and just like other alphabets in the region (Semitic, Assyrian etc.)had very few vowels the rest of the sounds depended on context. The reason why Urarat may have been read as Ararat and visa versa. Is Urtekhe to be read as Artekhe, and hence Artakhe/Artakh? This format brings the two major variants closer. The "ar" beginnning may very well have to do with Ararat/Ararat/Aratta/Urartu.

As above, I have not found a definitive and convincing etymological analysis. It may have been named for a person for all I know. However I ran into a blurb by acident that Artsakh may be a corruption of "artsat/silver", not without total merit as it is a fact that the land is and always has been rich in silver ore.

 

The Urartian language has to be studied again with an open mind and a new approach. Who knows what secrets will be solved when the letters and vowels are actually pronounced as they were originally intended.

 

Btw. Historical Artsakh was at least ten times the size of the present one, spanning al the way from the river Kur in the north and Arax to south, Lake Sevan in the west to Partav and beyond in the east.

As intimated on various occasions the first urartolgists were no Armenian and their attitude may not have been as armenocentric.

 

Any Urartologists here?

[shaunt]

Great info Arpa!

 

Anyone else want to add something?

[Artsakh]

And what does the word "Artsakh" mean?

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"Artsakh" is an ancient Armenian word meaning "strong forest"

[Arpa]

"Artsakh" is an ancient Armenian word meaning  "strong forest"

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Dear Artsakh, did you read my article above where "tsakh" and artsakh are discussed?

Just to refresh, "tsakh" has never meant "forest" in Armenian, there are several other words for it, "tsakh" means "brush" in English, not necessarily the tool that you brush your teeth with but it has a close relationship. Brush is the dried twigs of trees and other plants, and that is exactly what it means in Armenian as well, that is where "tsakh avel" comes from, i.e. brush/brom. In the past people did not buy their brooms and brushes at Walmart. In fact in Yerevan, and I have seen this myself the street cleaners, some may be grandmothers still use "tsakh Avel".

[Artsakh]

Dear Artsakh, did you read my article above where "tsakh" and artsakh are discussed?

Just to refresh, "tsakh" has never meant "forest" in Armenian, there are several other words for it, "tsakh" means "brush" in English, not necessarily the tool that you brush your teeth with but it has a close relationship. Brush is the dried twigs of trees and other plants, and that is exactly what it means in Armenian as well, that is where "tsakh avel" comes from, i.e. brush/brom. In the past people did not buy their brooms and brushes at Walmart. In fact in Yerevan, and I have seen this myself the street cleaners, some may be grandmothers still use "tsakh Avel".

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Arpa, no unfortunately i didn't read all of your above article i glaced through the posts. In any case, i myself do not truly know how Artsakh means strong forest, however, the people in Artsax say that's what Artsakh means. Perhaps it's an ancient Armenian word no longer in use.

[Johannes]

Ասելիքս, [Արցախ-Ուրտիխ] անուան մեկնաբանում թող չհամարուի, միայն ուշադրութեան արժանացնեմ մի-երկու հաւանականութիւն:

 

 

Մէջբերում Մովսէս Խորենացիի «Հայոց Պատմութիւնից.-

 

«Հատուած գնացեալ Վարդգէս մանուկն ի Տուհաց գաւառէն զՔասաղ գետով եկեալ նստեալ զՇրէշ բլրով...կռել կոփել զդուռն Երուանդայ արքայի»

 

Եթէ «Ուր» նշանակում է՝ «հող-քաղաք-երկիր», ապա «Ուրտիխ» նշանակելու է, հաւանաբար, Տիխ (կամ՝ Տուխ) ժողովուրդի հող: Ինչպէս վկայում է հայոց պատմահայրը, հայկազն Երուանդին միանալու եւ խնամիանալու է գալիս Տուհաց գաւառից Վարդգէսը:

 

«Ուրտիխ» հայերէնում դարձել է՝ «Արցախ», այնպէս որ մեկնաբանել է Արփան:

 

Իսկ Արցախի ճանապարհին հանդիպում ենք «Տեղ» անունով գիւղի, միթէ՞ այդ գիւղի անունը պարզապէս «տեղ» է նշանակում, թէ՝ հին Ուրտիխ երկրի անունն է կրում:

 

Թող հայ պատմաբան-լեզուաբանները լուծեն այս խնդիրը, եթէ կարենան գիտականօրէն լուծել:

 

 

[Aratta-Kingdom]

Did the proper name "Artsakh" originate from the Urartian word for the region, Urtekhe-Urtekhini? Phonetically they sound similar (at least to me).

 

And what does the word "Artsakh" mean?

 

 

 

 

Accordin to Martiros Kavougjian Artaskh means:

 

"The Armenian feudal province (nakhararutyun) in the east of Lake Van was called Arsruni. This name is derived from Arsruniuni, mentioned in Urartian inscriptions, which was the name of the city near the southern tip of Lake Arcak and that of a Nairian tribe that lived in the area. In the language of Urartian inscriptions, sue(suini) means ‘lake’. The Armenian word sov(dzov) is related to it.

 

Ar-suni-uni meant, therefore, ‘the people of Lake Ar” (Ar-ljeci-ner’) or ‘the land of a Lake Ar’(Ar-lji-yerkir’). One could think that this was name after Lake Arcak. It is possible in this case to assume tha the term Arcak is formed by adding the suffix -ak to Ar-sue (that is, Ar-sue-ak>Arsak>Arcak). "

 

 

Also, just to let you know Urartu is the Assyrian variant for the name Ararat.

The official state language of Urartu/Ararat was Assyrian just like in the Soviet times the official state language was Russian. Before the bolshevik revolution, the russian Czars were using french as their official state language. Tigran The Great had used Greek as his official state language and so do the Nakharars. The turks today have adopted latin alphabet...that however, in no way means the turks and the people of the latin world are the same people.