Hrazdan (Armenian: , also Romanized as Razdan; formerly, Akhta, Akhti, Akhtala, Nizhniye Akhty and Nerkin Akhta) is the capital of the Kotayk province of Armenia. The name Hrazdan is derived from the Middle-Persian name Frazdan. Farzdan is connected to the Zoroastrian mythology. With a population of 52,900 it is the fifth-largest city in Armenia by population. It has lost significant population since the 1989 census reported 59,000 people. During the Soviet years it was one of the highly-industrialized towns of the Armenian SSR.