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65-616: The Sumerian poems of his deeds say that Gilgamesh traveled east, presumably, to the Zagros Mountains of Iran (ancient Elam ) to the cedar forest, yet the later more extensive Babylonian examples place the cedar forests west in Lebanon. Tablet four tells the story of the journey to the Cedar Forest. On each day of the six-day journey, Gilgamesh prays to Shamash ; in response to these prayers, Shamash sends Gilgamesh oracular dreams during

130-508: A Lur tribe from Iran , primarily inhabiting the Central and South Zagros. Major cities inhabited by Bakhtiaris include Masjed Soleyman , Izeh and Shahr-e Kord . A significant number of Bakhtiari still practice nomadic pastoralism. Kurds are another Iranic group found in the northwestern and the eastern Zagros Taurus mountain ranges , which spans southeastern Turkey, northwestern Iran, northern Iraq, and northern Syria. The high altitude of

195-465: A central region to the history of Armenians , and one of the four geopolitical regions associated with Armenians , the other three being Armenia Minor , Sophene , and Commagene . The highlands are primarily defined by the geographical dispersal of its native inhabitants, the Armenians. Prior to the appearance of nominally Armenian people in historical records, historians have hypothesized that

260-613: A number of other caves and rock shelters. Signs of early agriculture date back as far as 9000 BC in the foothills of the mountains. Some settlements later grew into cities, eventually named Anshan and Susa ; Jarmo is one archaeological site in this area. Some of the earliest evidence of wine production has been discovered in the mountains; both the settlements of Hajji Firuz Tepe and Godin Tepe have given evidence of wine storage dating between 3500 and 5400 BC. A human metatarsal bone fragment from Wezmeh Cave has been analyzed and dated to

325-532: A total length of 1,600 km (990 miles). The Zagros range begins in northwestern Iran and roughly follows Iran's western border while covering much of southeastern Turkey and northeastern Iraq. From this border region, the range continues southeast to the waters of the Persian Gulf . It spans the southern parts of the Armenian highlands , and the whole length of the western and southwestern Iranian plateau , ending at

390-623: Is about 400,000 km . Historically, the Armenian highlands have been the scene of great volcanic activity. Geologically recent volcanism on the area has resulted in large volcanic formations and a series of massifs and tectonic movement has formed the three largest lakes in the Highlands: Lake Sevan , Lake Van , and Lake Urmia . The Armenian highlands are rich in water resources. The central, axial chain of Armenian highland ridges, running from west to east across Western Armenia ,

455-692: Is also home to populations of Assyrians , Turkic peoples and Farsi speaking Iranians . The mountains contain several ecosystems . Prominent among them are the forest and forest steppe areas with a semi-arid climate . As defined by the World Wildlife Fund and used in their Wildfinder, the particular terrestrial ecoregion of the mid to high mountain area is Zagros Mountains forest steppe (PA0446). The annual precipitation ranges from 400–800 mm (16–31 in) and falls mostly in winter and spring. Winters are severe, with low temperatures often below −25 °C (−13 °F). The region exemplifies

520-836: Is also much water-soluble gypsum in the region. The mountains are completely of sedimentary origin and are made primarily of limestone . In the Elevated Zagros or the Higher Zagros, the Paleozoic rocks can be found mainly in the upper and higher sections of the peaks of the Zagros Mountains, along the Zagros main fault. On both sides of this fault, there are Mesozoic rocks, a combination of Triassic (252–201 mya) and Jurassic (201–145 mya) rocks that are surrounded by Cretaceous rocks on both sides. The Folded Zagros (the mountains south of

585-678: Is also traditionally believed to be one of the possible locations of the Garden of Eden . The Armenian Plateau has been called the "epicenter of the Iron Age ", since it appears to be the location of the first appearance of Iron Age metallurgy in the late 2nd millennium BC . In the Early Iron Age , the Kingdom of Van controlled much of the region, until it was overthrown by the Medes and Orontid dynasty . In

650-716: Is called the Anti-Taurus . In the west, the Anti-Taurus departs to the north from the Central (Cilician) Taurus, and, passing right in the middle of the Armenian plateau, parallel to the Eastern (Armenian) Taurus , ends in the east at the Ararat peaks. To the west is the Anatolian plateau , which rises slowly from the lowland coast of the Aegean Sea and converges with the Armenian highlands to

