Akhlat

The Description of Nasir-i Khusraw (11th century)

From there we came to Van and Vastan, where they sell pork in the market just like lamb. Men and women sit drinking wine in the shops without the slightest hesitation.

From there we arrived in the city of Akhlat on the 18^th of Jumada I [November 20]. This city is the border town between the Muslims and the Armenians, and from Barkri it is 19 leagues. The prince, Nasr al-Dawla, was over a hundred years old and had many sons, to each of whom he had given a district. In the city of Akhlat they speak three languages: Arabic, Persian, and Armenian. It is my supposition that this is why they named the town Akhlat [the root kh-l-t in Arabic means “to mix”].

Funerary Steles of Akhlat

…compare to medieval Armenian “cross-stones”: