BEGIN:VCALENDAR
METHOD:PUBLISH
VERSION:2.0
X-WR-CALNAME:Armenian Holidays
PRODID:-//Apple Inc.//iCal 4.0.3//EN
X-WR-RELCALID:C3469E0D-D164-4CEE-87D9-D5E2C73C08AE
X-WR-TIMEZONE:America/Los_Angeles
CALSCALE:GREGORIAN
BEGIN:VEVENT
CREATED:20090825T175129Z
UID:36A6FAF9-72B6-4007-A2EC-52A91F42E155
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20090215
RRULE:FREQ=YEARLY;INTERVAL=1
TRANSP:TRANSPARENT
SUMMARY:Տռնդեզ (Տեառնընդառաչ) / Trndez (Purification)
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20090214
DTSTAMP:20090825T182626Z
SEQUENCE:12
DESCRIPTION:According to religious custom this holiday is connected with
  the idea of coming forward to the Lord with fire\, after 40 days of his
  birth. The Armenian Church celebrates it on February 14th - 40 days aft
 er January 6th\, from which it derives the religious name: coming forwar
 d to the Lord. The main ceremony of it is a bonfire\, symbolizing the co
 ming of spring.\n\nThe celebration of the Trndez is pagan in origin and 
 is originally connected with sun/fire worship in ancient pre-Christian A
 rmenia\, symbolizing the coming of spring and fertility.
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
CREATED:20090825T175540Z
UID:0A041A2A-4BBA-4727-B132-006F4582B5A0
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20090406
TRANSP:TRANSPARENT
SUMMARY:Ծաղկազարդ / Palm Sunday (Tsakhkazard)
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20090405
DTSTAMP:20090825T183004Z
SEQUENCE:9
DESCRIPTION:Palm Sunday (Tsaghkazard) is celebrated one week before East
 er and marks Christ’s triumphant entry into Jerusalem as the messiah. Th
 e customs observed on this holiday begin with boys and girls dressed in 
 their best clothes. The engaged men of each village uproot a young willo
 w tree and decorate the branches with colored pieces of cloth\, fruit an
 d candles.
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
CREATED:20090825T030615Z
UID:134368C6-33BB-4434-AF4C-05B4DC0BFA32
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20090107
RRULE:FREQ=YEARLY;INTERVAL=1
TRANSP:TRANSPARENT
SUMMARY:Սուրբ Ծնունդ / Christmas
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20090106
DTSTAMP:20090825T182539Z
SEQUENCE:5
DESCRIPTION:Christmas – the Birthday of Christ is celebrated by people a
 ll over the world. The Armenians celebrate this day as a major Christian
  religious holiday\, together with the Epiphany (baptism) and attend chu
 rch services in their neighborhoods. Part of the ritual is the “Blessing
  of Water\, when water is blessed with the holy chrism symbolic of Chris
 t’s baptism.\n\nThe most beautiful and meaningful parts of the holiday o
 ccur at home and in church. Many families go to church on Christmas Eve 
 and Christmas morning. Then they sit down to enjoy a traditional Christm
 as dinner. According to tradition\, the main dish is fish and rice prepa
 red with butter. Wine is served with dinner.
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
CREATED:20090825T031300Z
UID:B0ADBAED-67D9-48E6-8DC1-C8F5B87B5292
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20090529
RRULE:FREQ=YEARLY;INTERVAL=1
TRANSP:TRANSPARENT
SUMMARY:Հանրապետութայան օր / Republic Day
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20090528
DTSTAMP:20090825T182356Z
SEQUENCE:7
DESCRIPTION:On this day in 1918\, the Armenian people restored what was 
 left of historic Armenia to statehood after half a millennium of lost so
 vereignty. The celebration of this day marks the beginning of the modern
  Armenian quest for independence. Short lived\, the 1918 Republic was sw
 allowed by the USSR for seventy more years\, but inspired a spirit of ho
 pe and self determination for future generations. This is an official na
 tional holiday.
