Armenians in Turkey

Armenians in Turkey (; , romanized: Hayery T'urk'iayum; "Turkish Armenians"), are ethnic Armenians living Turkey and one of the indigenous peoples of Turkey. They have an estimated population of 50,000 to 70,000, down from a population of over 2 million Armenians between the years 1914 and 1921. Until the Armenian genocide of 1915, most of the Armenian population of Turkey lived in the eastern parts of the country that Armenians call Western Armenia. Today, the overwhelming majority of Turkish Armenians are concentrated in Istanbul. They support their own newspapers, churches and schools, and the majority belong to the Armenian Apostolic Church and a minority of Armenians in Turkey belong to the Armenian Catholic Church or to the Armenian Evangelical Church.
Geographical distribution
Istanbul
Of the 60,000 Christian Armenians living in Turkey, 45,000 live in Istanbul. Today, in the Kumkapi quarter in Fatih, Istanbul, the various churches Armenian, Greek Orthodox and Syriac as well as the Armenian Patriarchate of Turkey. In some ways, the quarter has even regained its reputation as an Armenian quarter. Yet, the majority of Armenians residing in Kumkapi today are immigrants from Armenia, while of the original Armenian population, only a few individuals still call Kumkapi their home. The Armenian population in Turkey, which makes up the largest Christian community in the country, "resembles an iceberg melting in the sea" with its some 60,000 members, the newly elected Armenian Apostolic Patriarch of Istanbul has said. At present, the Armenian community in Istanbul has 20 schools (including the Getronagan Armenian High School), 17 cultural and social organizations, three newspapers (Agos, Jamanak, Marmara), two sports clubs (Sislispor, Taksimspor).
Dersim
According to Mihran Prgic Gultekin, the head of the Union of Dersim Armenians, around 75% of the population in villages of Dersim are "converted Armenians." The greater part of hidden Armenians of Dersim, according Gultekin, is afraid that the nationalist regime may be back and may repress them. Currently over 200 families have announce their Armenian descent in Dersim, Gultekin said. In April 2013, Aram Atesyan, the acting Armenian Patriarch of Istanbul, stated maybe that 90% of Tunceli (Dersim)'s population is of Armenian origin. In 2015, a group of citizens in Dersim (Tunceli) established the Dersim Armenians and Alevis Friendship Association (DERADOST). The opening ceremony of the association was attended by Huseyin Tunc, then Deputy Mayor of Tunceli, Yusuf Cengiz, President of Tunceli Chamber of Commerce and Industry, representatives of non-governmental organisations and some citizens. On the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, president of the association Serkan Sariatas said that the state should face its past history as soon as possible. In 2015, 12 crypto-Armenians from Dersim baptized in Istanbul. The districts of Mazgirt, Nazimiye and Cemisgezek had a large Armenian population during the Ottoman period. A large part of this population must have been deported out of Anatolia with the deportation order of 1915. It is likely that the remaining population migrated to Western Anatolia. Through the 20th century, an many of Armenians living in the mountainous region of Dersim had converted to Alevism. During the Armenian genocide, many of the Armenians in the region were saved by their Kurdish neighbors.
Mus
In 2014, Armenians from Mus established an association. Daron Moush Armenians Solidarity Social Tourism Association made an official application after the formation of a board of seven members. The association, which started its activities in Mus and started accepting members, elected its president next week. Speaking at the foundation ceremony of the Daron Mus Armenians Solidarity, Social and Tourism Association, board member Armen Galustyan said, "Regardless of religion, Armenianism is a race, a nation, just like the Turks, Kurds and Arabs. Armenianhood is not an enmity."
Hatay
Vakifli, located in the Samandag district of Hatay province of Turkey, is the only Armenian village in Turkey with a population of 100 people, all of whom are Armenians. The entire village population is Armenian.
Rize
The Hemshin people, also known as Hemshinli or Hamshenis or Homshetsi, are an numerically small group of Sunni Muslim Armenians who had been converted from Christianity in the beginning of the 18th century who are affiliated with the Hemsin and Camlihemsin districts in the province of Rize, Turkey. They are Armenian in origin, and were originally Christian and members of the Armenian Apostolic Church, but over the centuries evolved into a distinct ethnic group and converted to Sunni Islam after the conquest of the Ottomans of the region during the second half of the 15th century.
Batman
Sason
An Armenian minority may still live in Sason (according to an estimate which was made in 1972, about 6,000 Armenian villagers were still living in the region).
