Vardavar

thumb|300px|Yerevan, 2011 Vardavar or Vartavar (, Homshetsi: Vartevor or Behur) is a festival in Armenia where people drench each other with water. It is included in the intangible cultural heritage list of Armenia.

==Origin== Vardavar's history dates back to pagan times. The ancient festival is traditionally associated with the goddess Astghik, who was the goddess of water, beauty, love, and fertility. The festivities associated with this religious observance of Astghik were named “Vardavar” because Armenians offered her roses as a celebration (vard means "rose" in Armenian and var means "to burn/be burning", this is why it was celebrated in the harvest time). After the Christianization of Armenia, the Armenian Apostolic Church identified the rose with the transfiguration of Jesus and Vardavar continued to be celebrated along with the Feast of the Transfiguration. Some claim it comes from a tradition dating back to Noah, in which he commanded that his descendants should sprinkle water on each other and let doves fly as a symbol of remembrance of the Flood.