Nor Bayazet uezd

Nor Bayazet uezd
Новобаязетский уезд
Location in the Erivan Governorate
CountryRussian Empire
ViceroyaltyCaucasus
GovernorateErivan
Established1840
Abolished1930
CapitalNovobayazet
(present-day Gavar)
Area
  Total
4,691.96 km2 (1,811.58 sq mi)
Population
 (1916)
  Total
188,859
  Density40/km2 (100/sq mi)
  Urban
7.81%
  Rural
92.19%

The Nor Bayazet or Novobayazet uezd was a county (uezd) of the Erivan Governorate of the Caucasus Viceroyalty of the Russian Empire. The uezd bordered the Alexandropol uezd to the north, the Etchmiadzin and Erivan uezds to the west, the Sharur-Daralayaz uezd to the south, and the Kazakh, Elizavetpol, and Jevanshir uezds of the Elizavetpol Governorate to the east. Centered on Lake Sevan, the Nor Bayazet uezd included most of the contemporary province of Gegharkunik and northern parts of the Kotayk Province of Armenia. The administrative center of the uezd was the city Novobayazet (present-day Gavar) for which the district was eponymously named.

In 1916, the district was over 90% rural and home to over 129,300 Armenians and 53,700 Muslims (including 3,000 Kurds). Resulting from the Ottoman invasion of the South Caucasus, in 1918–1920 the population of the district contracted significantly due to famine and large-scale ethnic cleansing.