The History of Sebeos

Fourth: Before the Malkhasyants edition, the "History of Sebeos" was called "History of Bishop Sebeos on Heraclius." Malkhasyants removed the name of Heraclius and called it "History of Bishop Sebeos." We have published it under the title "History of Sebeos." We have abbreviated the title "Bishop," because other historians (who, without exception, also held titles) are usually published without noting their titles. The oldest manuscript does not have a title or the author's name for the History.

In scientific literature, especially abroad, the form "Sebios" is sometimes used, which is more correct than "Sebeos" (for more on this, see below, in the section concerning the old manuscript used by Mihrdatyan which has not reached us), but since all previous editions are printed with the form "Sebeos," we have followed that tradition.

Regarding the Malkhasyants edition, M. Abeghyan writes: "It would have been more correct to title it History of the Armenians, and not merely 'History'" 2. S. Chamchyan also wrote: "Sebeos is also writing the complete history of the Armenians" 3. Nevertheless, we have not dared to call the book "History of the Armenians," because the author of the "History of Sebeos" himself called the first part of his History "Book... of Khosrow," and the following part, which relates to the Arab period, again gives no right to call the book a History of the Armenians. N. Akinyan, St. Malkhasyants, and others have sometimes proposed the title "History of Khosrow" 4, which, however, as was said, relates only to the first part of the book.

Fifth: The first three editions of the "History of Sebeos" were published with the same chapter headings as composed by Mihrdatyan. Malkhasyants rewrote and better organized the headings, dividing the book into 50 chapters (instead of the 38 in previous printings). We have repeated the headings of the Malkhasyants edition with some corrections and by adding two headings (Chapter D "Genealogy of the Mamikonean family" and Chapter E "Kings of the Armenians, Persians, and Greeks"). Our edition consists of 52 chapters. For the added chapters, see the notes section (n. 75 and 78).

Sixth: In the notes, we have also used unpublished materials kept in the archives of H. Shahkhatunyants, A. Carrière, Y. Marquart, and S. Chamchyan, which are being published for the first time.

2 M. Abeghyan, History of Ancient Armenian Literature, Yerevan, 1944, vol. A, p. 388.
3 MM, Chamchyan archive, file 232b, doc. 133 (Chamchyan wrote the words we cited on the inside cover of the 1912 edition of the "History of Sebeos").
4 N. Akinyan ("Matnagrakan Hetazotutyunner" Literary Research, Vienna, 1924, p. 19) writes: "I consider the most authentic title of the History to be 'History of Heraclius stated by Bishop Sebios,' based on Ukhtanes and Asoghik," however, later (p. 47) he states: "I would consider a more authentic title to be 'History on Khosrow Aparvez'."