Armenian diaspora - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The Armenian diaspora refers to the Armenian communities outside the Republic of Armenia and self proclaimed de facto independent Nagorno-Karabakh Republic

Nagorno-Karabakh Republic

The Nagorno-Karabakh Republic , or Artsakh Republic is a de facto independent republic located in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia...

. The Armenian community of Samtskhe-Javakheti (called Javakhk by Armenians) region of Georgia

Georgia (country)

Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...

is sometimes considered as non-diaspora community, because of its close ties to Armenia and historical presence of Armenians there.

Background

The modern Armenian diaspora was formed largely after the First World War as a result of the Armenian Genocide

Armenian Genocide

The Armenian Genocide—also known as the Armenian Holocaust, the Armenian Massacres and, by Armenians, as the Great Crime—refers to the deliberate and systematic destruction of the Armenian population of the Ottoman Empire during and just after World War I...

, which was the centrally-planned extermination of the indigenous Armenian population of the Ottoman Empire

Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...

during the First World War. Those Armenians who survived and fled to different parts of the world (approximately half a million in number) created new Armenian communities far from their native land. Through marriage and procreation, the number of Armenians in the diaspora who trace their lineage to those Armenians who survived and fled the Armenian Genocide

Armenian Genocide

is now several million. Since the breakup of the Soviet Union

Soviet Union

The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....

, approximately one million Armenians

Armenians

Armenian people or Armenians are a nation and ethnic group native to the Armenian Highland.The largest concentration is in Armenia having a nearly-homogeneous population with 97.9% or 3,145,354 being ethnic Armenian....

have joined the diaspora largely as a result of difficult economic conditions in Armenia

Armenia

Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...

.

Today, the Armenian diaspora refers to communities of Armenians

Armenians

living outside the Republic of Armenia and the Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh, since these regions form part of Armenians' indigenous homeland. The total Armenian population living worldwide is estimated to be 11,000,000. Of those, approximately 3,300,000 live in Armenia, 140,000 in the unrecognized majority-Armenian Republic n autonomous republic within Soviet Azerbaijan) and 120,000ian region of Javakhk in neighboring Georgia. This leaves approximately 7,000,000 in diaspora (with the largest populations in Russia, the United States, France, Argentina, Lebanon, Syria, Iran, Canada, Ukraine, Greece, and Australia). (See chart of population breakdown by country). Only one-third of the world's Armenian population lives in Armenia, and their pre-World War I

World War I

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

homeld six times that of present-day Armenia, including the eastern regions of Turkey

Western Armenia

Western Armenia is a term, primarily used by Armenians, to refer to Armenian-inhabited areas of the Armenian Highland that were part of the Ottoman Empire and now are part of the Republic of Turkey....

, northern part of Iran

Iran

Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...

, southern part of Georgia, Nagorno-Karabakh

Nagorno-Karabakh

Nagorno-Karabakh is a landlocked region in the South Caucasus, lying between Lower Karabakh and Zangezur and covering the southeastern range of the Lesser Caucasus mountains...

and Nakhijevan regions of Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan is the largest country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west, and Iran to...

.
In the fourth century, Armenian communities already existed outside of Greaters of the Sassanid Empire

Sassanid Empire

The Sassanid Empire , known to its inhabitants as Ērānshahr and Ērān in Middle Persian and resulting in the New Persian terms Iranshahr and Iran , was the last pre-Islamic Persian Empire, ruled by the Sasanian Dynasty from 224 to 651...

, and also to defend eastern and northern borders of the Byzantine Empire

Byzantine Empire

The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...

. In order to populate depopulated regions of Byzantium, Armenians were relocated to those regions. Until the eleventh century, Byzantine authorities often following the Armenian Apostolic version of Christianity, they kept ties with families in Armenia. As Cilis during the seventh and eighth century confrontations between the Arabs and the Byzantine Empire, Armenians either forcibly or voluntarily relocated there. After the fall of the kingdom to the Mamelukes and loss of Armenian statehood in 1375, up to 150,000 in Cyprus

Cyprus

Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...

