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{{Short description|Legendary founder of the Armenian nation}}{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2013}} {{History of Armenia|expanded=age1|BC=1}}Hayk{{Efn|Also spelled Haik or Haig.}} (, {{IPA-hy|hajk}}), also known as Hayk Nahapet (, {{IPA-hy|hajk naha’pÉ›t}}, {{lit|Hayk the Patriarch}}BOOK, Gōsh, MkhitÊ»ar, The Lawcode (Datastanagirk’) of Mxit’ar GoÅ¡, 2000, Rodopi, 9789042007901, 112,books.google.com/books?id=WtRfM_muG7QC&q=Nahapet+patriarch%7Chead&pg=PA112, 6 July 2016, ), is the legendary patriarch and founder of the Armenian nation. His story is told in the History of Armenia attributed to the Armenian historian Moses of Chorene (Movses Khorenatsi) and in the Primary History traditionally attributed to Sebeos. Fragments of the legend of Hayk are also preserved in the works of other authors, as well as in Armenian folk tradition.ENCYCLOPEDIA, 1980, Hayk, Soviet Armenian Encyclopedia, Yerevan,hy.wikisource.org/wiki/%D4%B7%D5%BB:%D5%80%D5%A1%D5%B5%D5%AF%D5%A1%D5%AF%D5%A1%D5%B6_%D5%8D%D5%B8%D5%BE%D5%A5%D5%BF%D5%A1%D5%AF%D5%A1%D5%B6_%D5%80%D5%A1%D5%B6%D6%80%D5%A1%D5%A3%D5%AB%D5%BF%D5%A1%D6%80%D5%A1%D5%B6_(Soviet_Armenian_Encyclopedia)_6.djvu/166, Katvalyan, M., Hambardzumyan, Viktor, 6, 166, hy,

Etymology

{{See also|Name of Armenia#Hayastan/Hayk/Hayer}}The name of the patriarch, Hayk (), is not exactly homophonous with the Armenian name for “Armenia,” HaykÊ» (). In Classical Armenian, HaykÊ» is the nominative plural of hay ((wikt:Õ°Õ¡Õµ|Õ°Õ¡Õµ)), the Armenian word for “Armenian.“BOOK, Moses KhorenatsÊ»i,archive.org/embed/khorenatsi1978books0102, History of the Armenians, Thomson, Robert W., Harvard University Press, 1978, 0-674-39571-9, Cambridge, Massachusetts, 88, Genealogy of Greater Armenia, Movses Khorenatsi, Robert W. Thomson, While Robert W. Thomson considers the etymology of HaykÊ» (Õ€Õ¡ÕµÖ„) from Hayk (Õ€Õ¡ÕµÕ¯) to be impossible, other scholars consider the connection between the two to be obvious and derive Hayk from hay/HaykÊ» via the suffix -ik.Martirosyan, Hrach (2010). Etymological Dictionary of the Armenian Inherited Lexicon (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 8), Leiden, Boston: Brill, p. 383. Armen Petrosyan proposes a possible connection between the name Hayk and the Proto-Indo-European *poti- “master, lord, master of the house, husband.“JOURNAL, Petrosyan, Armen, 2009, Forefather Hayk in the Light of Comparative Mythology.,archive.org/details/petrosyan-jies-2009, Journal of Indo-European Studies, 37, 155–163, Armenian historiography of the Soviet era connected Hayk and hay with Hayasa, a people mentioned in Hittite inscriptions.Danielian, Eduard L. (1997). “The Historical Background to the Armenian State Political Doctrine,” 279–286 in Awde, Nicholas (ed.). Armenian Perspectives, Surrey, UK: Curzon Press, p. 279, citing E. Forrer, “Hajassa-Azzi,” Caucasia, 9 (1931), and P. Kretschmer, “Der nationale Name der Armenier Haik,” Anzeiger der Acad. der Wiss. in Wien, phil.-his. Klasse (1932), n. 1–7 Some authors derive Hayk and hay from Khaldi/Ḫaldi, the chief god of the Urartian pantheon, and also identify Hayk with the Urartian deity.BOOK,archive.org/details/heritageofarmeni00ajha/page/65, The Heritage of Armenian Literature, 2005, Wayne State University Press, Hacikyan, A. J. (Agop Jack); Basmajian, Gabriel; Franchuk, Edward S.; Ouzounian, Nourhan., 0814328156, I, Detroit, 65, 42477084, Hayk, the legendary archer, has been part of Armenian culture and history since time immemorial. He was the primary god of the most prominent group of Urartian tribes, which eventually evolved into the Armenian nation. Hayk is considered the patriarch of the Armenians, and is indeed for this reason that Armenians call themselves Hay (pronounced haï). Hayk derives from the Urartian deity Khaldi, whose divide attributes he originally assumed with the constellation Orion. The well-known epic of Hayk’s fight against Bell provides substantial proof that Hayk and his people stood up against Bel and halted the unrestrained influx of Semitic peoples from the south., registration, 2000, The Armenian word haykakan (, “that which pertains to Armenians“) derives from the name Hayk. Additionally, the poetic names for the Armenian nation, Haykazun (Õ°Õ¡ÕµÕ¯Õ¡Õ¦Õ¸Ö‚Õ¶) or Haykazn (Õ°Õ¡ÕµÕ¯Õ¡Õ¦Õ¶, consisting of Hayk and azn “generation, nation, tribe“), also derive from Hayk (Haykazn/Haykaz later became a masculine given name among Armenians).DICTIONARY, 1946, Haykazn, HayotsÊ» andznanunneri baá¹›aran, Yerevan State University,nayiri.com/imagedDictionaryBrowser.jsp?dictionaryId=35&query=%D5%B0%D5%A1%D5%B5%D5%AF%D5%A1%D5%A6, Acharyan, HrachÊ»ya, 3, 34,

