Asmiany

AÅ¡miany (Ashmiany, Belarusian: Ð?шмÑ?Ì?ны, Russian: ОшмÑ?ны) is a town in Hrodna voblast, Belarus (previously in Wilno guberniya, Imperial Russia), capital of the AÅ¡miany raion. It lies in the basin of the Oshmianka River, on hilly, fertile lands. The name is derived from the Lithuanian "Azymertas", meaning "the edge". It is also known as "Aschemynne" in the Chronicles of the Teutonic Knights.

There are signs of settlement as early as 1040 BCE. In 1384, the Teutonic Knights attempted to attack AÅ¡miany as a beginning attempt to destroy the hereditary state of Jagiello. It then became the center of a good deal of historic activity for some decades.