715-575: Is in present-day eastern Anatolia , and also includes northwestern Iran, all of Armenia, southern Georgia , and western Azerbaijan. Its northeastern parts are also known as Lesser Caucasus , which is a center of Armenian culture . Regardless of its topography, the Armenian highlands are primarily defined by the geographical dispersal of its native inhabitants, the Armenians. From 4000 to 1000 BC, tools and trinkets of copper, bronze and iron were commonly produced in this region and traded in neighboring lands where those metals were less abundant. It

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780-467: Is missing, but Enkidu again tells Gilgamesh that the dream portends success in the upcoming battle. The fifth dream is also missing. At the entrance to the Cedar Forest, Gilgamesh begins to tremble with fear; he prays to Shamash, reminding him of his promise to Ninsun that he would be protected. Shamash responds from heaven, instructing him to proceed into the forest because Humbaba is not fully armored. Humbaba typically wears seven coats of armor, but now he

845-444: Is only wearing one, making him particularly vulnerable. Enkidu loses his nerve and retreats, prompting Gilgamesh to tackle him, resulting in a fierce struggle between them. The sound of their battle alerts Humbaba, who emerges from the Cedar Forest to confront the intruders. A significant portion of the tablet is missing at this point. On the remaining fragment of the tablet, Gilgamesh persuades Enkidu that they should stand united against

910-507: Is thinking this over, Enkidu intervenes, telling Gilgamesh to kill Humbaba before any of the gods arrive and stop him from doing so. Should he kill Humbaba, he will achieve widespread fame for all the times to come. Gilgamesh, with a great sweep of his sword, removes Humbaba's head. But before he dies, Humbaba screams out a curse on Enkidu: "Of you two, may Enkidu not live the longer, may Enkidu not find any peace in this world!" Soon later Enkidu becomes sick and dies. Gilgamesh and Enkidu cut down

975-566: The Epic of Gilgamesh , the land of Aratta is placed in a geographic space that could be describing the Armenian plateau. In Antiquity , the population living on the Highlands was ethnically diverse, but in the Achaemenid period (550–330 BC), Armenian-speakers came to prominence. Recent studies have shown that Armenians are indigenous to the Armenian highlands and form a distinct genetic isolate in

1040-645: The Ararat Valley where Mount Ararat is located. Western Armenia is nowadays referred to as eastern Anatolia , and Eastern Armenia as the Lesser Caucasus or Caucasus Minor, and historically as the Anti-Caucasus, meaning "opposite the Caucasus". During the Iron Age , the region was known by variations of the name Ararat ( Urartu , Uruatri , Urashtu ). Later, the Highlands were known as Armenia Major ,

1105-594: The Armenian upland , Armenian plateau , or Armenian tableland ) is the most central and the highest of the three plateaus that together form the northern sector of West Asia . Clockwise starting from the west, the Armenian highlands are bounded by the Anatolian plateau , the Caucasus , the Kura-Aras lowlands , the Iranian Plateau , and Mesopotamia . The highlands are divided into western and eastern regions, defined by

1170-456: The Caucasus and Eastern Armenia at the expense of its suzerain, Qajar Iran , after four major wars spanning more than two centuries. The Highlands saw a massive demographic shift after the Armenian genocide and fall of the Ottoman Empire, with Western Armenia being relabeled "Eastern Anatolia". Since the Armenian genocide and partitioning of the Ottoman Empire after World War I ,

1235-507: The Committee of Union and Progress as part of their Turkification policies. Today, the eastern half is mainly inhabited by Armenians , Azerbaijanis , and Georgians , while the western half is mainly inhabited by Armenians (included crypto-Armenians and Hemshins ), Kurds (including Yazidis and Zazas ), Turks, and Azerbaijanis . The region was administered for most of its known history by Armenian nobility and states , whether it

1300-870: The Lower Paleolithic Period. The earliest human fossils discovered in Zagros belongs to Neanderthals and come from Shanidar Cave , Bisitun Cave , and Wezmeh Cave. The remains of ten Neanderthals , dating from around 65,000–35,000 years ago, have been found in the Shanidar Cave. The cave also contains two later " proto-Neolithic " cemeteries, one of which dates back about 10,600 years and contains 35 individuals. Evidence from later Upper Paleolithic and Epipaleolithic occupations come from Yafteh Cave, Kaldar Cave near Khoramabad , and Warwasi , Malaverd near Kermanshah , Kenacheh Cave in Kurdistan, Boof Cave in Fars and