, the Balkans, and Italy

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

. Although an Armenian diaspora

Diaspora

A diaspora is "the movement, migration, or scattering of people away from an established or ancestral homeland" or "people dispersed by whatever cause to more than one location", or "people settled far from their ancestral homelands".The word has come to refer to historical mass-dispersions of...

existed during Antiquity

Classical antiquity

Classical antiquity is a broad term for a long period of cultural history centered on the Mediterranean Sea, comprising the interlocking civilizations of ancient Greece and ancient Rome, collectively known as the Greco-Roman world...

and the Middle Ages

Middle Ages

The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...

, it grew in size due to emigration from the Ottoman Empire

Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...

and Russia

Russia

Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

and the Caucasus

Caucasus

The Caucasus, also Caucas or Caucasia , is a geopolitical region at the border of Europe and Asia, and situated between the Black and the Caspian sea...

.

The Armenian diaspora grew considerably during and after the First World War due to ethnic cleansing

Armenian Genocide

done by the Ottoman Empire

Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...

. Although many Armenians perished during the Armenian Genocide

Armenian Genocide

, some of the Armenians managed to escape, and established themselves in various Eastern Europe

Eastern Europe

Eastern Europe is the eastern part of Europe. The term has widely disparate geopolitical, geographical, cultural and socioeconomic readings, which makes it highly context-dependent and even volatile, and there are "almost as many definitions of Eastern Europe as there are scholars of the region"...

an cities, such as Moscow

Moscow

Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...

, Russia

Russia

Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

; Sochi

Sochi

Sochi is a city in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, situated just north of Russia's border with the de facto independent republic of Abkhazia, on the Black Sea coast. Greater Sochi sprawls for along the shores of the Black Sea near the Caucasus Mountains...

, Russia; Kiev, Ukraine; Odessa

Odessa

Odessa or Odesa is the administrative center of the Odessa Oblast located in southern Ukraine. The city is a major seaport located on the northwest shore of the Black Sea and the fourth largest city in Ukraine with a population of 1,029,000 .The predecessor of Odessa, a small Tatar settlement,...

, Ukraine

Ukraine

Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...

; Sevastopol

Sevastopol

Sevastopol is a city on rights of administrative division of Ukraine, located on the Black Sea coast of the Crimea peninsula. It has a population of 342,451 . Sevastopol is the second largest port in Ukraine, after the Port of Odessa....

, Crimea

Crimea

Crimea , or the Autonomous Republic of Crimea , is a sub-national unit, an autonomous republic, of Ukraine. It is located on the northern coast of the Black Sea, occupying a peninsula of the same name...

(Ukraine); Tbilisi

Tbilisi

Tbilisi is the capital and the largest city of Georgia, lying on the banks of the Mt'k'vari River. The name is derived from an early Georgian form T'pilisi and it was officially known as Tiflis until 1936...

, Georgia

Georgia (country)

; Batumi

Batumi

Batumi is a seaside city on the Black Sea coast and capital of Adjara, an autonomous republic in southwest Georgia. Sometimes considered Georgia's second capital, with a population of 121,806 , Batumi serves as an important port and a commercial center. It is situated in a subtropical zone, rich in...

, Georgia; Budapest

Budapest

Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...

, Hungary

Hungary

Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...

; Warsaw

Warsaw

Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...

, Poland

Poland

Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...

and Lodz, Poland.

Others emigrated to The Balkans, such as Belgrade, Serbia; Bucharest, Romania; Plovdiv

Plovdiv

Plovdiv is the second-largest city in Bulgaria after Sofia with a population of 338,153 inhabitants according to Census 2011. Plovdiv's history spans some 6,000 years, with traces of a Neolithic settlement dating to roughly 4000 BC; it is one of the oldest cities in Europe...

, Bulgaria

Bulgaria

Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...

; Sofia, Bulgaria, Zagreb, Croatia; and Athens

Athens

Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...

, Greece

Greece

Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....

