Chiydamli or Jighdamli is a village in the Iravan uezd of the former Iravan governorate, later in the former Gamarli (Artashat) district, and currently in the Ararat province. The provincial centre lies 3 km to the northwest of the town of Gamarli, and at a height of 830 m above sea level. Another name for the village is “Jilchay”. The village is referred to as “Chidamli”, “Jidamli, Jifdamli” in the works of Armenian authors. The village was noted as “Jighdamli” in “The Iravan Province Review Book”, on the five-verst map of the Caucasus as “Jighdamli”.

Until 1828 only Azerbaijanis had lived in the village. Armenians were removed there from the Iranian province of Salmas in 1828- 1829. Along with the Armenians, the village was inhabited also by 166 Azerbaijanis in 1831, 155 in 1873, 161 in 1886 and 135 Azerbaijanis in 1897. In 1918 the Azerbaijanis were deported having been exposed to massacre by Armenian armed units. At present, Armenians live there.

The toponym was coined by combining the word “jig” used in Old Turkic in the sense of “a bright, pleasant river plant used in “hasir” (a kind of straw mat) weaving” and the word “dam” denoting “a house, building, construction” with the identifying suffix “-lı”.

The village was renamed “Azatavan” by the decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Armenian SSR dated 20 August 1945. According to the law “On the administrative-territorial division of the Republic of Armenia” dated 7 November 1995, it was integrated into the administrative area of the Ararat province.

Geographic coordinates: latitude: 39°59’ N., longitude: 44°30’ E.