Aykasar
A quiet village on Shirak's highlands

What is this place

Aykasar is a small Armenian village in Shirak Province, about six kilometres west of the town of Artik, sitting at roughly 1,640 metres above sea level. Just a couple of hundred people call it home.

Aykasar lies on the open highlands of Shirak, within the Artik community. The village was once called Saribash and took its present name in 1948. Its elevation of 1,640 metres shapes everyday life here: cool, windy summers, snowy winters, and wide views over the Shirak fields that are so typical of this farming and herding region.

Aykasar's population is modest. The 2011 census recorded 220 permanent residents, Armenians by origin. The number of inhabitants has risen and fallen over the decades, yet the village keeps its calm rural rhythm. Aykasar has an old church known as Karmir Zham, a small chapel, and a 19th-century monument, quiet witnesses to the long life of these uplands.

For a traveller, Aykasar is a short stop while crossing the Shirak highlands near Artik. People come here not for grand landmarks but for the stillness of a mountain village, the clean air, and an unhurried encounter with everyday Armenia far from the main roads.