The late fifth-century anonymous Epic Histories, formerly known as the History of Armenia attributed to another unknown P‘awstos (Faustos) Buzand, form the earliest historical work written in Armenian. They are the main source for our knowledge of social structure, beliefs and customs of early Christian Armenia, and especially of the profound and lasting influence of Zoroastrian Persia on the recently converted country. This influence is evident in the very composition of the work, which owes as much to the lost oral tradition of the Iranian epic as to more familiar Classical and early Christian models.

Hence, it is unmatched for the reconstruction of the ambivalent world of the Near East in Late Antiquity at the cross roads between Classical and Iranian civilizations. Since no scholarly translation of this work into any Western language has been attempted for more than a century, much of its contribution has remained beyond the reach of most scholars. The aim of the present publication is to fill this lacuna by complementing the translation of the original Armenian text with a Commentary and Appendices that are intended to serve not only Armenian scholars but Classicists and Iranians alike.

Moses Khorenats'i's History of the Armenians is the classic account of the origins and early history of the Armenian people. No work has been more influential in shaping the Armenians' view of their national past. Writing long after the events he describes, Moses recorded the legends and traditions of Armenia's heroes; putting them into a coherent order, he then integrated the history of Armenia into world history as known from Greek sources. Robert Thomson now translates the History into English for the first time and provides information the reader needs to interpret Moses' account.

This unique English text is translated from the nearly unobtainable critical edition published in Tiflis in 1913. Mr. Thomson's commentary establishes Moses' Greek, Armenian, and Syriac sources, showing how he used them, and points to bias and uncorroborated statements. His notes identify people and places, explain allusions, and give references to published scholarship on specific questions. In the introduction he discusses Moses' methods and purposes, and establishes the date of composition—a matter that has been hotly debated.

This volume will be welcome by everyone interested in Armenian literature, history, and traditions as well as by students of Near Eastern history and Christian literature.

Here is a fully annotated translation of an Armenian literary classic, the first made from the critical Armenian text.

The sixth-century History of Vardan and the Armenian War describes a revolt of Armenians against the shah of Sasanian Iran in 450-451 in protest against the persecution of Christianity. Elishē uses this occasion to express in more general terms his attitude as a Christian Armenian to the problems of cultural survival and patriotism in a hostile environment. His history profoundly influenced Armenian writers from classical times to the present; its hero, Vardan, remains the ideal figure of a patriot even in Soviet Armenia. Mr. Thomson's introduction places the work in its historical context, while extensive notes identify people and places, explain allusions, and clarify details of the account.