Armenian Nobility - Historical Origins

Historical Origins

The historians mention various numbers of the Armenian noble houses during different periods of Armenian history. Sometimes their number is mentioned to be ninety, yet at other times it reaches up to three hundred. Certainly, the number of the Armenian noble houses did change in the course of time as the aristocratic class was itself subject to flux.

The first attested Armenian royal dynasty was the Orontids which was ruling Armenia as a satrapy of the Persian Empire in the 4th century BC. They are preceded by legendary or semi-legendary patriarchs of Armenian tradition, first recorded in the History attributed to Moses of Chorene (Movses Khorenatsi), written circa the 5th century.

The noble houses of Rshtuni, Mokats, Artzruni and others originated from tribal rulers or clans already in antiquity. Some others, such as the Mamikonians or Aravelians, were granted noble titles and/or offices, such as aspet, 'coronator' and sparapet, 'generalissimo' by special decrees of medieval Armenian kings for their services to the royal court or the nation.

Although the vast majority of the Armenian nobility was of Armenian origin, the historical sources still mention quite significant foreign influxes into the aristocratic class. These assimilated foreign families were predominantly of Indo-European origin, such as Persians, Alans, Medes, Greeks and Romans. The Iranian aristocratic component was particularly numerous. Many Armenian noble houses were either linked to the Iranian nobility through dynastic marriages or were Iranians (Persians, Parthians, Medes) by origin. The latter included renowned houses such as those of the Arshakuni, Artashesian, and Pahlavuni (from Sassanid Persian noble family Pahlavani and originally Parthavoni, indicating Parthian origin from Persia). Examples of non-Armenian but Indo-European noble houses would include the families of Aravelians and Ropseans; the first were Alans and the latter Romans by origin.

Non-Indo-European components were never significant among the Armenian nobility and they normally appear at later stages of Armenian history. Some suggest that the Mamikonian clan originates from a Chinese refugee named Mamgun who for his services was elevated to the ranks of nobleman by one of the Armenian kings. Some Armenian Christian historians tend to derive certain Armenian noble houses from Mesopotamian or other roots. For example, in his History of Armenia, Movses Khorenatsi traces the family origins of his sponsor prince Sahak Bagratuni to non-Armenian roots. However, the historical sources prove the existence of the Bagratuni family in the most oldest period of Armenian history and speak of them as aboriginal Armenians. The linguistic analysis also maintains that the name Bagarat probably is of Indo-European origin and stems from the Middle Persian words Bhaga (god) and Arat (plentiful, rich), i.e. literally "divine plenitude" or "god's richness". It is remarkable that Prince Bagratuni himself rejected Khorenatsi's version of the origins of his family. Exotic descents were in vogue among the early medieval Armenian aristocratic families. However, there is no evidence supporting any of these claims of descent.