MASHTOTSʿ, MESROP (c. 345–440), inventor of the Armenian alphabet and saint of the Armenian church. The major source for his biography is the Life of Mashtotsʿ written by his pupil and associate, Koriwn. The name Mesrop, the etymology of which is still unknown, does not appear in the works of Armenian writers until after the fifth century.

Mashtotsʿ was born to a peasant named Vardan in the village of Hatsʿekatsʿ, in the district of Tarōn (present-day Muş, Turkey). He was educated in Greek letters as a youth. As a young man he entered military service, becoming a clerk in the royal army stationed at Vagarshapat (present-day Echmiadzin). Led to solitary life by his interest in the scriptures, Mashtotsʿ became an anchorite. He evidently headed a kellion (a small group of anchorites) in the 390s. While proselytizing the people of the district...