Eastern Turkey is the home of one of the most beautiful mountain ranges in the world, still holding some traces of its Armenian past. During the 19th en 20th century much of Armenian geographical and cultural names have been replaced in a process of Turkification of the region. Some etymologist estimated at least 3,600 Armenian place-names to have been replaced in the 20th century (Sevan Nisanyan, 2011) especially after the expulsion of the Armenian population from the Ottoman held territories.
Derived from the Armenian word “Khachkar” (meaning: Cross-stone), Kaçkar Mountains (Turkish: Kaçkar Dağları) today stand a testimony to Eastern Turkey’s Armenian past.[1][2] Historically part of Lesser Armenia, the Kaçkar range is often described as the lushest, most spectacular mountain area in Turkey, fronting the Black Sea to the north and the valley of the Çoruh River to the south. The highest peak Kaçkar Dağı is at an elevation of 3,937 metres (12,917 ft), and mountain plateaus are at about 3,000 m (9,800 ft) in elevation. The Kaçkars are glaciated mountains that are alpine in character, with steep rocky peaks and numerous mountain lakes. The area was declared a national park in 1994. Tourism activities in the park include hiking, camping, mountaineering, and, increasingly, heliskiing.
A sizable Muslim Armenian population still lives on those mountains. Historically known as the Hamshentsi, these are people of the royal Armenian house of Hamam. They speak a dialect of Armenian and are divided in Christian and Muslim groups. Unlike their Muslim brethren, the Christian Hamshentsi have been expelled from their home territories and today mostly reside in South Russia and Abkhazia. Like many Armenian settlements Hamshen contains the suffix –shen from Armenian word “shenel” meaning “to build”. Hamshen like Artashen, Bagratashen, Norashen and so on, simply means “Build by Hamam”. In Turkish it is called Hemşin and the people are known as Hemşinli.
Bellow some more pictures of the Cross-stone mountains:
Sources:
[1] Marc Dubin; Enver Lucas (1989). Trekking in Turkey. Lonely Planet. p. 125. ISBN 0-86442-037-4. [2] Robert H. Hewsen. Armenia: A Historical Atlas. — University of Chicago Press, 2001. — 341 p. — ISBN 0-226-33228-4, ISBN 978-0-226-33228-4. P.212. “River between the port of Atina (now Pazar) on the coast and the great inland peak called Kajkar (Arm. Khach’k’ar) Dagh ‘Cross-stone Mountain'”