Genealogy

{{ahnentafel|boxstyle_1=background-color: #E0ECF8;|boxstyle_2=background-color: #CEE3F6;|boxstyle_3=background-color: #A9D0F5;|boxstyle_4=background-color: #81BEF7;|boxstyle_5=background-color: #2E9AFE;|1= Hayk|2= Togarmah|4= Gomer|8= Japheth|16= Noah}}Integrating the Armenian tradition into biblical tradition, Moses of Chorene describes Hayk as a descendant of Noah through the latter’s son Japheth: “Yapheth begat Gamer [Gomer]; Gamer begat T’iras; T’iras begat T’orgom [Togarmah]; T’orgom begat Hayk.“{{Sfn|Moses KhorenatsÊ»i|Thomson|1978|pp=74–75}} Hayk’s descendants through his son Aramaneak (Aramanyak) are listed as follows: “Aramaneak begat Aramayis; Aramayis begat Amasya; Amasya begat GeÅ‚am [Gegham]; GeÅ‚am begat Harmay [Harma]; Harmay begat Aram; Aram begat Ara the Handsome.“{{Sfn|Moses KhorenatsÊ»i|Thomson|1978|pp=74–75}} Hayk’s other sons, according to Moses, were Khoá¹› and Manavaz.{{Sfn|Moses KhorenatsÊ»i|Thomson|1978|p=89}} Moses also gives the names of numerous other descendants of Hayk ({{transliteration|hy|Haykazuni}}s, “of Hayk’s lineage,” also known as the Haykids), such as Sisak, Skayordi, Paruyr, and Vahe, some of which he identifies as kings of Armenia.{{Sfn|Moses KhorenatsÊ»i|Thomson|1978}} In reference to Hayk’s descent from Torgom/Togarmah, medieval Armenian sources sometimes referred to Armenia as T’orgoma tun (“House of Torgom“) and to Armenians as T’orgomyan azg (“the people of Torgom“).Movsisyan A., “The origin and formation of the Armenian nation,” Institute of Armenian Studies of Yerevan State University, www.armin.am. The connection between Hayk and the descendants of Noah was created by Christian authors following the Christianization of Armenia in order to connect Armenians to the biblical narrative of human history.dated by Mikayel Chamchian; Razmik Panossian, The Armenians: From Kings And Priests to Merchants And Commissars, Columbia University Press (2006), {{ISBN|978-0-231-13926-7}}, pp. 51, 106.In the Georgian history attributed to Juansher, Hayk is likewise identified as the son of Torgom/Togarmah and described as “prince of the seven brothers and stood in service to the giant Nimrod (Nebrovt’) who first ruled the entire world as king.“The Georgian ChronicleOne of Hayk’s most famous scions, Aram (whose name Moses purports to be the origin of the name Armenia{{Sfn|Moses KhorenatsÊ»i|Thomson|1978|p=92}}), settled in Eastern Armenia from the Mitanni kingdom (Western Armenia), when Sargon II mentions a king of part of Armenia who bore the (Armenian-Indo-Iranian) name Bagatadi (which, like the Greek-based “Theodore” and the Hebrew-based “Jonathan,” means “god-given“).Lukenbill, Dave (1927). Ancient Records of Assyria and Babylonia. The University of Chicago Press, p. 28.{{Verification needed|date=June 2022}}