Culture
Language
Most Armenians in Turkey speak Turkish, not Armenian, and this rate rises to 92 percent among young people. On 21 February 2009, International Mother Language Day, a new edition of the Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger was released by UNESCO in which the [Western] Armenian language in Turkey was defined as a definitely endangered language, Also, Hamsheni, a branch of Western Armenian, was classified separately language. Some Muslim Hamshenis, influenced by the fact that the Homshetsi dialect of Armenian is preserved as the spoken language in their circles, accept the fact that they are of Armenian origin. However, Hamshenis in Rize have mostly forgotten their mother tongue and they speak Turkish.
The Armenian-speaking population in Turkey according to censuses
Music
Music culture especially developed among the Hamshenis. The first music album made by Homshetsi dialect is Vova, which consists of anonymous folk music. The national Hamsheni instruments include tulum, simsir kaval or the Hamshna-Zurna. Komitas, Rober Hatemo, Hayko Cepkin, Yasar Kurt, Cem Karaca (half-Armenian), Udi Hrant Kenkulian can be given as an example to many Armenians working on Turkish and Armenian music.
Cinema and acting
In movie acting, special mention should be made of Vahi Oz who appeared in countless movies from the 1940s until the late 1960s, Sami Hazinses (real name Samuel Agop Ulucyan) who appeared in tens of Turkish movies from the 1950s until the 1990s and Nubar Terziyan who appeared in more than 400 movies. Movie actor and director Kenan Pars (real name Kirkor Cezveciyan) and theatre and film actress Irma Felekyan (aka Toto Karaca), who was mother of Cem Karaca.
Assimilation and Armenian place names
Although the Armenian place names in Turkey are mostly changed, some names are used officially today.
It estimated that 3,600 Armenian geographical locations have been changed and changed Armenian place names make up 8.8% of place names in Turkey.
Some province, district and place names of Armenian origin
Rize
Ardesen, from Armenian Ardasen means "fieldvillage".
Hemsin, from Armenian Hamamasen/Hamsen means "Hamam's village". Camlihemsin is a combination of the Turkish word Camli and the Armenian word.
Diyarbakir
Cermik, from Armenian Cermuk means "spa" .
Elazig
Keban, from Armenian Gaban means "passage".
Agri
Patnos, from Armenian Patnots maybe means "surrounded" or "fenced".
Mus
Varto, it was recorded in 1554 as Varto kavar, which means "Vart's district" in Armenian. Varto is probably related to the Armenian personal name Vartan.
Malazgirt, from Armenian Manavazagerd/Manazgerd means "Manavaz's fortress".
Sanliurfa
Siverek, from Armenian Seraverag means "black ruins".
Tunceli
Pertek, from Armenian Pertag means "small castle".
Mazgirt, from Armenian Medzgerd means "great fortress".
Malatya
Arguvan, from Armenian Arkavan means "king's city/village".
Province names of Armenian origin
Erzincan, from Armenian Erizagan means "Belonging to Erez", "from Erez".
Bayburt, from Armenian Baberd, berd means "castle", but the structure of the compound is doubtful.
Demographics
On the eve of the World War I there were estimated between 1,500,000 and 2,000,000 Armenians in the Ottoman Empire however, according to the 1914 Ottoman census, this figure is only 1,229,007, of which 1,161,169 "Armenians" and 67,838 "Armenian Catholics". Estimates of the Armenian population in Turkey today range from 50,000 to 70,000, but these number not include secret and Islamized Armenians, with population estimates ranging from 80,000 to 300,000. In 1987, Suren Eremian on Armenian Soviet Encyclopedia says 180,000 Armenians live in Turkey with more than forcibly 1,000,000 "Muslimized" Armenians. Keith David Watenpaugh says about this:
Armenian population in Ottoman Empire according to censuses
1914 census by vilayets
Armenians were found especially in the east of the Ottoman Empire, there were significant Armenian diasporas in Western Anatolia.
