I. The Life of Mashtoc'
The Life of Mashtoc'
is a biography of Mesrop Mashtoc', creator of the Armenian
alphabet, written by Mashtoc"s youngest pupil, Koriwn (19).
The author implies that he wrote his work several years after
the death of Mesrop at the request of the then acting Catholicos
Yovsep'. However, according to Ghazar P'arpec'i, Koriwn's superior,
Catholicos Yovsep' was taken prisoner and martyred by the Iranians
shortly after the battle of Awarayr (45O-451) (20). It is
difficult to see how Koriwn could have received his directive
from Yovsep' to write concerning Mashtoc' after Yovsep"s
arrest in 450-451. Furthermore, prince Vasak Siwnik', who
defected to the Iranians during the battle and subsequently was
transformed into the traitor par excellence in
Armenian literature, is praised by Koriwn as a brave and wise
man (21). It appears, therefore, that this work was written before
the Armenian rebellion.
Koriwn notes that his teacher passed
away in the first year of the Iraniam king Yazdgard II, son of
Vahram, i.e., in 44O, (22) and that Mesrop's colleague
Sahak died in 439 (23). He states elsewhere that the students
of Sahak assembled "year after year" to honor their
teacher's memory (24). Thus Manuk Abeghyan calculated that Koriwn
wrote his biography not immediately after Mashtoc's death, but
around 443. This is supported by another of Koriwn's remarks,
namely that three years after Mashtoc's death (25) Vahan Amatuni
constructed a church over his grave (26). Abeghyan suggested
that the Life of Mashtoc' was written during the period
443-51 (27). There seems to be no grounds for challenging this
proposal .
The little that is known about the author
is gleaned from two statements he makes about himself in Mesrop's
biography. In chapter 12, Koriwn mentions that after receiving
his education, he was sent with other students to various unspecified
districts of Armenia to teach the new alphabet (28). In chapter
19 he says that he studied in Constantinople and then returned
to Armenia bringing, along with other manuscripts, the canons
of the Council of Ephesus (29). Thus Koriwn's homecoming took
place after 431, the year of the Council.
Because Koriwn's work is a biography
of a cultural figure and not a political or military history of
Armenia, the Life contains little detailed information
about the Mamikoneans or the sparapetut'iwn. From chapter
12, one learns that Catholicos Sahak personally taught the alphabet
to the Mamikonean folk (orear) --"foremost among whom
was Vardan, also called Vardkan". (30). Sahak's special
ministrations are perfectly understandable, since Vardan was Sahak's
own grandson. In chapter 26 Koriwn presents a partial list of
dignitaries attending the burial of Mashtoc'. The relevant portion
translates: "[Present] from the military, the first [or foremost,
arajnumn] was named Vahan of the Amatuni family [azg]
who was the hazarapet of Greater Armenia, and the
second was Hmayeak of the Mamikonean clan [tohm]..."
(31). In scholarly literature the hazarapet usually
is associated with civil rather than military matters (32). According
to Koriwn's list, however, the phrase "from the military
[i zinuorakan koghmanen]" suggests that in the period
following the abolition of the Armenian Arsacids (428), the hazarapet's
function may have been altered to include military duties.
The only sparapet mentioned
by name in the Life is Anatolis, commander-in-chief
of Byzantine Armenia. In chapter 16, Mashtoc' was received warmly
by Anatolis (called spayapet) who wrote to emperor Theodosius
informing him of Mastoc's plans to teach the alphabet in
Western Armenia (33). When Mashtoc'
returned from Constantinople, he presented the emperor's rescripta
to Anatolis, now called the sparapet of Armenia
[sparapetn Hayoc'] (34).
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