The Turco-Mongol Invasions and the Lords of Armenia in the 13 ...

1,000 Tillages, while at the end of the 13th century,
the figure had declined by 331 to 677 Tillages. According
to Samuel of Anl and Matthew of Edeaaa, the former
Arcrunid kingdom in Taspurakan had over 4,000 Tillages,
but 13th and 14th century authors speak of that area
with distress, as if describing a desert . Furthermore,
in the 1550 's the trade routes shifted away from the
northern cities of Anl and Sara, to southern cities of
Xlat', MayyafariklnAP 'rkert, and ArSei, helping to
2
impoverish northeastern Armenia . Not surprisingly, it
is precisely from the mid-l4th century that the great
naxarar families of northeastern Armenia quickly fade
from the sources, literary and inscriptional. Influential
Zak'arids, 7a(uteans and ProScans (known as such, and
not by a different surname) are unknown after 1360, and
noteworthy Orbeleans and Dop'eans are mentioned last
at the end of the 14th century .
An important aspect of the Turkmens1 triumph concerns
the settlement of Turco-Mongol populations across the
Armenian highlands. Regrettably, the sources do not
contain much information on this question. The sources
mention Mongols established in the area between
HAP p. 661.
Manandyan, Trade, pp. 197-200.
HAP pp. 642-44. R. Hewsen's articles("The Meliks" in
BjJAJhave demonstrated the probable survival of "noble"
statue within melik families descended from the naxarara
218