Hamshen is the Armenian name for the settlement in historic Lesser Armenia, present day Hemşin district in the province of Rize, Turkey. Territory of Lesser Armenia was historically part of the ancient Armenian Kingdom, which was ruled by the royal dynasty of Orontids (Yervanduni). In later centuries lesser Armenia was conquered by numerous contending...
Cross-stone Mountains (Kaçkar Mountains)

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...