Lake Sevan
Lake Sevan is a lake in Armenia; the largest and one of the most beautiful lakes in the Caucasus. This miracle of nature, adjacent to the sky, is located in a huge thicket of mountains at an altitude of 1916 meters above sea level. Its water is transparent and clear, because, according to legend, only stars and gods drank from it.
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Prominent historians and travelers of the past spoke with admiration about Lake Sevan and called it “lotus of the sky” – Narekatsi. Its area is about 5-10% of the total area of Armenia, and the national park of the same name, which also includes the lake’s water intake and several wildlife preserves, occupies 1/6th of the country.
Video: Flying over Lake Sevan
” title=”YouTube video player” frameborder=”0″ allow=”accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share” allowfullscreen> Contents- Highlights
- Origin of the name
- Size of the lake
Flora and fauna - Sevan National Park
- Tourists
- Lake Sevan in literature
Highlights
There are several hypotheses for the origin of Lake Sevan. Most likely, this lake was born several millennia ago due to volcanic processes in the surrounding Geghama Mountains.
On the southern slopes to the lake are several dozen geometric round craters filled with fresh water. There are 28 rivers flowing into Sevan, all of them small, the largest one – Maerik – does not reach even 50 km. Only Hrazdan flows out of the lake. However, it will not be possible to restore the former water supply and water level by the waters of only the rivers flowing into the lake, because evaporation in the hot, forestless cauldron between the mountains makes up 88% of the water brought by the rivers. Therefore, it was decided to permanently discharge additional water into Sevan from the south, from the Arpa basin through a 48 km long tunnel under the Vardenis ridge, and to afforest the mountain slopes surrounding Sevan.
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Origin of the name
It is believed that the lake got its name from the name of the ancient temple Sevanavank, built on the northwestern peninsula in the IX century. This name means “Black Monastery” in Armenian, and the temple is indeed made of black tuff. There is a version about even more ancient origin of the name. The Urartians, who lived here before the arrival of Armenians, called the lake Tsuini, Svini, whence not far from the pronunciation of Sevan. Tsuini as if it meant “body of water.”
Once the shores of Sevan were covered with dense forests – beech, oak and other valuable species of trees, which were used in shipbuilding. Now the areas of forests have become scarce, and therefore intensive forest planting is being carried out in the coastal zones.
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Dimensions of the lake
Flora and fauna
Fish farms were established on the shores of the lake to artificially breed the ishkhan. While the Ishkhan is in danger of extinction in Lake Sevan, it appears to have taken a good root in Lake Issyk-Kul, where it was introduced from Lake Sevan.
The lake is an important center of the Sevan River.
The lake is an important population center for the Armenian Gull, whose numbers here reach 4000-5000 pairs. Other birds that stop at the lake are the American swan, piscule, red-nosed diver, white-eyed diver and black-headed gull.
Sevan National Park
In the basin of Lake Sevan, Sevan National Park was established in 1978. It includes four nature reserves and ten wildlife sanctuaries. In total, including buffer zones, the park has 150,100 hectares under protection, of which only 24,800 hectares is land surface. Sevan National Park is under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Nature Protection and research works are actively carried out on its territory mainly for the preservation and restoration of Lake Sevan ecosystems.
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Tourists
The season of active bathing is about two months – July and August, the water warms up to 19-20 degrees. However, do not forget that the mountain sun is quite insidious and can burn your skin in a matter of hours, for this reason it is necessary to observe safety measures, use special creams, cover the body with a cloth under the open sun. In many hotels, there are also separate large pools for those who like warm water.
Since recently, Sevan is not only a place for eco-tourism and beach vacation, but also a ski resort. A new, modern cable car has opened on the mountain north of the lake, with the Akhtamar Hotel. From the top of the mountain unforgettable panoramas of the mountain lake can be seen.
.Lake Sevan in literature
In 1928, famous Russian writer Maxim Gorky, who visited Armenia and saw Sevan for the first time, said:
.“Yes, it is amazingly beautiful! The mountains seem to have embraced and guarded the gorge with the love and tenderness of living beings. The air is unusually clean and clear and seems to be colored with a blue softly glowing tone. Softness is the prevailing impression. The deep bed of the gorge is filled with silence, green gardens… and as if everything is floating quietly towards Lake Sevan. The southern Transcaucasus is stunning with its variety and richness of colors. This valley is one of the most beautiful..
About the beauty of Lake Sevan, the classic of Armenian literature Avetik Isahakyan said:
.“Lake Sevan is so beautiful that one wants to drown in it.”
Sevan has always inspired poets and writers, many of them dedicated their poetry to it. Here is how Armenian poet Gevork Emin described Sevan:
.“Not yet having met you,I have loved since long agoThe mirror shine of your waterIn the frame of old mountainsThy gray boulders and first flowersOf spring on the quiet shoreI used to tell you about them many timesI’ve heard your story againTo me your daughter Zangu.”
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