Garegin Srvandztiants

Garegin or Karekin Srvandztiants (; November 17, 1840 – November 17, 1892) was an Armenian philologist, folklorist, ethnographer, and ecclesiastic.

Life Karekin Srvandztiants was born in Van in the Ottoman Empire in 1840. He was the uncle of military commander Hamazasp Srvandztyan. Srvandztiants was educated at the seminary of Varagavank monastery under the mentorship of Mkrtich Khrimian, well-known Armenian religious figure. Under his tutelage, Srvandztiants toured Eastern Armenia (also known as Russian Armenia) where he surveyed the living condition and cultural characteristics of the local population. In 1866, two years after being ordained, Srvandztiants moved to Constantinople where he continued to be a priest and a community figure. The epic was told by a villager from Mush who recounted the story in three days.

Srvandztiants believed that Armenians can only overcome the difficulties of life through unity. This was exemplified when he wrote in 1869: "If the Armenians of Mush were true Armenians and true human beings, why would they let the Kurd loot their houses and belongings, snatch their earnings, and defile their honor? They are slaughtered constantly. They are dying. Let them at least do something and give meaning to their life and death."