Armenian Earthquake Memorial Day is a day of remembrance in Armenia for the earthquake of magnitude 6.9 on the Richter scale [1] that struck in northwest Armenia (then part of the Soviet Union) on 7 December 1988. The earthquake damaged much of the country's infrastructure, especially in the cities of Spitak, Leninakan (now Gyumri), Kirovakan (now Vanadzor), and Stepanavan, [2] along with other small towns and villages near the epicenter.
Each year, 7 December is recognized by the government of Armenia (and the de facto government of Nagorno-Karabakh) as a day of remembrance of the tragedies that stemmed from the earthquake in 1988.
Anzac Day is a national day of remembrance in Australia and New Zealand that broadly commemorates all Australians and New Zealanders "who served and died in all wars, conflicts, and peacekeeping operations" and "the contribution and suffering of all those who have served". Observed on 25 April each year, Anzac Day was originally devised to honour the members of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) who served in the Gallipoli campaign, their first engagement in the First World War (1914–1918).
Remembrance Day is a memorial day observed in Commonwealth member states since the end of the First World War in 1919 to honour armed forces members who have died in the line of duty. The day is also marked by war remembrances in several other non-Commonwealth countries. In most countries, Remembrance Day is observed on 11 November to recall the end of First World War hostilities. Hostilities formally ended "at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month" of 1918, in accordance with the armistice signed by representatives of Germany and the Entente between 5:12 and 5:20 that morning. The First World War officially ended with the signing of the Treaty of Versailles on 28 June 1919.
Public holidays in Canada, known as statutory holidays, stat holidays, or simply stats, consist of a variety of cultural, nationalistic, and religious holidays that are legislated in Canada at the federal or provincial and territorial levels. While many of these holidays are honoured and acknowledged nationwide, provincial and territorial legislation varies in regard to which are officially recognized.
A khachkar or Armenian cross-stone is a carved, memorial stele bearing a cross, and often with additional motifs such as rosettes, interlaces, and botanical motifs. Khachkars are characteristic of medieval Christian Armenian art.
Holocaust Memorial Day is a national commemoration day in the United Kingdom dedicated to the remembrance of the Jews and others who suffered in the Holocaust, under Nazi persecution. It was first held in January 2001 and has been on the same date every year since. The chosen date is the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz concentration camp by the Soviet Union in 1945, the date also chosen for the International Holocaust Remembrance Day and some other national Holocaust Memorial Days.
The 1988 Armenian earthquake, also known as the Spitak earthquake, occurred on December 7 at 11:41 local time with a surface wave magnitude of 6.8 and a maximum MSK intensity of X (Devastating). The shock occurred in the northern region of Armenia which is vulnerable to large and destructive earthquakes and is part of a larger active seismic belt that stretches from the Alps to the Himalayas. Activity in the area is associated with tectonic plate boundary interaction and the source of the event was slip on a thrust fault just to the north of Spitak. The complex incident ruptured multiple faults, with a strike-slip event occurring shortly after the initiation of the mainshock. Between 25,000 and 50,000 were killed and up to 130,000 were injured.
Gyumri is an urban municipal community and the second-largest city in Armenia, serving as the administrative center of Shirak Province in the northwestern part of the country. By the end of the 19th century, when the city was known as Alexandropol, it became the largest city of Russian-ruled Eastern Armenia with a population above that of Yerevan. The city became renowned as a cultural hub, while also carrying significance as a major center of Russian troops during Russo-Turkish wars of the 19th century.
Half-mast or half-staff refers to a flag flying below the summit of a ship mast, a pole on land, or a pole on a building. In many countries this is seen as a symbol of respect, mourning, distress, or, in some cases, a salute.
Robert Emmiyan is a retired long jumper who represented the USSR and Armenia. He is the fourth best long jumper in history and the best long jumper not of African descent. His personal best jump of 8.86 metres, which he achieved in Tsaghkadzor in May 1987, is the current European record.
Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day or Armenian Genocide Memorial Day is a public holiday in Armenia and the Republic of Artsakh and is observed by the Armenian diaspora on 24 April. It is held annually to commemorate the victims of the Armenian genocide of 1915. It was a series of massacres and starvation of 1.5 million Armenians by the Ottomans. In Yerevan, the capital of Armenia, hundreds of thousands of people walk to the Tsitsernakaberd Genocide Memorial to lay flowers at the eternal flame.
The National War Memorial of New Zealand is located next to the Dominion Museum building on Buckle Street, in Wellington, the nation's capital. The war memorial was dedicated in 1932 on Anzac Day in commemoration of the First World War. It also officially remembers the New Zealanders who gave their lives in the South African War, World War II and the wars in Korea, Malaysia and Vietnam.
Martyrs' Day are days observed in or by some countries, incl. the United States, Japan, India, Brazil, Canada and Australia, to recognise martyrs such as soldiers, revolutionaries or victims of genocide. Below is a list of various Martyrs' Days for different countries of the World.
Armenian genocide recognition is the formal acceptance that the systematic massacres and forced deportation of Armenians committed by the Ottoman Empire from 1915 to 1923, during and after the First World War, constituted genocide.
The dissolution of the Soviet Union in December 1991 brought an end to the Cold War and created an opportunity for establishing bilateral relations between the United States with Armenia and other post-Soviet states as they began a political and economic transformation. The United States recognized the independence of Armenia on 25 December 1991, and opened an embassy in Armenia's capital Yerevan in February 1992.
Armenian Earthquake is a bronze sculpture by Frederic Sogoyan. It expresses the gratitude at the aid provided following the 1988 Spitak earthquake.
The Bridge of Remembrance is one of two main war memorials in Christchurch, New Zealand. It is dedicated to those who died in World War I, and serves as a memorial for those who participated in two World Wars as well as subsequent conflicts in Borneo, Korea, Malaya, and Vietnam. Owned by Christchurch City Council, it is located on the Cashel Street Bridge at the head of City Mall. The Bridge of Remembrance was repaired and strengthened following the 2011 Christchurch earthquake and was reopened with a rededication ceremony held on Anzac Day in 2016.
The Karabakh movement was a national mass movement in Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh from 1988 to 1991 that advocated for the transfer of the mainly Armenian-populated Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast of neighboring Azerbaijan to the jurisdiction of Armenia.
The Istanbul Armenian Genocide memorial, also known as Huşartsan, was a marble monument that became the first memorial dedicated to the victims of the Armenian genocide. It was erected in 1919 at a site now partly located within today's Gezi Park, near Taksim Square in Istanbul, Ottoman Empire. The monument was located on the premises of the former Pangaltı Armenian Cemetery. In 1922, during the Turkish National Movement, the monument was dismantled and subsequently lost under unknown circumstances.
Genocide Remembrance Day is a national day of remembrance in Bangladesh observed on 25 March in commemoration of the victims of the Bangladesh genocide during the Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971.
On 11 December 1988, an Ilyushin Il-76M aircraft crashed. Operated by the Soviet Air Force, the flight participated in relief efforts after an earthquake struck Armenia on 7 December. The aircraft crashed into a mountainside during an attempt to land at Leninakan, Armenia, killing 77 of the 78 occupants on board.