Armenia`s first president Levon Ter-Petrossian turns 67 on January 9.

Armenia's First President, Leader of the opposition Armenian National Congress Levon Ter-Petrossian turns 67 on January 9, 2012.

Levon Ter-Petrossian was born in 1945 in Aleppo, Syria to an Armenian-Syrian family of genocide survivors. The family moved to Armenia in 1946. In 1968, Ter-Petrossian graduated from the Oriental Studies Department of the Yerevan State University. In 1972, he completed his postgraduate studies at the Leningrad State University. In 1987, he received his doctoral degree from the same university. In 1972-1978, Ter-Petrossian worked as junior researcher at the Literature Institute of Armenia named after Manouk Abeghian. In 1978-1985, he held the post of science secretary at Matenadaran named after Saint Mesrob Mashdots. Since 1985, Ter-Petrossian has been working at Matenadaran as a senior researcher.

Levon Ter-Petrossian was the first President of Armenia from 1991 to 1998. Ter-Petrossian's political career started in the 1960s. In 1966 he was arrested for his active participation in an April 24 demonstration. In February 1988, he led Matenadaran's Karabakh committee. In May of the same year, he became involved with the Armenian Committee of the Karabakh movement. From December 10, 1988, to May 31, 1989, he was under arrest in Matrosskaya Tishina together with other members of the Karabakh Committee.

In 1989, Ter-Petrossian was elected Member of the Board of the Pan-Armenian National Movement. Later on, he became the Chairman of the Board.
On August 27, 1989, he was elected as deputy of the Supreme Soviet of the Armenian SSR. He was re-elected as deputy on May 20, 1990. On August 4 of the same year, he became Chairman of the Supreme Council of the Republic of Armenia.

Ter-Petrossian was popularly elected the first President of the newly-independent Republic of Armenia on October 16, 1991 and re-elected on September 22, 1996.

He was forced to step down on February 3, 1998 after advocating compromised settlement of the conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh which many Armenians regarded as undermining their security. Ter-Petrossian officially announced his candidacy in the 2008 presidential election. Currently he leads the Armenian National Congress opposition bloc.

Levon Ter-Petrossian is married to Lyudmila Ter-Petrossian. They have one son, David Ter-Petrossian, and three grandchildren.