Legend

File:Mkrtum Hovnatanian. Hayk Nahapet.jpeg|thumb|right|Hayk by Mkrtum Hovnatanian (1779–1846). Hayk is depicted standing next to the tomb of Bel, with his arrow still in Bel’s chest. In the background is Mount Ararat, with Noah’s ArkNoah’s ArkAccording to the accounts of Moses of Chorene and the anonymous Primary History, Hayk fought against and killed the tyrannical Babylonian king Bel (Belos, Belus). Depending on the mythological tradition, Belus can refer to a symbolic Babylonian/Akkadian god of war or mythical founder of Babylon.BOOK, Russell L.L.D., Rev. Michael, A Connection of Sacred and Profane History, William Tegg, 1865, 334, Moses identifies Bel with the biblical Nimrod and gives a list of his ancestors and successors, drawing from the Bible and Abydenus via Eusebius’s works.{{Sfn|Moses KhorenatsÊ»i|Thomson|1978|p=73}} Bel may symbolize the Gutian dynasty of Sumer, which ruled remnants of Akkadia as a tyrannical power during a Mesopotamian Dark Age after the Akkadian Empire broke up in 2154 BC.{{Citation needed|date=June 2022}}In Moses of Chorene’s account (which he claims to have learned from Mar Abas Catina’s writings), Hayk, son of Torgom, had a child named Aramaneak while he was living in Babylon. After the arrogant Titanid Bel made himself king over all, Hayk emigrated to the region near Mount Ararat with his extended family, servants, followers and about 300 warriors and founded a village called Haykashen.{{Sfn|Moses KhorenatsÊ»i|Thomson|1978|p=85}}Movses Khorenatsi, History of Armenia. Ed. by G. Sargsyan. Yerevan: Hayastan, 1997, pp. 83, 286. On the way he had left a detachment in another settlement with his grandson Kadmos. Bel sent one of his sons to entreat him to return, but Hayk refused. Bel decided to march against him with a massive force, but Hayk was warned ahead of time by Kadmos of his pending approach. He assembled his own army along the shore of Lake Van and told them that they must defeat and kill Bel, or die trying to do so, rather than become his slaves.{{Sfn|Moses KhorenatsÊ»i|Thomson|1978|pp=87–88}}(File:Hayk defeats Bel - Juliano Zasso.jpg|thumb|left|Hayk defeats Bel with an arrow.)Moses writes that the armies of Hayk and Bel clashed near Lake Van “in a plain between very high mountains.“{{Sfn|Moses KhorenatsÊ»i|Thomson|1978|pp=87–88}} King Bel was initially in the vanguard, but seeing that the outcome of the battle was uncertain, he withdrew to a hill to await the arrival of the rest of his army.{{Sfn|Moses KhorenatsÊ»i|Thomson|1978|pp=87–88}} Seeing this, Hayk slew Bel with a nearly impossible shot using his long bow, sending the king’s forces into disarray.{{Sfn|Moses KhorenatsÊ»i|Thomson|1978|pp=87–88}} Hayk named the hill where Bel fell with his warriors GerezmankÊ», meaning “tombs”.{{Sfn|Moses KhorenatsÊ»i|Thomson|1978|pp=87–88}} He embalmed the corpse of Bel and ordered it to be taken to Hark’ where it was to be buried in a high place in the view of the wives and sons of the king.{{Sfn|Moses KhorenatsÊ»i|Thomson|1978|pp=87–88}} Soon after, Hayk established the fortress or settlement (dastakert) of HaykÊ» or Haykaberd at the site of the battle, which, Moses of Chorene says, is why the district is called HayotsÊ» Dzor (“The Valley of the Armenians“)History 1.11; a district to the southeast of Lake Van, see Hubschmann, AON, p. 343 and the country of the Armenians is called Hayk’.{{Sfn|Moses KhorenatsÊ»i|Thomson|1978|pp=87–88}}The 18th- and 19th-century scholars Ghevont Alishan and Mikayel Chamchian, using different methods, calculated the date of the mythical battle (also known as the Dyutsaznamart, , “Battle of the Giants“) between Hayk and Bel to have been August 11, 2492 BCE or 2107 BCE, respectively.JOURNAL, Kosyan, Aram, 2019, First Haykides and the «House of Torgom»,arar.sci.am/dlibra/publication/287948/edition/264411/content, Fundamental Armenology, 2, 10, 95, Pan-Armenian Digital Library,

