Albanian temple in Afandi village

Afandi (Afandikand) in Yeni Bayazid uezd of Iravan Governorate in the village (9 km southeast of the current Sevan district center, on the northeastern shore of Goycha Lake)

The district was Yelenovka in 1842, Sevan since 1935. Afandi village, since 04.01.1938 Norashen (Yenikand)

Architecture

The remains of the ancient Albanian-Turkish temple in the village of Afandi have been reconstructed in accordance with Armenian architecture, appropriated and presented as an "Armenian monument" today.

The Albanian temple in Afandi village was built in VI-VII centuries. In addition to cuneiform inscriptions, there were various objects of Albanian cultural heritage at the entrance and inside the temple. Armenians were moved to the village from Turkey and Iran. On the remains of the temple destroyed as a result of the wars in the area, Armenians carried out restoration works in accordance with Armenian architecture and tried to turn the temple into a "material value that proves the antiquity of Armenian history". During the reconstruction and restoration, the symbols of Turkish architecture were tried to be disappeared. Replacing the dome of the temple with a tower has the nature of destroying the origin and history of the building. There were 28 Azerbaijanis in the village in 1831, 224 people in 1873, 314 people in 1886, 422 people in 1897, 479 people in 1904, 654 people in 1914, 650 people in 1916 lived there.  In 1918, the population of Afandi village was 654 Azerbaijanis. Armenians were moved here from Turkey in 1918-1920, and in 1918 they committed genocide and terror against Azerbaijanis and expelled them from the area.  After the establishment of Soviet power in present-day Armenia, the surviving Azerbaijanis returned to their villages and were forced to live together with Armenians. Along with Armenians, 7 Azerbaijanis lived here in 1922, 5 in 1926, and 10 in 1931. In the 1940s, Azerbaijanis were completely deported.

The toponym Afandi originated from a person's name. It is an anthroponym. It is simple in structure.