Shiraz was born '' ' Onik Tadevosi Karapetyan ' '' in the city of Alexandropol , then part of the Russian Empire ( now Gyumri , Armenia ) . His mother , Astghik , was widowed by the Armenian Genocide shortly before his birth . Shiraz grew up in a considerable poverty . His first work called '' Beginning of Spring '' was published in 1935 . Novelist Atrpet gave the talented poet the epithet " Shiraz " , because " this youth 's poems have the fragrance of roses , fresh and covered with dew , like the roses of Shiraz " ( Shiraz being one of Iran 's major cities , famous for its roses and poets ) . Another version of his pen name is " Shirak azn " &mdash; a child of Shirak , the region he was from
Armenian Genocide
Armenian Genocide
Hovhannes Shiraz