1365-553: The Neolithic period . The DNA from this bone fragment shows that it is from a distinct genetic group, which was not known to scientists before. He belongs to the Y-DNA haplogroup G2b, specifically its branch G-Y37100 , and mitochondrial haplogroup J1d6. He had brown eyes, relatively dark skin, and black hair, although Neolithic pre Indo-European Iranians carried reduced pigmentation-associated alleles in several genes and derived alleles at 7 of

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1430-617: The Paleozoic (541–242 mya) to the Cenozoic (66 mya – present) in the passive continental margin on the Arabian Plate. However, the obduction of Neotethys oceanic crust during the Cretaceous (145–66 mya), and the continental arc collision in the Eocene (56–34 mya) both had major effects on uplifts in the northeastern parts of the belt. The process of collision continues to the present, and as

1495-609: The Strait of Hormuz . The highest point is Mount Dena , at 4,409 metres (14,465 ft). The Zagros fold and thrust belt was mainly formed by the collision of two tectonic plates , the Eurasian Plate and the Arabian Plate . This collision mainly happened during the Miocene (about 25–5 mya or million years ago ) and folded the entirety of the rocks that had been deposited from

1560-619: The Sumerian , Akkadian and Assyrian cities of Mesopotamia . The mountains create a geographic barrier between the Mesopotamian Plain, which is in modern Iraq , and the Iranian plateau . A small archive of clay tablets detailing the complex interactions of these groups in the early second millennium BC has been found at Tell Shemshara along the Little Zab . Tell Bazmusian , near Shemshara,

1625-507: The Zagros Mountains mouse-like hamster ( Calomyscus bailwardi ), the Basra reed-warbler ( Acrocephalus griseldis ) and the striped hyena ( Hyena hyena ). The Persian fallow deer ( Dama dama mesopotamica ), an ancient domesticate once thought extinct, was rediscovered in the late 20th century in Khuzestan Province, in the southern Zagros. Also, wild goats can be found almost all over

1690-496: The pet trade and habitat destruction . Climate change is predicted to strongly impact this species. The entrance to the ancient Mesopotamian underworld was believed to be located in the Zagros Mountains in the far east. A staircase led down to the gates of the underworld. The underworld itself is usually located even deeper below ground than the Abzu , the body of freshwater which the ancient Mesopotamians believed lay deep beneath

1755-543: The 12 loci, showing the strongest signatures of selection in ancient Eurasians. He did not contribute to the genetic makeup of early European farmers or modern Europeans . Instead, he was the most genetically similar to modern Iranian Zoroastrians , followed by Fars , Balochi , Brahui , Kalash and Georgians . Gallego-Llorente et al. (2016) believes that the Zagros Mountain was a plausible source of Eurasian ancestry in Central and South Asia, along with Kotias , which

1820-516: The Arabian Plate is being pushed against the Eurasian Plate, the Zagros Mountains and the Iranian plateau are getting higher and higher. Recent GPS measurements in Iran have shown that this collision is still active and the resulting deformation is distributed non-uniformly in the country, mainly taken up in the major mountain belts like Alborz and Zagros. A relatively dense GPS network which covered

1885-690: The Elevated Zagros and almost parallel to the main Zagros fault) is formed mainly of Tertiary rocks, with the Paleogene (66–23 mya) rocks south of the Cretaceous rocks and then the Neogene (23–2.6 mya) rocks south of the Paleogene rocks. The mountains are divided into many parallel sub-ranges (up to 10 or 250 km (6.2 or 155.3 miles) wide), and orogenically have the same age as the Alps . Iran's main oilfields lie in

1950-616: The Highlands saw the migrations of the Karluk and Kharizmian peoples. The Mongols, who did not distinguish between Christianity and Islam , reached the Highlands in 1235. With their arrival, Armenia became part of "the East" in its entirety for the first time since the territory was partitioned during the Byzantine–Sasanian wars . Considered the successors of the Abbasids , Sassanids and Seljuks,

2015-492: The Iranian Zagros also proves a high rate of deformation within the Zagros. The GPS results show that the current rate of shortening in the southeast Zagros is ~10 mm/a (0.39 in/year), dropping to ~5 mm/a (0.20 in/year) in the northwest Zagros. The north–south Kazerun strike-slip fault divides the Zagros into two distinct zones of deformation. The GPS results also show different shortening directions along