; and yet even more Armenians emigrated to Middle East

Middle East

The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...

ern cities, such as Tehran

Tehran

Tehran , sometimes spelled Teheran, is the capital of Iran and Tehran Province. With an estimated population of 8,429,807; it is also Iran's largest urban area and city, one of the largest cities in Western Asia, and is the world's 19th largest city.In the 20th century, Tehran was subject to...

, Cairo, Egypt; Aleppo

Aleppo

Aleppo is the largest city in Syria and the capital of Aleppo Governorate, the most populous Syrian governorate. With an official population of 2,301,570 , expanding to over 2.5 million in the metropolitan area, it is also one of the largest cities in the Levant...

, Syria

Syria

Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....

and Beirut

Beirut

Beirut is the capital and largest city of Lebanon, with a population ranging from 1 million to more than 2 million . Located on a peninsula at the midpoint of Lebanon's Mediterranean coastline, it serves as the country's largest and main seaport, and also forms the Beirut Metropolitan...

, Lebanon

Lebanon

Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...

Political and religious conflicts

In the 1940s and 1950s, the Soviet Union was trying to extend its influence throughout the world, and especially in the Middle East. The Social-Democrat Henchagian party, being ideologically close to communism

Communism

Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...

, supported the Soviet Union in its struggle to expand in the Middle East. Partisans of the AGBU, supposedly being politically neutral, also supported the Soviet Union, because Armenia was part of the Soviet Union. The ARF, despite its socialist background a nationalistic party, objected, as it propagated the idea of a free, independent, and united Armenia. As the ARF struggled to preserve the flag, coat of arms, and national anthem of the Independent Armenian Republic

Democratic Republic of Armenia

The Democratic Republic of Armenia was the first modern establishment of an Armenian state...

of 1918-1922, others chose to support Soviet Armenia, seeing it as the only place in the world where Armenians could live safely as Armenians.

There was also a conflict between the leaders of the Armenian Apostolic Church

Armenian Apostolic Church

The Armenian Apostolic Church is the world's oldest National Church, is part of Oriental Orthodoxy, and is one of the most ancient Christian communities. Armenia was the first country to adopt Christianity as its official religion in 301 AD, in establishing this church...

. Armenians had 2 Catholicoses. One of them was located in Echmiadzin

Echmiadzin

Mother Cathedral of Holy Etchmiadzin is a 4th century Armenian church in the town of Ejmiatsin, Armenia. It is also the central cathedral of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin of the Armenian Apostolic Church....

, Armenia

Armenia

Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...

and was supported by the Soviet authorities and in the Armenian diaspora by the Hunchaks, the Ramgavars

Ramgavar Party

The Armenian Democratic Liberal Party or the Ramgavar Party, , also known by its Armenian initials or its English initials ADL is an Armenian political party in Armenia and the Armenian diaspora including the Middle East, Europe, the Americas and Australia.It was established in the...

and the Armenian communists, while the other was located in Antelias

Antelias

Antelias is a town in Lebanon. It is located around 5 km to the north of Beirut. Its inhabitants are mainly Christians and include Armenians , Maronites, Greek Catholics and Greek Orthodox ....

, Lebanon

Lebanon

and was supported by the Dashnaks

Armenian Revolutionary Federation

The Armenian Revolutionary Federation is an Armenian political party founded in Tiflis in 1890 by Christapor Mikaelian, Stepan Zorian, and Simon Zavarian...

, as they thought that the Catholicosate of Echmiadzin was a tool for propagation of communism. In the 1950s, during the climax of this conflict, there were armed clashes between partisans of the two "sides", and also assassination attempts, acts of desecration, etc.

Tensions eased out as in 1965, all the conflicting major parties came together with a joint communiqué and plan of action to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide

Armenian Genocide

of 1915. They also agreed to set aside acrimonious aspects between them especially in the highly politicized and partisan media of the time. In 1975 the inter-Armenian relations became even closer as, during the Lebanese Civil War

Lebanese Civil War

The Lebanese Civil War was a multifaceted civil war in Lebanon. The war lasted from 1975 to 1990 and resulted in an estimated 150,000 to 230,000 civilian fatalities. Another one million people were wounded, and today approximately 350,000 people remain displaced. There was also a mass exodus of...

