Armenian Highlands

The Armenian Highlands are the central and highest of the three plateaus that make up the northern part of West Asia. Moving clockwise from the west, they border the Anatolian plateau, the Caucasus, the Kura-Aras lowlands, the Iranian Plateau, and Mesopotamia — a hinge of high ground between several regions rather than a single mountain or valley.

The highlands split into a western and an eastern half, with the divide running through the Ararat Valley, where Mount Ararat stands. Since the early 20th century, Ottoman and later Turkish authorities have referred to Western Armenia under the name "Eastern Anatolia."

The eastern half falls within the Lesser Caucasus, a range some historical writers called the Anti-Caucasus — literally, the opposite of the Caucasus.

The coordinates given sit roughly 56 km south-southwest of Yerevan, straight-line — a rough midpoint marker for a highland region that spans a much wider area than any single site.