Kurdshop_ Van, a city in the North part of Kurdistan, is an amazing city for its historical monuments and spectacular nature. This city has a rich history of 15 thousand years. Several civilizations had been established here in this city. Kurds, Armenians, and Romanians have had pioneered their distinct civilizations in this region historically. Van is the land of Kurds. Around this city, the Hurrian, Urartu, and Medes empires, which were Kurds’ ancestors, had existed. Alongside Kurds, Armenians have also been living here in this region. Armenians have built several monuments during the history in this area.
One of these historical monuments is Akhtamar Cathedral on Akhtamar Island in Van. Akhtamar is one of the largest islands in Van Lake. Akhtamar cathedral was built by Manuel who was an architect and a priest in 921_ 925 A.D. There is a dome in the middle of the cathedral upon which there is a cross and it is made of a square-like red stone. On the stones that surround the cathedral, the carvings indicate some stories from Bible and Torah as well as the way people lived in the castle and how did they hunt and preserved their farms.
From 908 to 1021 A.D. the island was under the rule of the Armenian Caesar of Vaspurakan from the Artsruni dynasty. Devine Catholics lived in Akhtamar from 920/931 to 992/950 A.D and the Armenian Catholics stayed there from 1116 to 1895 A.D. Akhtamar itself was the Cultural Center of the Anadolu Armenians. The word Akhtamar is banned by the Turkey government and the name Aghtmar is used instead. This name was the name of an Armenian princess.
There is a historical cathedral on Akhtamar Island 45 kilometers northwest of Van that is an important touristic spot. Those tourists who would like to visit this area can use boats. People can reach Akhtamar island which is one of the touristic places in Van on a cruise.
The story of the name Akhtamar
It is believed that the name Akhtamar comes from a legendary story that goes like this:
The name Akhtamar comes from an Armenian legend. A young girl named Tamara was a nun. A young man fell in love with this girl but her cruel father did not let them have a relationship with one another. Every evening the boy swam to the island to see her and Tamara waiting for her lover at the shores with a lantern. Her father found out about this and set a trap for him. On a windy night, the boy came to see Tamara and he waited to see the light but he did not know that Tamara’s father was holding the lantern and it was he who walked around the shores. Every time the light moved on a way, the boy moved his way to reach it. This continued until the boy drowned. The last words of the boy were Akh Tamara (Oh Tamara). After this Tamara took some poison and she died, too. Her father regretted what he did but it was too late. The island’s name became Akhtamara forever and later it changed into Akhtamar.
“Akhtamar” is also a Kurdish word. It means a ground on which there are striped patterns naturally. The origins of the name Akhtamar are important because of the historical monuments of this island. Unfortunately, the Turkey government does not act responsibly on this island. Soldiers have shot Akhtamar historical Cathedral hundreds of times just because it belongs to Armenians. There are some other people living on this island who might be damaging the Cathedral as well.