, the Armenians had to stick together in a pact of "positive neutrality" in order to overcome opposing forces and keep the Armenians as far away as possible from the conflict between the Lebanese.

Armenians of the Middle East

Armenians of the diaspora lived in refugee camp

Refugee camp

A refugee camp is a temporary settlement built to receive refugees. Hundreds of thousands of people may live in any one single camp. Usually they are built and run by a government, the United Nations, or international organizations, or NGOs.Refugee camps are generally set up in an impromptu...

s in Lebanon, Syria, Egypt and elsewhere in the Middle East, (Iran

Armenians in Iran

Iranian-Armenians , sometimes called Persian-Armenians, are Iranian citizens of Armenian origin. Their number is about 100,000. However, recent estimates put the numbers between 40,000-80,000 due to emigration. They mostly live in Tehran and Jolfa district, Isfahan...

, Iraq

Armenians in Iraq

There is a small ethnic minority of Armenians in Iraq, mostly living in the Iraqi capital of Baghdad. It is estimated that there are about 15,000 Armenians living in the entire country with communities in Baghdad, Mosul, Basra, Kirkuk and Dohuk.Some scholarly sources also refer to them as Iraqi...

, Jordan

Armenians in Jordan

Armenians in Jordan are ethnic Armenians living within the current Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. There are an estimated 3,000 Armenians living within the country today. An estimated 2,500 of these are members of the Armenian Apostolic Church, and predominantly speak the Western dialect of the...

and Israel

Armenians in Israel

The Armenian community has been resident in the Levant for two millennia. After the 1948 Arab–Israeli War and the establishment of the State of Israel, a number of Armenians residing in what had been the British Mandate of Palestine took up Israeli citizenship, whereas other Armenian residents of...

). Some emigrated to Greece

Greece

Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....

and further. However, as the financial situation of the refugee Armenians improved, the camps grew into towns, and these towns became cities.

This was the case of many of the Armenian-populated regions in Lebanon

Lebanon

like Bourj Hammoud

Bourj Hammoud

Bourj Hammoud is a suburb in North-East Beirut, Lebanon in the Metn district. The suburb is heavily populated by Armenians as it is where most survivors of the Armenian Genocide settled...

and Anjar

Anjar, Lebanon

Anjar , also known as Haoush Mousa , is a town of Lebanon located in the Bekaa Valley. The population is 2,400, consisting almost entirely of Armenians. The total area is about twenty square kilometers...

. In time, the Armenians organized themselves by building churches, schools, community centers, cultural associations, arts, sports clubs, etc. Various political parties and benevolent unions, such as the Armenian Revolutionary Federation

Armenian Revolutionary Federation

The Armenian Revolutionary Federation is an Armenian political party founded in Tiflis in 1890 by Christapor Mikaelian, Stepan Zorian, and Simon Zavarian...

(ARF or Dashnaktsutiun), the Social Democrat Hunchakian Party

Social Democrat Hunchakian Party

The Social Democrat Hunchakian Party , is the oldest of the Armenian political parties and was the first Socialist party in the Ottoman Empire and in Persia...

(Hunchakian Party), Liberal Democratic Party (Ramgavar Party) and the Armenian General Benevolent Union

Armenian General Benevolent Union

The Armenian General Benevolent Union abbreviated as AGBU, is a non-profit Armenian organization. It was established in Cairo, Egypt in 1906...

(AGBU), were established wherever there was a considerable number of Armenians.