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
CREATED:20090825T032012Z
UID:0E98203F-A175-471D-BB81-7303D3A677F6
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20091208
RRULE:FREQ=YEARLY;INTERVAL=1
TRANSP:TRANSPARENT
SUMMARY:Երկրաշարժի զոհերի հիշատակի օր / Spitak Earthquake Remembrance Da
 y
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20091207
DTSTAMP:20090825T183312Z
SEQUENCE:6
DESCRIPTION:A devastating earthquake in 1988 killed thousands of people 
 and destroyed most of the Republic’s infrastructure. The earthquake was 
 felt as far away as the Armenian capital\, but it was the second and thi
 rd most populous cities of Leninakan (now Gyumri) and Kirovakan (now Van
 adzor) that were among the most devastated.
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
CREATED:20090825T032434Z
UID:2A39809F-7EBD-4464-8DBB-03752BFBD997
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20090914
TRANSP:TRANSPARENT
SUMMARY:Խաչվերած / Khachverats
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20090913
DTSTAMP:20090825T183137Z
SEQUENCE:4
DESCRIPTION:The Armenian Church celebrates this holiday on the Sunday ne
 arest September 14\, which is devoted to the Holy Cross (Surb Khach). Th
 is holiday also serves as a memorial to those who have passed away.
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
CREATED:20090825T031003Z
UID:60673D55-B887-428C-9593-AAF1B8732FDE
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20090425
RRULE:FREQ=YEARLY;INTERVAL=1
TRANSP:TRANSPARENT
SUMMARY:Եղեռնի զոհերի հիշատակի օր / Genocide Remembrance Day
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20090424
DTSTAMP:20090825T183025Z
SEQUENCE:6
DESCRIPTION:Every year on April 24\, Armenians all over the world solemn
 ly honor the memory of over a million victims of the 1915 genocide. In A
 rmenia thousands of people join the annual procession on foot to Tsitser
 nakaberd to pay their respect to those who perished in this massive atte
 mpt to exterminate the Armenian people and forcibly remove them from the
 ir ancestral lands. This is an official national holiday.
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
CREATED:20090825T030307Z
UID:83F39CAA-8F1B-4471-B1FC-27FC3EFD22A5
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20090102
RRULE:FREQ=YEARLY;INTERVAL=1
TRANSP:TRANSPARENT
SUMMARY:Ամանոր / New Year Day
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20090101
DTSTAMP:20090825T182439Z
SEQUENCE:7
DESCRIPTION:New Year is celebrated a whole week starting with December 3
 1\, by baking New Year cookies and tables laden with food and different 
 kinds of sweets. During this week\, people exchange gifts and congratula
 tory wishes\, and their homes are open to welcome everyone. Visiting beg
 ins on January 1 and lasts through Christmas-January 6.\n\nArmenian chil
 dren believe that Dzmer Papik (Santa Claus) brings gifts on New Year’s E
 ve. Several days or weeks before the holiday\, children write letters to
  Dzmer Papik telling him what toys they wish.
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
CREATED:20090825T031722Z
UID:5C109A9D-A631-4FF5-872D-810938D31E6F
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20090522
TRANSP:TRANSPARENT
SUMMARY:Համբարցում / Hambartsum
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20090521
DTSTAMP:20090825T182313Z
SEQUENCE:5
DESCRIPTION:Ascension Day is the holiday of love and enjoyment\, which i
 s celebrated outdoors in the blossom of May\, 40 days after Easter. In a
 ncient times on this day the young ladies were allowed to walk freely in
  the fields\, sing songs\, and make acquaintances\, which often became c
 rucial in their lives. According to people’s imagination this is the nig
 ht of miracle. At midnight exactly nature finds the gift of speech\, the
  water is still for a second\; the sky and the earth embrace\; the stars
  kiss one another. Space stops its wheel and the one who witnesses these
  magic moments will have his or her dreams fulfilled.
