The first part of the study discusses the origins of the Armenians, the Urartian Kingdom, Armenia and the Achaemenid, Seleucid, Parthian, Roman, Sasanid and Byzantine periods. It also examines Christinaity in Armenia and the development of an alphabet and literature. The work then continues with the history of Armenia during the Arab, Turkish and Mongol periods. A separate chapter deals with the history of Cilician Armenia and the Crusades. The second part concentrates on the Armenian communities in the Ottoman, Persian, Indian, and Russian empires (1500-1918). It also details the Armenian diaspora in Eastern and Western Europe, Africa, the Arab World, the Far East, and the Americas. The study concludes with lengthy chapters on the history of the three Armenian republics (1918-1920); (1921-1991Soviet Armenia); and the current Armenian republic (1991-2001)