Arab Armenians
| Regions with significant populations | |
|---|---|
| Lebanon Syria Iraq Palestine Jordan Egypt | |
| Languages | |
| Arabic Armenian | |
| Religion | |
| Christianity • Islam |
Arab Armenians are people of mixed Arab and Armenian descent who reside in the Arab World in countries such as Lebanon, Syria, Egypt, and in smaller communities in Iraq, Jordan, Palestine, Kuwait, Qatar, the UAE, as well as in non-Arab World nations such as Israel. Arabs and Armenians have long interacted. The Arabs even ruled over Armenia from 646 to 884.[1]
History of Armenian immigration in the Arab World[edit]
In 1915, the Armenian Genocide began and hundreds of thousands of Armenians were forced by the Turks from the Turkish Ottoman Empire into the deserts of northern Syria and also in the refugee camps in Deir ez-Zor and Ra's al-'Ayn. Between 1914-1923 225,000 Armenian refugees were forced by the Turks into the Arab part of the Middle East, notably 100,000 in Syria; 50,000 in Lebanon; 40,000 in Egypt; 25,000 in Iraq; and 10,000 in Palestine and Jordan.[citation needed]
Starting in the mid 20th century revolutions and political unrest in the Middle East pushed hundreds of thousands of Armenians out of the Middle East. Most of the Armenians from the Middle East settled in the United States of America, mainly within the Greater Los Angeles area. Prior to 1952 there were 40,000 Armenians in Egypt and their number shrank to 6,000. In 1963 Syria had 200,000 Armenian population and subsequently diminished to its current 100,000. In 1968 Iraq had 60,000 Armenian population and subsequently diminished to 20,000 and following the 2003 US invasion of Iraq the number further decreased to its current 15,000. Prior to the 1975 Lebanese Civil War there were 230,000 Armenians in Lebanon, today they stand at 120,000. Until 1948 there were 6,000 Armenians in Jordan, following the 1948 Arab–Israeli War the number reached 10,000 as Armenians fled Palestine due to Israeli aggression. After the Six-Day War in 1967 the number of Armenians in Jordan diminished to its current 3,000. Prior to Israeli independence in 1948 there were 15,000 Armenians in Israel and Palestine combined. Following the war in 1948 Arab–Israeli War more than 4,000 fled to Jordan and 1,000 to Lebanon. After the 1967 War, the 10,000 Armenian population diminished to its current size of 3,000 in Israel and 2,000 in Palestine.[citation needed]
Notable Arab Armenians[edit]
There are many examples of Arab Armenians that are a result of mixed marriages/families such as former Lebanese President Emile Lahoud whose father was Lebanese Maronite and whose mother was Lebanese Armenian. Other notable Arab Armenians include Lebanese politician Karim Pakradouni whose father was Armenian and whose mother was Lebanese Maronite. The Palestinian ambassador to the UK is Manuel Hassassian, whose wife is an Arab. In music, Anoushka is a famous Egyptian singer and actress. She was born to an Egyptian Coptic father and an Armenian mother. Julia Boutros is another famous Lebanese singer what was born to a Lebanese Maronite father and a Palestinian Armenian mother.
Interaction with Non-Arab Armenians[edit]
Non-Arab Armenians and Arab Armenians are different from each other in some ways, and this is influenced by which country they have grown up in. The Arabic influence on Arab Armenians creates tensions with non-Arab Armenians who may dislike them for their Arabic mentality. They view them as being more Arab than Armenian.[citation needed] This is particularly true with between Russian Armenians (Armenians from the former Soviet Union) and Arab Armenians (Armenians from the Arab World).[citation needed]
Current Armenian diaspora in Arabic-Speaking Countries[edit]
- Lebanon: 120,000 (90,000 Orthodox; 20,000 Catholic; 10,000 Protestant)[citation needed]
- Syria: 100,000 (70,000 Orthodox; 25,000 Catholic; 5,000 Protestant)[citation needed]
- Iraq: 15,000 (13,000 Orthodox; 1,500 Catholic; 500 Protestant)[citation needed]
- Egypt: 6,000 (4,000 Orthodox; 1,500 Catholic; 500 Protestant)[citation needed]
- Kuwait: 6,000 (6,000 Orthodox)[citation needed]
- Israel: 3,000 (2,500 Orthodox; 500 Catholic)[citation needed]
- Jordan: 3,000 (2,500 Orthodox; 500 Catholic)[citation needed]
- UAE: 3,000 (3,000 Orthodox)[citation needed]
- Palestine: 2,000 (2,000 Orthodox)[citation needed]
- Qatar: 1,500 (1,500 Orthodox)[citation needed]
- Bahrain: 100 (100 Orthodox)[citation needed]
- Sudan: 50 (50 Orthodox)[citation needed]
References[edit]
- ↑ "Armenia during 7th-8th Century Armenia under the rule of Arab Caliphate". Armenian-history.com. Retrieved 2012-10-13.
External links[edit]
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