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
CREATED:20090825T180628Z
UID:9FBE1602-F805-4CE6-BDFF-072D1265F370
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20091014
RRULE:FREQ=YEARLY;INTERVAL=1
TRANSP:TRANSPARENT
SUMMARY:Սուրբ Թարգմամչոց / Holy Translators Day
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20091013
DTSTAMP:20090825T183215Z
SEQUENCE:5
DESCRIPTION:This holiday is dedicated to the creators of Armenian alphab
 et Mesrop Mashtots and Sahak Partev\, Translators and Interpreters of th
 e Bible.\nThe Armenian alphabet was invented in order to translate the B
 ible into Armenian and paved the way for the first Golden Age of Armenia
 . Over the centuries\, Armenian writers\, philosophers\, mathematicians\
 , and scientists\, have taken inspiration from the Holy Translators’ leg
 acy to achieve excellence in scholarship\, creativity\, and world acclai
 m in spite of long periods of devastation\, attack\, conquest and subjug
 ation. 
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
CREATED:20090825T180738Z
UID:27847083-BF75-49BF-9868-413F77985E48
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20090319
TRANSP:TRANSPARENT
SUMMARY:Միջինք / Mijink
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20090318
DTSTAMP:20090825T181540Z
SEQUENCE:4
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
CREATED:20090825T180414Z
UID:B31CF6F9-FE40-4D29-93A4-44FC9FD4E554
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20090220
RRULE:FREQ=YEARLY;INTERVAL=1
TRANSP:TRANSPARENT
SUMMARY:Վարդանանք / Vartanank
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20090219
DTSTAMP:20090825T180449Z
SEQUENCE:3
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
CREATED:20090825T031830Z
UID:6A0894E4-DC1E-42E1-923A-D1C90AC210A3
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20090706
RRULE:FREQ=YEARLY;INTERVAL=1
TRANSP:TRANSPARENT
SUMMARY:Սահմանադրության օր / Constitution Day
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20090705
DTSTAMP:20090825T183104Z
SEQUENCE:5
DESCRIPTION:The Constitution of the Republic of Armenia was adopted thro
 ugh a national referendum on July 5\, 1995. Constitution Day is an offic
 ial holiday in Armenia.
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
CREATED:20090825T180535Z
UID:04363617-1022-4910-901B-5B3E083EC68E
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20090922
RRULE:FREQ=YEARLY;INTERVAL=1
TRANSP:TRANSPARENT
SUMMARY:Անկախության օր / Independence Day
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20090921
DTSTAMP:20090825T183154Z
SEQUENCE:4
DESCRIPTION:Independence Day is an official holiday in Armenia. The rest
 oration of the Republic of Armenia in 1991\, after 70 years of sovietiza
 tion\, followed a national referendum on secession from Soviet Union.
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
CREATED:20090825T033321Z
UID:066A168D-B992-42CA-A5FA-BCDF296F1977
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20090720
TRANSP:TRANSPARENT
SUMMARY:Վարդավառ / The Transfiguration
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20090719
DTSTAMP:20090825T183118Z
SEQUENCE:5
DESCRIPTION:In the traditional Armenian range of holidays\, the Transfig
 uration is the major summer holiday and is celebrated 14 weeks after Eas
 ter. In pre-Christian Armenia this holiday was associated with the pagan
  goddess Anahit\, to whose heathen temple the young and the old went on 
 pilgrimage. The word Vardavar has two meanings: “the flaming of the rose
  and “to sprinkle with water. According to legend\, the goddess Astghik 
 spread love through the Armenian land by sprinkling rosy water and prese
 nting roses. The god Vahagn kept and protected that love\, constantly fi
 ghting against evil. This feast was transformed after the adoption of Ch
 ristianity. On Vardavar in modern times\, everybody pours water on one a
 nother\, starting in the early morning\; no one is allowed to feel offen
 ded or displeased by mischief on that day.
END:VEVENT
END:VCALENDAR