Ararat (Armenian: Արարատ) is a province (marz) of Armenia with capital in Artashat. Named after Mount Ararat, the province borders Turkey to the west and Azerbaijan's Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic to the south. It surrounds the Karki exclave of Nakhichevan which has been controlled by Armenia since its capture in May 1992 during the Nagorno-Karabakh War.
Two former Armenian capitals are located in this region (Artashat (Artaxata) and Dvin) as well as the Khor Virap monastery, significant as the place of Gregory the Illuminator's 13-year imprisonment and the closest point to Mount Ararat within Armenian borders.
Ararat borders the following marzer:
Armavir - northwest Kotayk - north Gegharkunik - east Vayots Dzor - southeast
Ararat also borders Yerevan in the north, between its borders with Armavir and Kotayk.
In 1993 and again in 1995, CYMA (Canadian Youth Mission to Armenia) operated from Ararat province, building community centers, renovating schools, managing a children's day camp and distributing aid to families affected by the Nagorno-Karabakh War. CYMA co-founders Archbishop Hovnan Derderian and Ronald Alepian chose Ararat due to its well-organized youth movement.
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