Alexandrapol

Gyumri
From top left: Gyumri with Mount Aragats • Mother Armenia Cathedral of Gyumri • Dzitoghtsyan Museum Independence Square • Sev Berd Fortress Vartanants Square and Gyumri City Hall
Flag Seal
Nickname(s): Hayrakaghak ("Father-city")
Gyumri Location of Gyumri in Armenia
Coordinates: 40°47′22″N 43°50′51″E / 40.78944°N 43.84750°E / 40.78944; 43.84750
Country	Armenia
Marz	Shirak
Founded	5th century BC as Kumayri, rebuilt in 1837 as Alexandropol
Government
• Mayor	Samvel Balasanyan
Area
• Total	54 km2 (21 sq mi)
Elevation	1,509 m (4,951 ft)
Population (2011 census)
• Total	121,976
• Density	2,300/km2 (5,900/sq mi)
Demonym(s)	Gyumretsi
Time zone	AMT (UTC+4)
Postal code	3101-3126
Area code(s)	(+374) 312
Vehicle registration	45 am
Climate	Dfb
Website	www.gyumri.am
Sources: Population

Coordinates: 40°47′22″N 43°50′51″E / 40.78944°N 43.84750°E / 40.78944; 43.84750

Gyumri (Armenian: Գյումրի [gjumˈɾi]) is the second largest city in Armenia and the capital of the Shirak Province in the northwestern part of the country. By the end of the 19th century, when the city was known as Alexandropol, it was one of the largest cities of Russian-ruled Eastern Armenia with a population similar to that of Yerevan. It was renamed to Leninakan during the Soviet period. The city's population grew above 200,000 prior to the 1988 Spitak earthquake, when it was devastated. As of the 2011 census, the city had a population of 121,976, down from 150,917 reported at the 2001 census.

Archaeological excavations conducted throughout the Soviet period have shown that the area of modern-day Gyumri has been populated since at least the third millennium BC. The area was mentioned as Kumayri in the historic Urartian inscriptions dating back to the 8th century BC. In 720 BC, the Cimmerians conquered the region and probably founded the Kumayri settlement, which bears phonetic resemblance to the word used by ancient Armenian in reference to Cimmerians. Historians believe that Xenophon passed through Kumayri during his return to the Black Sea, a journey immortalized in his Anabasis.