Boyuk Garagoyunlu

Boyuk Garagoyunlu is a village in the Novo-Bayazid uezd of the former Iravan governorate, later in the former Basarkechar (Vardenis) district, presently, in the Gegharkunik province. The provincial centre lies 86 km to the southeast of the town of Kavar (Gavar), to the right of the highway leading to the village of Zod and at a height of 2100 m above sea level. Another name for the village was “Yellija”. It was marked as “Yellija Garagoyunlu” on the five-verst map of the Caucasus.

The village was inhabited only by Azerbaijanis: 379 in 1831, 408 in 1873, 591 in 1886, 447 in 1897, 505 in 1908, 655 in 1914 and 516 Azerbaijanis in 1916. In 1919 the inhabitants of the village were exposed to the Armenian armed units’ attack and left the village. The surviving Azerbaijanis managed to return to their land, following the establishment of Soviet power in present-day Armenian territory. The village was inhabited by 392 Azerbaijanis in 1922, 374 in 1926, 488 in 1931, 562 in 1939, 746 in 1959, 1,130 in 1970 and 1,407 Azerbaijanis in 1979. In November 1988 the Azerbaijanis were ousted by the Armenian state. At present, Armenians live in the village.

The toponym was coined on the basis of the Turkic ethnonym “Garagoyunlu”. The word “boyuk” denotes a distinguishing feature.

 It was renamed “Azizli” by the decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Armenian SSR dated 3 January 1935, and further it was changed again and became “Norabak” by the decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Armenian SSR dated 3 April 1991. 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 Gegharkunik province.

Geographic coordinates: latitude: 40°09′ N., longitude: 45°52′ E.