Erzurum

Name and etymology

The city was originally known in Armenian as Karno K'aghak' (Armenian: Կարնոյ քաղաք), meaning city of Karin, to distinguish it from the district of Karin (Կարին).^[1] It is presumed its name was derived from a local tribe called the Karenitis.^[5] An alternate theory contends that a local princely family, the Kamsarakans, the Armenian off-shoot of the Iranian Kārin Pahlav family, lent its name to the locale that eventually became the city.^[6]


During Roman times, Erzurum was named Theodosiopolis (Latin: Theodosiopolis, Greek: Θεοδοσιούπολις). On the Tabula Peutingeriana it is called Autisparate. After the Arab conquest of Armenia in the seventh century, the city was known to the Arabs as Kālīkalā (adopted from the original Armenian name Karno K'aghak' (Armenian: Կարնոյ քաղաք), meaning 'Karin City', to distinguish it from the district of Karin (Կարին).^[1]


It received its present name after its conquest by the Seljuk Turks following the Battle of Manzikert in 1071.^[1] In 1048/49, a neighboring commercial city named Artze (Arcn, Arzan; Armenian: Արծն) was heavily sacked by the Seljuks.^[1][7] Its Armenian, Syrian, and other Christian inhabitants moved to Theodosiopolis, which they began calling Artsn Rum (meaning 'Artze of the Rûm', i.e., Romans) to distinguish it from their former residence.^{[8][9][10][1]}


Some older sources derive the name Erzurum from the Arabic Arḍu ar-Rūm (Arabic: ارض الروم) 'land of the Rûm'.^[8][5]


During the brief period it came under Georgian rule, the city was known as Karnu-kalaki (Georgian: კარნუ-ქალაქი).^[11]


The following variants of the name also occur: Erzerum, Arzrum.^[12]