Following the expansion of Pan-Arabism

Pan-Arabism

Pan-Arabism is an ideology espousing the unification--or, sometimes, close cooperation and solidarity against perceived enemies of the Arabs--of the countries of the Arab world, from the Atlantic Ocean to the Arabian Sea. It is closely connected to Arab nationalism, which asserts that the Arabs...

in Egypt and Syria, Islamism

Islamism

Islamism also , lit., "Political Islam" is set of ideologies holding that Islam is not only a religion but also a political system. Islamism is a controversial term, and definitions of it sometimes vary...

in Iran, and the Lebanese Civil War

Lebanese Civil War

, tens of thousands of Armenians emigrated from the Middle East and established themselves in Europe

Europe

Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

, USA, Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

and Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

.

Some Armenians fought for Iraq

Iraq

Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....

in the army under Saddam Hussein

Saddam Hussein

Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003...

in the 1980s Iran-Iraq war

Iran-Iraq War

The Iran–Iraq War was an armed conflict between the armed forces of Iraq and Iran, lasting from September 1980 to August 1988, making it the longest conventional war of the twentieth century...

, two countries known to have large Armenian communities until the 2000s. The Armenian community in Iraq has dwindled after the 2003 US invasion of Iraq and a scattering number of Armenians remain in east Asia. The Iranian Armenian community also shrank in size since the 1970s.

Israel

Israel

The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...

has a small Armenian community. There is an important Armenian presence in the Armenian Quarter

Armenian Quarter

The Armenian Quarter is one of the four quarters of the Old City of Jerusalem. The Armenian Quarter is the smallest of the four quarters, with the smallest number of residents....

in Jerusalem. Some Armenians also live in the areas of the Palestinian Authority.

Cyprus

Cyprus

meanwhile has a small but vocal Armenian community, particularly in the southern portion of the island where the majority population is Greek-Cypriot and Orthodox Christian. The Armenian community is guaranteed a seat in the House of Parliament.

The Persian Gulf

Persian Gulf

The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...

region also has small Armenian communities from other Arab countries who work in the Gulf or run their businesses there. Countries with some Armenian populations include Kuwait

Armenians in Kuwait

The Armenians in Kuwait are people of Armenian descent living in Kuwait. The Armenian population reached its peak of 12,000. But after the Iraqi invasions, the numbers of the Armenians resident in Kuwait greatly diminished to just 500 as they left the country....

, UAE, Qatar

Armenians in Qatar

Ethnic Armenians in Qatar number between 800 and 1500 and live mainly in the capital Doha.Many Armenians originating from Lebanon, Syria and other Arab countries were attracted by the economic opportunities provided by Qatar, and they came to Qatar for jobs...

, Bahrain

Armenians in Bahrain

The Armenians in Bahrain are people of Armenian descent living in Bahrain. They number around 50, living mainly in the capital, Manama. They come from Lebanon and Syria, attracted by the economic opportunities provided by the country...

and Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...

Armenians in Europe and the Americas

The Armenians in Eastern Europe

Eastern Europe

have been an important and historical presence in the region going back to the 14th century. From their first center in the lands of the former Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth

Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth

The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth was a dualistic state of Poland and Lithuania ruled by a common monarch. It was the largest and one of the most populous countries of 16th- and 17th‑century Europe with some and a multi-ethnic population of 11 million at its peak in the early 17th century...

, and joined by emigrants from the later Russian Empire

Russian Empire

The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...

and Soviet Union

Soviet Union

The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....

, the Armenian community is an integral part of the region in countries such as Poland

Armenians in Poland

Armenians in Poland have an important and historical presence going back to the 14th century. According to the Polish census of 2002, there are 1,082 self-identifying Armenians in Poland,, although Armenian-oriented sources cite estimates as high as 92,000....

, Russia

Armenians in Russia

Armenians in Russia or Russian Armenians are ethnic Armenians who live in Russia. The 2002 Russian census recorded 1,130,491 Armenians in the country, but most probably did not take into account the Armenian guest workers, most of whom do not hold Russian citizenship...

, Ukraine

Armenians in Ukraine

Armenians in Ukraine are ethnic Armenians who live in Ukraine. They number 99,894 according to the 2001 Ukrainian census. However, the country is also host to a number of Armenian guest workers which has yet to be ascertained. The Armenian population in Ukraine has nearly doubled since the...