1906/7 census by vilayets
Notable people
List of Armenians born or originating in Turkey and the Ottoman Empire
The persons on the list are classified into three separate categories:
Christian Armenian
Muslim Armenian
Hamsheni (also Muslim Armenians)
Politicians
Hagop Kazazian Pasha (1836-1891) Christian Armenian, minister of finance and privy treasury in Ottoman Empire
Gabriel Noradunkyan (1852-1936) Christian Armenian, minister of trade and foreign affairs in Ottoman Empire
Armen Garo (1872-1923) Christian Armenian, activist and politician, was leading member of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation for more than two decades
Mesut Yilmaz (1947-2020) Hamsheni, politician who served in ministerial positions such as the prime minister, minister of culture and tourism, the minister of state and deputy prime minister
Mekertich Portukalian (1848-1921) Christian Armenian, liberal politician, teacher and journalist founder of Armenakan Party
Garo Paylan (b. 1972) Christian Armenian, politician and member of parliament
Murat Karayalcin (b. 1943) Hamsheni, politician who served as minister of foreign affairs, deputy prime minister, mayor of Ankara and the founder of the SHP
Selina Ozuzun Dogan (b. 1977) Christian Armenian, politician and member of parliament
Alper Tas (b. 1967) Hamsheni, socialist politician and former leader of Left Party
Markar Esayan (1969-2020) half Christian Armenian, politician and member of parliament
Krikor Zohrab (1861-1915) Christian Armenian, politician, influential writer and lawyer
Popular culture
Diran Kelekian (1862-1915) Christian Armenian, journalist and professor
Khachatur Malumian (1863-1915) Christian Armenian, journalist and political activist
Bimen Dergazaryan (1873-1943) Christian Armenian, composer and lyricist
Komitas Vardapet (1869-1935) Christian Armenian, priest, musicologist, composer, arranger, singer and choirmaster who is considered the founder of the Armenian national school of music
Rupen Zartarian (1874-1915) Christian Armenian, writer, educator and political activist
Bedros Keresteciyan (1840-1909) Christian Armenian, journalist, translator, and writer of the first etymology dictionary of the Turkish language
Daniel Varoujan (1884-1915) Christian Armenian, notable poet
Yervant Odian (1869-1926) Christian Armenian, satirist, journalist and playwright
Krikor Torosian (1884-1915) Christian Armenian, satirical writer, journalist and publisher
Gullu Agop (1840-1902) Christian Armenian, actor, founder of modern Turkish theatre
Armen Dorian (1892-1915) Christian Armenian, poet, teacher and editor
Ruben Sevak (1886-1915) Christian Armenian, poet, prose-writer and doctor
Hagop Baronian (1843-1891) Christian Armenian, writer, playwright, journalist and educator
Rober Hatemo (b. 1974) Christian Armenian, singer
Ozcan Alper (b. 1975) Hamsheni, director and screenwriter
Sahan Arzruni (b. 1943) Christian Armenian, pianist
Zahrad (1924-2007) Christian Armenian, promient poet
Hrant Dink (1954-2007) Christian Armenian, former editor of the weekly Agos
Ruhi Su (1912-1985) Muslim Armenian, opera singer, folk singer and saz virtuoso
Nubar Terziyan (1909-1994) Christian Armenian, promient actor
Adile Nasit (1930-1987) actress, partial Christian Armenian descent
Hayko Cepkin (b. 1978) Christian Armenian, musician
Ara Guler (1928-2018) Christian Armenian, journalist, photojournalist and writer
Aydogan Topal (b. 1982) half Hamsheni, singer
Sami Hazinses (1925-2002) Christian Armenian, film actor, composer and lyricist
Cem Karaca (1945-2004) half Christian Armenian, rock musician
Kamer Sadik (1911-1986) Christian Armenian, cinema actor
Behcet Gulas (b. 1975) Hamsheni, musician and singer
Danyal Topatan (1916-1975) Christian Armenian, theater and television actor
Fedon (b. 1946) half Christian Armenian, singer, tavern music commentator
Jaklin Carkci (b. 1958) Christian Armenian, mezzo-soprano
Masis Aram Gozbek (b. 1987) Christian Armenian, conductor of Bosphorus Jazz Choir
Sevan Nisanyan (b. 1956) writer and linguist, an atheist but Christian Armenian origin
Kenan Pars (1920-2008) Christian Armenian, promient actor
Armenian fedayis and millitary leaders
Hampartsoum Boyadjian (1860-1915) Christian Armenian, Hunchakian fedayi
Arabo (1863-1893) Christian Armenian, Dashnak fedayi
Armenak Yekarian (1870-1926) Christian Armenian, Armenakan fedayi
Kevork Chavush (1870-1907) Christian Armenian, Dashnak fedayi
Sebastatsi Murad (1874--1918) Christian Armenian, Hunchakian fedayi
Andranik Ozanian (1865-1927) Christian Armenian, Dashnak fedayi, national hero
Other millitary
Cihan Alptekin (1947-1972) Hamsheni, militant, revolutionary, political activist who was leader of left-wing organisations such as People's Liberation Army of Turkey and Revolutionary Youth Federation of Turkey
Sarkis Torosyan (1891-1954) Christian Armenian, captain who awarded with a medal by Enver Pasha, however, later changed sides and joined the struggle against the Ottomans
Other
Daron Acemoglu (b. 1967) Christian Armenian, economist, winner of the 2005 John Bates Clark Medal
Calouste Gulbenkian (1869-1955) Christian Armenian, businessman and philanthropist who was born in Uskudar, Istanbul
References
Sources
Armenian people
Ethnic groups in Turkey