Arabkir District

Arabkir
Arabkir; Արաբկիր
	Komitas Avenue, Arabkir's main arterial road
	Arabkir
	Coordinates: 40°12′28″N 44°30′21″E / 40.20778°N 44.50583°ECoordinates: 40°12′28″N 44°30′21″E / 40.20778°N 44.50583°E
Country	Armenia
Marz (Province)	Yerevan
	Government
• Mayor of District	Albert Yeritsyan
	Area
• Total	12.35 km2 (4.77 sq mi)
Elevation	1,150 m (3,770 ft)
	Population (2005)
• Total	131,500
Time zone	UTC (UTC+4)
• Summer (DST)	DST (UTC+5)
Website	http://www.arabkir.am/

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Arabkir District (Armenian: Արաբկիր) is a neighborhood that used to be a separate village in Yerevan, Armenia. At the census in 2001, it had a population of over 132,000. It is bordered by Hrazdan River to the north and west, the Kentron to the south, and Kanaker-Zeytun to the east. Its main thoroughfare is Komitas Avenue. The district is commonly divided into five smaller neighborhoods: Nor Arabkir, Mergelyan, Aygedzor, Kanaker Hydropower Plant and Raykom.

The district is connected to other parts of Yerevan, mainly through Komitas Avenue and Barekamutyun (Friendship) Metro Station.

As of 2006 Arabkir district had:

Roads, streets - 40 ha
Buildings, squares, yards - 553 ha
Other lands - 385 ha

[edit] History

It was founded on November 29, 1925 by Armenians. Most people that live in this district came from Arabkir (modern day district of Malatya Province in Turkey), which was populated with Armenians before 1915. Also, within Arabkir there is a Molokans street named after the many Molokan families who moved from the northern regions of Armenia, and settled in different neighborhoods throughout Yerevan but mainly in Arabkir. There had been an Arabkir Cemetery at the north end of the district but sometime in the late 20th century families were warned that the cemetery was being converted to a Molokan Park and the remains would need to be moved to other locations. Only a handful of graves remain in the wooded areas of the park, as well as a memorial to soldiers from the Arabkir district who were killed in World War II.

Arabkir is the third largest district in Yerevan.

[edit] Demographics

According to National Demographic Service of Armenia, the population of Arabkir district was 131,600 in 2005, from which 59,100 were men and 72,500 were women.^[1]

[edit] Education and Culture

Arabkir is home to the Russian-Armenian State University (RAU) and Mergelyan Institute of Mathematical Machines.

[edit] Industry

RUSAL ARMENAL aluminum foil mill: located in the north-western part of the district, at the rim of the Hrazdan River gorge.
Kanaker Hydro Power Plant: located to the north of RUSAL ARMENAL mill along the Hrazdan River.
ErAZ former automobile factory of the Soviet era: located on Nikoghayos Adonts street near Azatutian Avenue.

[edit] International Relations

Arabkir district municipality, officially cooperates with Le Plessis-Robinson; a suburb of Paris (France) since 2005, Riga's central district (Latvia), since 2006, Antwerp's Deurne district (Belgium) and Şişli town of Istanbul (Turkey), since 2006. The district municipality has signed several cooperation agreements with all those towns and districts.^[2]