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2080-641: The Last Glacial Period they had been glaciated to a depth in excess of 1,900 metres (1.2 miles), and during the Last Glacial Period to a depth in excess of 2,160 metres (7,090 feet). Evidence exists of a 20 km (12 miles) wide glacier fed along a 17 km (11 miles) long valley dropping approximately 1,600 m (5,200 ft) along its length on the north side of Kuh-i-Jupar with a thickness of 350–550 m (1,150–1,800 ft). Under conditions of precipitation comparable to current climatic record-keeping, this size of glacier could be expected to form where

2145-769: The Mongols eventually converted to Islam and established their dynasty in modern day Azerbaijan . In 1410 the area was ruled by the Kara Koyunlu , who ruled until 1468. The pastoral culture of the Kara Koyunlu Turks undermined agricultural practices in Armenia. In 1468, the Ak Koyunlu Turks assumed power; their reign lasted until 1502 when the Safavids brought Armenia under Iranian rule. The Ottoman Turks did not take control of

2210-536: The Zagros mountain range. In the late 19th century, the Asiatic lion ( Panthera leo persica ) inhabited the southwestern part of the mountains. It is now extinct in this region. The Luristan newt ( Neurergus kaiseri ) is a salamander endemic to a small section of the central Zagros Mountains in Iran. It lives in highland streams and is primarily aquatic. This newt is considered vulnerable to extinction due to poaching for

2275-522: The Zagros mountains produces a series of choke points and valleys perfect for agriculture and human development. It has also long defended the Kurds in times of war by acting as a natural barrier . Qashqai people are a tribal confederation in Iran mostly of Turkic origin. Significant populations can be found in Central and South Zagros, especially around the city of Shiraz in the Fars province . The Zagros

2340-454: The annual average temperature was between 10.5 and 11.2 °C (50.9 and 52.2 °F), but since conditions are expected to have been dryer during the period in which this glacier was formed, the temperature must have been lower. Although currently degraded through overgrazing and deforestation , the Zagros region is home to a rich and complex flora. Remnants of the originally widespread oak -dominated woodland can still be found, as can

2405-508: The belt, normal shortening in the southeast, and oblique shortening in the northwest Zagros. The Zagros mountains were created around the time of the second ice age, which caused the tectonic collision, leading to its uniqueness. The sedimentary cover in the SE Zagros is deforming above a layer of rock salt (acting as a ductile decollement with a low basal friction ), whereas in the NW Zagros

2470-512: The cedar forest and in particular the tallest of the cedar trees to make a great cedar gate for the city of Nippur . They build a raft out of the cedar and float down the Euphrates to their city. After these events, Gilgamesh, his fame widespread and his appearance resplendent in his wealthy clothes, attracts the sexual attention of the goddess Ishtar , who comes to Gilgamesh and offers to become his lover. Gilgamesh refuses with insults, listing all

2535-596: The continental variation of the Mediterranean climate pattern, with a snowy winter and mild, rainy spring, followed by a dry summer and autumn. The mountains of the East-Zagros, the Kuh-i-Jupar (4,135 m (13,566 ft)), Kuh-i-Lalezar (4,374 m (14,350 ft)) and Kuh-i-Hezar (4,469 m (14,662 ft)) do not currently have glaciers. Only at Zard Kuh and Dena some glaciers still survive. However, before

2600-432: The demon. Gilgamesh and Enkidu enter the gloriously beautiful Cedar Forest and begin to cut down the trees. Hearing the sound, Humbaba comes roaring up to them and warns them off. Enkidu shouts at Humbaba that the two of them are much stronger than the demon, but Humbaba, who knows Gilgamesh is a king, taunts the king for taking orders from a nobody like Enkidu. Turning his face into a hideous mask, Humbaba begins to threaten

2665-641: The early modern era and on, the region came directly under Safavid Iranian rule. Heavily contested for centuries between the Iranian Safavids and its archrival the Ottoman Empire , with numerous wars raging over the region, large parts of the Highlands comprising Western Armenia were finally conquered by the Ottomans in the first half of the 17th century following the Ottoman–Safavid War (1623–39) and

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2730-575: The early seventh-century C.E. document called the Ašxarhac‘oyc‘ ("Geography"). The earlier Arab geographers know Armenia (Arminīya) under this definition, but the Muslim geographers of the late Middle Ages know Armenia as a much more restricted area, effectively the regions of Lake Van, Erzurum , and the upper Aras in Azerbaijan ( Adhharbāyjān ). According to Britannica Online , most of the Armenian highlands

