Gazanchi is a village in the Alexandropol uezd of the former Iravan governorate, later in the former Artik district, and currently in the Shirak province. The provincial centre lies 15 km to the southeast of the town of Gumru, at a height of 1,650 m above sea level. It was marked in “The Iravan Province Review Book” and on the five-verst map of the Caucasus.

Following the settlement of the Armenians from the Turkish provinces of Kars and Erzurum in the region according to the Treaty of Adrianople (1829), the Azerbaijanis living in the village moved to Türkiye.

The toponym was coined by adding the suffix “-çı” to the name of the Gazan tribe, one of the Bulgar tribes of ancient Turkic origin.

By the decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Armenian SSR dated 31 May 1946, it was renamed “Meghrashen”. According to the law “On the administrative-territorial division of the Republic of Armenia” dated 7 November 1995, it was integrated into the administrative territory of the Shirak province.

Geographical coordinates: latitude: 40°40’ N., longitude: 43°56’ E.