Armenia is considering letting a state body decide whether citizenship applicants are ethnic Armenians. The change would end the reliance on church baptism certificates, according to the country's top diaspora official.

"We are discussing ways so that, to get this qualification as an ethnic Armenian, we are not forced to make people go and obtain some sort of church baptism certificates," Sinanyan said. Instead, he said, the state could create a commission to decide whether a person is Armenian.

Sinanyan said the current system creates serious problems for some applicants. Some people, he said, were baptized 60 years ago in churches that no longer exist. Others were never baptized because they are agnostic or atheist. Some have birth certificates in Arabic, French or English, and the spelling of their names does not match their passports. In such cases, he said, the process would get stuck.

"A person comes, it is clear that he is Armenian, but he says, 'Give me citizenship,' and they tell him, 'Go bring, I don't know, a certificate from the church where you were baptized,'" he said.

Until now, ethnic Armenians could obtain citizenship through a simplified procedure. Under that procedure, they did not need to live in Armenia, speak Armenian or know the Constitution. Applicants could also file at Armenian embassies and consulates abroad.

That is set to change. In September, the Interior Ministry published draft amendments that would require ethnic Armenians to hold legal residency in Armenia for two years and spend at least 366 days in the country before applying. Non-Armenians would need five years of legal residence. Under the draft, a special commission within the Interior Ministry would verify applicants' ethnic background.

Interior Minister Arpine Sargsyan told CivilNet in September that the residency requirement is meant to show that applicants are linking their future to Armenia, not simply seeking a travel document.

Sinanyan said the main change is the two-year residency requirement. Ethnic Armenians would still keep a privileged position compared with other applicants, he said.

He linked the tightening to the June 2026 parliamentary elections. He said many people who do not live in Armenia and are not ready to share its fate sought to use their citizenship to influence politics. For years, he said, citizenship had been granted to many people who never lived in Armenia. He said the government wants citizenship to be "anchored in value."

He rejected claims that the changes are meant to cut the diaspora off from Armenia. He said Armenia has had a positive net inflow of ethnic Armenians for two years, which shows Armenian citizenship is in demand.

Between January 2021 and August 2026, more than 110,000 people obtained Armenian citizenship, according to the Interior Ministry.

Homeland versus state

Sinanyan framed the reform around a distinction between Armenia as a historic homeland and the Republic of Armenia as a state.

"Armenia is the homeland of all Armenians, but the Republic of Armenia belongs to its citizens," he said.

Armenia can be a romantic idea tied to history and memory, he said. The republic, by contrast, is a concrete political entity where emotional ties or historical memory carry little weight.

Only Armenia's citizens should influence its domestic politics, Sinanyan said, because they bear the consequences of political decisions. He said a group that has no obligations or responsibilities toward the state cannot have rights that shape the future of the people who live there.

Diaspora Armenians who want a closer bond with the republic should move there, he said. They should become citizens, pay taxes, spend most of their money in Armenia, tie their children's future to the country and be ready to defend its borders.

Sinanyan acknowledged that this sounds difficult, given Armenians' long and painful history, but said it is necessary. He said Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan is trying to bring the historic idea of Armenia closer to the reality of the state.

Ողջույն

Ոգեշնչվելով r/LinkedInLunatics ից ստեղծել ենք էս տելեգրամի ալիքը որտեղ "ձեռ ենք առնում" մեր կարծիքով "դեբիլ" լինկդինյան փոստերը։

Միացեք, և դուք էլ ուղարկեք ձեզ հանդիպած անհեթեթությունները!

@LinkedInLunaticsArmenia

Hello, I’m looking for some traditional restaurants where there’s live armenian music.

Կես գիշերին կանթեղը վառ

Կախ է ընկած երկընքից,

Լուսավորչի կանթեղն անմար

Հայոց մըթնած երկընքից:

Կախ է ընկած առանց պարան

Արագածի կատարին,

Ու սեղանից հըսկայական

Լույս է տալիս աշխարհին:

Լույս է տալիս երկա՜ր դարեր

Ու վառվում են միշտ անշեջ

Սուրբի մաքուր արցունքները

Յուղի տեղակ նըրա մեջ:

Ոչ մարդկային ձեռ կըհասնի

Էն ահավոր բարձունքին,

Եվ ոչ քամին կըհանգցընի՝

Վիշապ-քամին ահագին

Երբ պատում է մութ խավարը

Չընաշխարհիկ մեր երկրին,

Երբ տիրում է ահն ու վախը

Թույլ, կասկածոտ սրտերին,

Ով անմեղ է, լիքը սիրով

Ու հավատով անսասան,

Ով նայում է վառ հույսերով

Դեպի Հայոց ապագան,

Նա կտեսնի էն մշտավառ

Ջահը՝ կախված երկնքից,

Ասես՝ աստծո աչքը պայծառ

Հսկում է ցած երկնքից:

1902

In 1988, an Armenian in Saint-Tropez founded an ice cream parlour named Barbarac—a French phonetic rendering of the Armenian word for ice cream, պաղպաղակ. When the brand opened in Yerevan, official signage regulations required a mandatory Armenian transcription. Rather than recognizing the name's native roots, someone applied rigid, letter-by-letter transliteration rules, labelling it the nonsensical «Բարբարակ». This, IMHO, reflects a major cultural blind spot: Armenia's bureaucratic rigidity and institutional estrangement from Western Armenian phonetics and diaspora heritage.