2795-526: The earth. The region was influenced by Mesopotamian and Hurrian religion in the Bronze and Iron Ages, and later by Zoroastrianism and Syriac Christianity . Today the vast majority of the population are Iranic and Turkic Muslims , with small numbers of Christians , mainly Assyrians and Armenians also extant. Armenian highlands The Armenian highlands ( Armenian : Հայկական լեռնաշխարհ , romanized :  Haykakan leṙnašxarh ; also known as

2860-477: The east of Cappadocia . The Caucasus extends to the northeast of the Armenian highlands, with the Kura river forming its eastern boundary in the Kura-Aras lowlands . To its southeast is the Iranian plateau , where the elevation drops rapidly by about 600 metres (2,000 ft) to 1,500 metres (5,000 ft) above sea level. To the southwest is Mesopotamia (or Fertile Crescent ). According to Thomas A. Sinclair in

2925-506: The foothills of the Zagros mountains, including Sulaymaniyah , Kermanshah , Khorramabad , and Shiraz . The Lurs are an Iranic tribe, primarily inhabiting the Central, Western, and Southern Zagros. Cities inhibited by Lurs include Khorramabad , Borujerd , Malayer , Izeh , Shahr-e Kord , Yasuj . Lurs speak Luri and span across many provinces in Iran including Lorestan , Khuzestan , Chaharmahal and Bakthiari , Ilam , Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad , and Hamedan . The Bakhtiaris are

2990-512: The highland region until 1514, several decades after Armenians in the Ottoman Empire were given millet status. The Highlands came under Ottoman control following the defeat of the Safavids at the Battle of Chalderon ; they appointed Kurdish tribesman to rule over the highlands' local administrative affairs. By 1516, the Ottoman Empire had invaded all of the Armenian lands, including Cilicia. From

3055-458: The linear ridges of the Zagros Mountains. The depositional environment and tectonic history of the rocks were conducive to the formation and trapping of petroleum, and the Zagros region is an important area for oil production. Salt domes and salt glaciers are a common feature of the Zagros Mountains. Salt domes are an important target for petroleum exploration , as the impermeable salt frequently traps petroleum beneath other rock layers. There

3120-426: The mortal lovers that Ishtar has had and recounting the dire fates they all met with at her hands. Deeply insulted, Ishtar returns to heaven and begs her father, the sky-god Anu , to let her have the Bull of Heaven to wreak vengeance on Gilgamesh and his city: Zagros Mountains The Zagros Mountains are a long mountain range in Iran , northern Iraq , and southeastern Turkey . The mountain range has

3185-448: The mountain range include: Allium iranicum , Astragalus crenophila , Bellevalia kurdistanica , Cousinia carduchorum , Cousinia odontolepis , Echinops rectangularis , Erysimum boissieri , Iris barnumiae , Ornithogalum iraqense , Scrophularia atroglandulosa , Scorzonera kurdistanica , Tragopogon rechingeri , and Tulipa kurdica . The Zagros are home to many threatened and endangered species, including

3250-436: The night. The first is not preserved. In the second, Gilgamesh dreams that he wrestles a great bull that splits the ground with his breath. Enkidu interprets the dream for Gilgamesh: the dream means that Shamash, the bull, will protect Gilgamesh. In the third, Gilgamesh dreams: Enkidu's interpretation is missing here, but as with the other dreams, it is assumed he puts a positive spin on the volcanic dream . The fourth dream

3315-424: The pair, and Gilgamesh runs and hides. Enkidu shouts at Gilgamesh, inspiring him with courage, and Gilgamesh appears from hiding and the two begin their epic battle with Humbaba. Shamash intrudes on the battle, helping the pair, and Humbaba is defeated. On his knees, with Gilgamesh's sword at his throat, Humbaba begs for his life and offers Gilgamesh all the trees in the forest and his eternal servitude. While Gilgamesh

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3380-416: The park-like pistachio / almond steppelands. The ancestors of many familiar foods, including wheat, barley , lentil , almond, walnut , pistachio, apricot , plum , pomegranate and grape can be found growing wild throughout the mountains. Quercus brantii (covering more than 50% of the Zagros forest area) is the most important tree species of the Zagros in Iran. Other floral endemics found within

3445-417: The peninsula until finally the Ottoman Empire was declared in 1299. The Seljuks' victory at the Battle of Manzikert made them dominant in the region. Ruben I, Prince of Armenia , led some Armenians out of the Highlands and escaped into the mountains of Cilicia , where they founded the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia . In the early 13th century, as various peoples fled from the advancing Mongol onslaught,

