Ashtarak city formerly used to be Ashtarakats village and has been granted with status of town since 1963. Total area is around 42,33 km². The name of the town is connected with Assyrian and Babylonian Godness Ishtar and the word for tower.
Mughni village is part of the Ashtarak municipality. According to statistics of 2017 January 1st the town had 17 thousands people which is 61.86% of province population.
The town is located on the bank of Kasagh River, 19 km to the northwest of the capital Yerevan, at an approximate height of 1100 meters above sea level. The town occupies the central point between Ararat plain and the mountain of Aragats. It has developed as a Yerevan’s satellite. It is administrative, economic, scientific and educational-cultural center of province.
The main industrial sector of the town is based on food-processing and beverages. There are wine’s materials processing and grape’s growing centers. “North-South highway” passes inside the town. Kasagh’s gorge serves as a picturesque area.
Formerly it used to be center of scientific research in Armenia. There were many scientific research institutions and industrial firms. Most of them don’t work now. Presently recycling of food plays an important role in town’s economy. Ashtarak as a satellite of Yerevan basically its development is connected with Yerevan. Here are noticed some firms which took price differences as an advantage, and work with that policy. (vc_row]
There are 5 public schools, a boarding school, art, music, sport schools, a stadium, a museum, a hospital, a polyclinic, communication hub, Armenian Institute of Radiophysics and Electronics, Physical Scientific Research Institution, house-museum of Perch Proshyan, Grigor Ghapanyan and Norayr Sisakyan.
The ancient Memorials are caves of Kasagh gorge “Akanatesi aru” canal. Among the preserved monuments are Thsiranavor (5th century), Karmravor (Holy mother of God, 7th century), Spitakavor (12-14th centuries), St. Marine (1281) churches, St. Sargis (8th century) and Tukh Manuk (8th century) chapels, Mughni’s St. Gevorg monastery (17th century) “Yeratrichq” bridge. There is memorial of Nerses Ashtaraketsi and bust of Norayr Sisakyan.
Translate by Tatevik Sahakyan
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