Abovyan Street is one of the interesting tourist attractions of the city, where the appearance of Yerevan of the 19th century has been preserved. It starts near Republic Square and runs through the entire city center to the northeast to the foot of the Nork Plateau. Here you can see the monumental buildings of various organizations and small houses of old Yerevan.
By the end of the 18th century, Yerevan had become one of the largest cities in Armenia, but still had no metropolitan status. However, many rich Armenians lived in the city. Most of them lived on Serf Street, which connected the main square in the city center with the quarters on the Kanaker Hills and the Nork Plateau. Erebuni Fortress is located much to the south of the historical center of the city.
In 1827, the lands of Armenia became part of the Russian Empire, and Yerevan became the capital. In 1869, the Fortress Street was named Astafievskaya Street, in honor of Governor-General Mikhail Astafiev. In 1920, the street was named after the Armenian poet Khachatur Abovyan. Since then it has been called Abovyan Street.
In 1920, the great Armenian architect Alexander Tamayan prepared a master plan for the reconstruction of the Old Town of Yerevan. It was implemented almost in full, only the construction of the famous Cascade was postponed. Abovyan Street was made straight and wide enough to lay the first Yerevan tram. However, near the Republic Square, it has retained its old appearance.
On Abovyan Street there are monumental buildings of universities (Yerevan State University, National Agrarian University, Medical University), the Exhibition Hall of the Union of Artists, the Stanislavsky Theater, the Center for Children`s Creativity, St. Anna Church and many other interesting buildings. They are built in the traditional Armenian architectural style.
There are several monuments on Abovyan Street. At the foot of the Nork plateau, the street ends with a large circle, where there is a monument to the poet Khachatur Abovyan. There are also monuments to Avetik Isaakian, Karabala and others.