3510-423: The preexisting layered sedimentary rocks . Subsequent erosion removed softer rocks, such as mudstone (rock formed by consolidated mud) and siltstone (a slightly coarser-grained mudstone) while leaving harder rocks, such as limestone (calcium-rich rock consisting of the remains of marine organisms) and dolomite (rocks similar to limestone containing calcium and magnesium ). This differential erosion formed

3575-408: The region must have been home to various ethnic groups who became homogenous when the Armenian language came to prominence. The population of the Armenian highlands seem to have had a high level of regional genetic continuity for over 6,000 years. Recent studies have shown that the Armenian people descend from the indigenous people of the Armenian highlands and form a distinct genetic isolate in

3640-421: The region. The region was also inhabited during Antiquity by minorities such as Assyrians , Georgians , Greeks , Jews , and Iranians . During the Middle Ages , Arabs and particularly Turkmens and Kurds settled in large numbers in the Armenian highlands. The Christian population of the western half of the region was exterminated during the Armenian genocide (1915–1917), organized and perpetrated by

3705-418: The region. There are signs of considerable genetic admixture in Armenians between 3000 BC and 2000 BC , these mixture dates also coincide with the legendary establishment of Armenia in 2492 BCE, but they subside to insignificant levels since 1200 BC, remaining stable until today. Seljuk Turks first arrived in the Armenian highlands in the 1040s and expanded westward, conquering territories and populating

3770-436: The resulting Treaty of Zuhab . Eastern Armenia , the other major part of the Highlands, stayed in Iranian hands up to the 1828 Treaty of Turkmenchay , when it was ceded to Imperial Russia . During the first half of the 19th century, the Ottoman-held parts of the Armenian highlands comprising Western Armenia formed the boundary of the Ottoman and Russian spheres of influence, after the latter had completed its conquest of

3835-440: The salt layer is missing or is very thin. This different basal friction is partly responsible for the different topographies on either side of the Kazerun fault. Higher topography and narrower zone of deformation in the NW Zagros is observed whereas in the SE, deformation was spread more and a wider zone of deformation with lower topography was formed. Stresses induced in the Earth's crust by the collision caused extensive folding of

3900-430: The third edition of the Encyclopaedia of Islam : It occupied a large part of present-day Turkey, the whole of the territory of the present Republic of Armenia, further districts, now in the Republic of Azerbaijan , immediately adjacent to the east, and the northwest corner of modern Iran . The preceding is the definition of Armenia assumed in texts of the Classical and Late Classical periods and laid out explicitly in

3965-441: The western central foothills of the Zagros mountain range. The southern ranges of the Fars Province have somewhat lower summits, reaching 4,000 metres (13,000 feet). They contain some limestone rocks showing abundant marine fossils. The peaks that are at least 3800 meters high and have a topographic prominence of at least 300 meters: The Zagros Mountains have significant ancient history. They were occupied by early humans since

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4030-403: Was as part of a fully independent Armenian state, as vassals, or as part of a foreign state. Since the 1040s, the highlands have been under the rule of various Turkic peoples and the Safavid dynasty , with pockets of Armenian autonomy in places such as Artsakh . Much of Eastern Armenia , which had been ruled by the Safavids from the 16th century, became part of the Russian Empire in 1828 and

4095-418: Was inhabited by Caucasus Hunter-Gatherers. He cites archaeological evidence of eastward Neolithic expansions from the Near East. During early ancient times, the Zagros was the home of various Pre Indo-European peoples such as the Hurrians , Guti , Kassites , Elamites , Turukku and Lullubi , (together with Semitic peoples such as Assyrians and Amorites on the western side) who periodically invaded

4160-426: Was later incorporated into the Soviet Union , while much of Western Armenia was under the rule of the Ottoman Empire and later incorporated into modern Turkey . Today, the region is divided between Armenia , Azerbaijan , Iran , and Turkey. The Armenian highlands is part of the Alpide belt , forming part of the Eurasian range that stretches from the Pontic Mountains to the Malay Peninsula . Its total area

4225-410: Was occupied between 5000 BCE and 800 CE, although not continuously. The Zagros mountains have been inhabited by different groups of pastoralists and farmers for thousands of years. Current Pastoralist groups such as Lurs , Bakhtiari Lurs , Kurds or Qashqais move from their herds from the east slopes in summer ( Yeylāgh ) to the west slopes in winter ( Gheshlāgh ). Some major cities are located on

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