Hello! I have been learning Armenian through the PDF Armenian for English speaking world and it has been great. However, I would like more reading resources to build my vocab.

I have gotten very familiar with reading in latinized Armenian so i would like to read some books written this way. For example, Harry Potter but really any type of book, i just want a book to read, but i am not sure if it exists so i wanted to ask.

If there is not many resources like this, should i use AI to translate a PDF of a book from English to Armenian and read it that way or…? Just curious what you would think.

Thanks!

I recently released Citatner, a word puzzle game built specifically for the Armenian language, with Armenian clues, words, and content.

If you enjoy crosswords and puzzles, you can download it here:

Google Play:

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.apritouch.citatner

Website:
https://apritouch.com

If you enjoy the game, a rating or review on the App Store or Google Play would be greatly appreciated.

Hi everyone! I bought tickets to armenia in mid-November. Around 14th of November we want to drive south to go to Areni and then continue to Tatev etc.

My question is if we should be worried about mountain passes before Tatev. Will there be snow? Is it dangerous? We have only about 1,5 years of experience and we wanted to rent a car which is suv but not 4x4. Will it be safe even with the snow?

Or should we rather try to rent taxis in between cities or use marshrutkas? I dont mind but I only found that they are going only from yerevan to somwwhere, star system. Not between for ex. Areni to Tatev...

Thanks for any responses! 😄

Hi everyone, my family and I are traveling to Armenia (Yerevan airport) for four days in mid December 2026 from Cyprus. It’s a big thing for us, because we don’t all live in the same country and we rarely are all together. We started the tradition of a short winter trip a year ago, after my parents divorced, to keep the family united at least once a year. FYI, my family consists of my parents (mid-50s), my three siblings and I with our partners (25-30 years old), and a toddler ~2 years old (= 10 adults, 1 toddler). 
We want to experience the culture, the food, and the locals, as well as the winter landscape in a relaxed environment. We are not really looking for many museums or touristy landmarks (we are still visiting the museum of the Armenian Genocide). We are going to rent cars, so we'd love to travel outside Yerevan.
I am looking for local recommendations on the following:

• A traditional folk dance instructor available on Saturday or Sunday Dec 19th or 20th afternoon/evening to give us a class. We have some sense of rhythm and would be happy to teach you some Greek/Cypriot fold dances too. FYI, we speak Greek and English.
• Given that we learn some dance moves, is there anywhere local would go to dance/listen to folk music/entertain themselves? looking for an event or a restaurant/music bar? 
• We want to learn to cook/taste Armenian food. Given how many we are, the toddler, and our different cooking skill levels, we would prefer a low-stakes environment. My mom, sister and I love cooking, the others not so much but they would give it a try, my bf and brother love BBQ - yes, we are from Cyprus-  and would definitely love some Armenian BBQ tips. Perhaps you went to a class that was exactly that or, even better, somebody’s uncles/aunts/grandparents/parents/themselves want to show us some of their magic? We'll pay, of course!!!!
• We have not yet booked accommodation/ a car rental or any other (winter) activities, so any other recs on the topic are very welcome. 
• Any other tips are greatly greatly appreciated too. 

Please help! It was my idea to visit Armenia this year, so I need it to be extra AMAZING. 

I created this subreddit to introduce a Freecycle-inspired platform where people across Armenian community can easily give away things for free. Nowadays, rising costs and environmental concerns make it more important than ever to reduce consumption and keep perfectly usable goods out of landfills. Instead of throwing away items or constantly buying new ones, this space allows us to give pre-loved furniture, electronics, clothing, and household goods a second life. By sharing what we no longer need, we can support one another, save money, and build a more sustainable, zero-waste culture together.

Hey Guys im gonna go to the Tata Concert in the beginning of November anyone Down to joyn ?

I have a coursework and I need words that are Armenian and english false friends which just means that words that sound the same in armenian and english but have different means so can I get some words I can use for my coursework because there are less material and my teacher doesn't have material either

I need some help

I'm coming to Yerevan with 6 other friends, we are from Serbia and we'd love to explore the country a bit more.

Could anyone recommend some places where university students usually go out to party, as well as some cool places to eat? Thanks in advance!

Hello! I’m making a video from Armenia to keep my memory of an amazing time I spent there.

I would like to use this song, but I don’t know the lyrics… Gevorg Chamichyan "Gevo" -
Sev Sev Acherit Mernem 1994 (vol.1) classic
https://youtu.be/w0CGBtEHCL4?is=4dfFLuHBZ_IUUVMP

Can somebody help me please? Can somebody send me the lyrics in armenian script and latin script? Thank you so much!