Comparative mythology

{{Further|culture hero}}Armen Petrosyan describes Hayk as “a complex epic figure that combines the characteristics of the god creator, the father and patriarch of gods, the thunder god, and the war god” that derives from Indo-European archetypes and influenced by Near Eastern mythology. Hayk is a culture hero and an etiological founding figure, like Asshur for the Assyrians, for example. The figure slain by Hayk’s arrow is variously given as Bel or Nimrod. Hayk is also the name of the constellation Orion in the Armenian translation of the Bible. Hayk’s flight from Babylon and his eventual defeat of Bel has been compared to Zeus’s escape to the Caucasus and eventual defeat of the Titans.BOOK, Kurkjian, Vahan M., A History of Armenia, Armenian General Benevolent Union of America, 1958, Michigan, 50, Chapter VIII: The Beginnings of Armenia,penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Gazetteer/Places/Asia/Armenia/_Texts/KURARM/8*.html, Petrosyan considers the Indian deity Rudra to be the most similar mythological figure to Hayk. Both are associated with the constellation Orion, both have descendants or followers of the same name (Hays and Rudras) and both are archers that kill their enemy with an arrow.JOURNAL, Petrosyan, Armen, 2011, Armenian Traditional Black Youths: the Earliest Sources,www.academia.edu/2941077, The Journal of Indo-European Studies, 39, 3 & 4, 343,

See also

• Hayko
• Aram (given name)
• Belus (Assyrian)
• Nimrod
• Armenian mythology
• Hayasa-Azzi
• Armens
• Sisak (eponym)
• Mahabali

References

Notes

{{Notelist}}

Citations

{{Reflist|30em}}

Bibliography

• JOURNAL, Stepan, Ahyan, 1982, Les débuts de l’histoire d’Arménie et les trois fonctions indo-européennes, Revue de l’histoire des religions, 199, 3, 251–271, 10.3406/rhr.1982.4670,
• JOURNAL,www.academia.edu/2940248, Armen, Petrosyan, 2009, Forefather Hayk in the Light of Comparative Mythology, Journal of Indo-European Studies, 37, 155–163, 0092-2323,
• JOURNAL,www.academia.edu/2940319, Armen, Petrosyan, 2007, The Indo-European H2ner(t)-s and the Danu Tribe, Journal of Indo-European Studies, 35, 297–310, 0092-2323,

{{Armenia topics}}{{Legendary progenitors}}