The History of the Caucasian Albanians

The History of the Caucasian Albanians (or The History of the World of Aghvank; Armenian: Պատմութիւն Աղուանից աշխարհի) by Movses Kaghankatvatsi is a history of eastern territories of Armenia (Nagorno-Karabakh and Utik), as well as other territories in Southeastern Caucasus usually described as Caucasian Albania. The work was written in Old Armenian. It covers the period between 4th century AD and 10th century AD.

In the works of earlier Armenian authors no name is attached to The History and early in the 13th century, however, Mkhitar Gosh names a Movses Dasxurants'i as the author. It is to be noted that the earliest extant manuscript of The History , also of the 13th century (1289), bears no author's name; nor do other manuscripts. The earliest manuscript to bear the name of Movses Kalankatuaci is that copied by the scribe Lunkianos in 1761. The date of the compilation known as The History is based on the fact that the last person to have a hand in The History wrote at the earliest at the end of the 11th or the beginning of the 12th century.

Publications & translations

• Movses Kaghankatvatsi (1983). History of Aghuank in original Old-Armenian (Մովսէս Կաղանկատուացի.Պատմութիւն Աղուանից աշխարհի), critical text and introduction by Varag Arrakelian (in Armenian). Yerevan: "Matenadaran" Institute of old manuscripts after Mesrob Mashtots. Armenian SSR Academy of Sciences.
• Movsēs Dasxuranc'i (1961). The History of the Caucasian Albanians (translated by C. F. J. Dowsett). London: (London Oriental Series, Vol. 8).
• Movses Kaghankatvatsi (1984). The History of the Country of Aluank (translated by Š.V. Smbatian) (in Russian). Yerevan: Matenadaran.
• Movses Kaghankatvatsi (1985). The History of Albania (translated by L. Davlianidze-Tatishvili) (in Georgian). Tbilisi.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)

References

• The History of the Caucasian Albanians by Movses Dasxuranci (a.k.a. Moses Kałankatuaçi; tr. C.J.F. Dowsett, Oxford, 1961)
• A Neglected Passage in the "History of the Caucasian Albanians", C. J. F. Dowsett, Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, Vol. 19, No. 3 (1957), pp. 456–468