page_title: Vayots Dzor Province
section_title: Ethnic groups and religion
hierarchical_section_title: Vayots Dzor Province / Demographics / Ethnic groups and religion
caption_attribution_description: Հայերեն: Սուրբ Սարգիս, Եղեգնաձոր This is a photo of a monument in Armenia identified by the ID 11.1/2.1
context_page_description: Vayots Dzor, is a province of Armenia. It lies at the southeastern end of the country, bordering the Nakhichevan exclave of Azerbaijan to the west and the Shahumyan Province of the Artsakh Republic to the east. It covers an area of 2,308 km². With a population of only 53,230, it is the most sparsely populated province in the country. The capital and largest city of the province is the town of Yeghegnadzor.
  The province is home to many ancient landmarks and tourist attractions in Armenia including the Areni-1 cave complex and Areni-1 winery of the Chalcolithic period, the 8th-century Tanahat Monastery, the 10th-century Smbataberd fortress, and the 13th-century Noravank monastery. Vayots Dzor is also home to the spa-town of Jermuk.
  The village of Gladzor in Vayots Dzor was home to the 13th and 14th-century University of Gladzor.
context_section_description: The majority of the Vayots Dzor Province population are ethnic Armenians who belong to the Armenian Apostolic Church. The regulating body of the church is the Diocese of Vayots Dzor, headed by Archbishop Abraham Mkrtchyan. The Holy Mother of God Cathedral (known also as Surp Sarkis) in Yeghegnadzor is the seat of the diocese.
  A percentage of the population in Vayots Dzor have their ancestors migrated from the Iranian towns of Salmas and Khoy in 1829 and 1830.
caption: Cathedral of the Holy Mother of God in Yeghegnadzor, 12th century
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