, the Czech Republic

Armenians in the Czech Republic

Armenians in the Czech Republic are ethnic Armenians living in the modern Czech Republic. The current Armenian population is unofficially estimated as being around 12,000.-History:...

and Lithuania

Armenians in Lithuania

Armenians in Lithuania refers to ethnic Armenians living in Lithuania. They number around 2,500. According to Soviet 1989 census there are 1,655 Armenians in Lithuania.The Armenians live mainly in Vilnius...

.

Hundreds of thousands of Armenians also settled in Western Europe

Western Europe

Western Europe is a loose term for the collection of countries in the western most region of the European continents, though this definition is context-dependent and carries cultural and political connotations. One definition describes Western Europe as a geographic entity—the region lying in the...

(i.e. France

Armenians in France

Armenians in France are ethnic Armenians living within the modern republic of France. Like much of the Armenian Diaspora, most Armenians immigrated to France after the Armenian Genocide of 1915–1923. Others came later, fleeing conflicts in places like Lebanon, Syria, Egypt and Iran...

, Germany

Armenians in Germany

Armenians in Germany are ethnic Armenians living within the modern republic of Germany. Like much of the Armenian Diaspora, most Armenians immigrated to Germany after the Armenian Genocide of 1915. Others came later, fleeing conflicts in places like Iran, Azerbaijan and Lebanon. Another influx came...

, Italy

Armenians in Italy

Armenians in Italy covers the Armenians who live in Italy. There are currently 2,500 Armenians in Italy mainly residing in Milan, Rome and Venice....

, the UK

Armenians in the United Kingdom

There has been sporadic emigration from Armenia to the UK since the 18th century, with the biggest influx coming after the Second World War. The majority are based in the major cities of London and Manchester...

and the Netherlands

Armenians in the Netherlands

Armenian-Dutch are citizens of the Netherlands of Armenian ancestry. The exact number of Armenians in the country is unknown, since the Dutch Immigration Office only offers data on country of origin...

); and in the Americas

Americas

The Americas, or America , are lands in the Western hemisphere, also known as the New World. In English, the plural form the Americas is often used to refer to the landmasses of North America and South America with their associated islands and regions, while the singular form America is primarily...

(North and South) as early as in the 1890s.

The Armenian communities in the United States and Canada are considerably younger. These two countries have seen an upsurge of Armenian immigration of later generations from the Middle East

Middle East

The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...

following the expansion of Pan-Arabism

Pan-Arabism

in Egypt and Syria, Islamism

Islamism

in Iran, the Lebanese Civil War

Lebanese Civil War

. North American countries are also witnessing a considerable amount of immigration after the fall of the Soviet Union

Soviet Union

The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....

and as a result of economic conditions in the Republic of Armenia.

For Latin America

Latin America

Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...

, there are active Armenian communities in the entire region. Argentina and Brazil

Armenian Brazilian

An Armenian Brazilian is a Brazilian person of full, partial, or predominantly Armenian ancestry, or an Armenian immigrant in Brazil.-Migration history:...

, and to a lesser extent Uruguay

Armenians in Uruguay

Armenians in Uruguay number around 19,000. The Armenian community in Uruguay is one of the oldest in South America. Most live in the capital Montevideo.-History:...

, contain large numbers of Armenians. An estimated 10,000 Armenians are also said to reside in Mexico

White Mexican

Mexicans of European descent, often called "güeros" or blancos in Mexican Spanish, are generally those of light skin and predominantly European features which are most often associated with Mexico's upper and middle socioeconomic classes...

Armenians in the Soviet Era

Substantial Armenian communities also exist in the Russian Far East

Russian Far East

Russian Far East is a term that refers to the Russian part of the Far East, i.e., extreme east parts of Russia, between Lake Baikal in Eastern Siberia and the Pacific Ocean...

as well as in the former Soviet republics

Post-Soviet states

The post-Soviet states, also commonly known as the Former Soviet Union or former Soviet republics, are the 15 independent states that split off from the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics in its dissolution in December 1991...

of Central Asia

Central Asia

Central Asia is a core region of the Asian continent from the Caspian Sea in the west, China in the east, Afghanistan in the south, and Russia in the north...

. Some of these groups were encouraged to settle in the area by both Tsarist

Russian Empire

The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...

and Soviet

Soviet Union

The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....

authorities while others had no choice but to come, being part of Stalin

Joseph Stalin

Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin was the Premier of the Soviet Union from 6 May 1941 to 5 March 1953. He was among the Bolshevik revolutionaries who brought about the October Revolution and had held the position of first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee...

's population deportations

Population transfer in the Soviet Union

Population transfer in the Soviet Union may be classified into the following broad categories: deportations of "anti-Soviet" categories of population, often classified as "enemies of workers," deportations of entire nationalities, labor force transfer, and organized migrations in opposite...

Armenians in Asia and the Far East

Armenian communities can also be found on the Asian continent. Some of these communities have a very long history going back many centuries.

In Asian countries, there were important communities in India

Armenians in India

The association of Armenians with India and the presence of Armenians in India are very old, and there has been a mutual economic and cultural association of Armenians with India for the last several centuries...

and Pakistan

Armenians in Pakistan

The Armenians in Pakistan are ethnic Armenians living in the country Pakistan. Many Armenians migrated from the surrounding countries of Iran, Afghanistan and india. Armenians have settled various parts of South Asia and many migrated to Karachi during the economic boom in the early 20th century...

, and as far east as Malaysia, Singapore

Armenians in Singapore

The Armenians in Singapore, who numbered around 100 families at their peak in the 1880s, have now moved on or become part of the wider Singapore community...

, Thailand

Thailand

Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...

, Myanmar and Hong Kong

Hong Kong

Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...

. Armenian exile communities even once thrived in China

Armenians in China

The Chinese Armenian community is a very small community that does not pass the thresholds of 100 individuals. However Armenians have held historical presence in China for many centuries....

, Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

and the Philippines

Philippines

The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...

, but the status of Armenian culture in these countries has all but disappeared.

Armenians in Africa

In the African continent, Armenians held a presence very notably in Sudan

Armenians in Sudan

There is an Armenian community in the Sudan estimated to be less than one thousand Armenians. Most are concentrated in the Sudanese capital Khartoum. Today Sudanese Armenians number about 50 people....

and Ethiopia

Ethiopian Armenians

There is a small community of Armenians in Ethiopia, primarily in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa.-Religion:The Armenian presence in Ethiopia is historic...

, as Armenians lived in these countries for a few centuries. Armenians also live in Sub-Saharan Africa

Sub-Saharan Africa

Sub-Saharan Africa as a geographical term refers to the area of the African continent which lies south of the Sahara. A political definition of Sub-Saharan Africa, instead, covers all African countries which are fully or partially located south of the Sahara...

, including South Africa

South Africa

The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...

Armenians in Oceania

There is a large Armenian community in Australia, estimated to be between 45 000 and 50 000, and consisting mainly of Armenian immigrants from the Middle East

Middle East

The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...

and Armenia

Armenia

Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...

. A much smaller Armenian community has settled in New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

External links

Hayern Aysor (Armenians Today) Official site of the Armenian Ministry of the Diaspora
ArmeniaDiaspora.com
Armenians In ... | Forum For Worldwide Armenians
InHomage Armenian Memorial dedicated to the victims of 1915 - Recording and referencing of the Names by area - Contact between the descendants in the Armenian diaspora
Arak29 Homeland-Diaspora Issue Paper
Armenian Family Tree Project
Armenian Genealogy

Armenian Diaspora Political Organizations

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.

Background

Political and religious conflicts

Armenians of the Middle East

Armenians in Europe and the Americas

Armenians in the Soviet Era

Armenians in Asia and the Far East

Armenians in Africa

Armenians in Oceania

See also

External links

Armenian Diaspora Political Organizations