Assyrian Scouting and Guiding
Encyclopedia
Assyrian Scouting and Guiding is composed of multiple small Assyrian
Scouting
associations, open mainly to boys and girls of Assyrian descent in Iraq, Lebanon, Australia and Sweden
, and previously in Syria
.
, then later developed abroad among the refugees
who had survived the genocide of 1914-1920
and among those that had fled.
The history of Scouting in Iraq started with the British Mandate of Mesopotamia in the early 1920s, when Scouting got started in several areas and was well entrenched. RAF Habbaniya
opened in 1937, on the Euphrates
40 miles west of Baghdad as the permanent Royal Air Force
headquarters for Iraq. As well as the military part of the station, there was a civil cantonment for civilians working on the station and their families. The population was very mixed, with a comparatively high proportion of Assyrians. In 1940 the schoolmaster wished to start a Scout organization and was assisted by the Royal Air Force servicemen stationed there. The Iraqi Scout Organization was run on British lines
, consisting of seven troops each with a British and an Assyrian instructor, a Senior Scout troop, and an Assyrian Rover crew. Girls wanted to join, so the Rovers started a separate troop for them. Some British nursing
sisters (the only British women on the station) with experience as Girl Guides
, started working with the group, until there were four Girl Guide companies, again run on British Guiding
lines, within the framework of the Iraqi Scouting Organization.
.
Assyrian people
The Assyrian people are a distinct ethnic group whose origins lie in ancient Mesopotamia...
Scouting
Scouting
Scouting, also known as the Scout Movement, is a worldwide youth movement with the stated aim of supporting young people in their physical, mental and spiritual development, that they may play constructive roles in society....
associations, open mainly to boys and girls of Assyrian descent in Iraq, Lebanon, Australia and Sweden
Assyrians in Sweden
Assyrians/Syriacs in Sweden are people of residing in Sweden. Initially, most came from Turkey, Lebanon and Syria. During the 2000s, an unprecedented immigration wave from Iraq reached Sweden as a result of the Iraq War .-Distribution:...
, and previously in Syria
Assyrians in Syria
Assyrians/Syriacs in Syria have lived in north eastern Syria since 2000 BC, parts of the region were an integral part of Assyria proper, and during the Neo Assyrian Empire the entirety of the modern country of Syria was under Assyrian rule...
.
History
Assyrian Scouting and Guiding was founded around 1912 in the Assyrian areas of the Ottoman EmpireAssyrian homeland
Assyrian homeland refers to a geographic and cultural region inhabited traditionally by the Assyrian people; who call it Assyria . It is largely coterminous with the Kurdish homeland, including parts of what is now northeast Syria, northern Iraq, northwestern Iran and southeastern Turkey.The area...
, then later developed abroad among the refugees
Assyrian diaspora
The Assyrian/Chaldean/Syriac diaspora refers to the estimated population of Assyrian/Syriac Christians in the world that migrated outside of the Middle East or their original homeland. The worldwide diaspora of Syriac Christian communities begins during World War I, with the mass-killings of...
who had survived the genocide of 1914-1920
Assyrian genocide
The Assyrian Genocide refers to the mass slaughter of the Assyrian/Chaldean/Syriac population of the Ottoman Empire during the 1890s, the First World War, and the period of 1922-1925...
and among those that had fled.
The history of Scouting in Iraq started with the British Mandate of Mesopotamia in the early 1920s, when Scouting got started in several areas and was well entrenched. RAF Habbaniya
RAF Habbaniya
Royal Air Force Station Habbaniya, more commonly known as RAF Habbaniya, was a Royal Air Force station at Habbaniyah, about west of Baghdad in modern day Iraq, on the banks of the Euphrates near Lake Habbaniyah...
opened in 1937, on the Euphrates
Euphrates
The Euphrates is the longest and one of the most historically important rivers of Western Asia. Together with the Tigris, it is one of the two defining rivers of Mesopotamia...
40 miles west of Baghdad as the permanent Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
headquarters for Iraq. As well as the military part of the station, there was a civil cantonment for civilians working on the station and their families. The population was very mixed, with a comparatively high proportion of Assyrians. In 1940 the schoolmaster wished to start a Scout organization and was assisted by the Royal Air Force servicemen stationed there. The Iraqi Scout Organization was run on British lines
The Scout Association
The Scout Association is the World Organization of the Scout Movement recognised Scouting association in the United Kingdom. Scouting began in 1907 through the efforts of Robert Baden-Powell. The Scout Association was formed under its previous name, The Boy Scout Association, in 1910 by the grant...
, consisting of seven troops each with a British and an Assyrian instructor, a Senior Scout troop, and an Assyrian Rover crew. Girls wanted to join, so the Rovers started a separate troop for them. Some British nursing
Nursing
Nursing is a healthcare profession focused on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life from conception to death....
sisters (the only British women on the station) with experience as Girl Guides
Girl Guides
A Guide, Girl Guide or Girl Scout is a member of a section of some Guiding organisations who is between the ages of 10 and 14. Age limits are different in each organisation. It is the female-centred equivalent of the Scouts. The term Girl Scout is used in the United States and several East Asian...
, started working with the group, until there were four Girl Guide companies, again run on British Guiding
Girlguiding UK
Girlguiding UK is the national Guiding organisation of the United Kingdom. Guiding began in the UK in 1910 after Robert Baden-Powell asked his sister Agnes to start a group especially for girls that would be run along similar lines to Scouting for Boys. The Guide Association was a founder member of...
lines, within the framework of the Iraqi Scouting Organization.
Organizations
Today, several organizations exist, among them:- Hammurabi Assyrian Scout Association, ܒܕܩܘܬܐ ܕܚܡܘܪܒܝ, named for HammurabiHammurabiHammurabi Hammurabi Hammurabi (Akkadian from Amorite ʻAmmurāpi, "the kinsman is a healer", from ʻAmmu, "paternal kinsman", and Rāpi, "healer"; (died c...
, with more than 250 Scouts, and branches in Baghdad, NinevehNinawa GovernorateNinawa is a governorate in northern Iraq, and the Arabic name for the biblical city of Nineveh in Assyria. It has an area of and an estimated population of 2,453,000 people in 2003. Its chief city and provincial capital is Mosul, which lies across the Tigris river from the ruins of ancient...
, Duhok, and Arbil governorates - Universal Syriac Scout Association, جمعية الكشاف السرياني اللبناني - ܟܢܘܫܬܐ ܕܒܕܘܩܐ ܣܘܪܝܝܐ ܠܒܢܢܝܐ , a member of the Lebanese Scouting Federation, by extension a member of the World Organization of the Scout MovementWorld Organization of the Scout MovementThe World Organization of the Scout Movement is the Non-governmental international organization which governs most national Scout Organizations, with 31 million members. WOSM was established in 1920, and has its headquarters at Geneva, Switzerland...
- Swedish Assyrian Scouting Association
- Scouts Assyriens, affiliated to the Scouts of Syria
- Assyrian Eagle Scouts of Australia
Ideals
The Scout Motto is ܡܬܘܼܡ ܥܬܝܼܕܵܐ, M-Thoom 'ateeda!, Always Ready in Assyrian SyriacAssyrian Neo-Aramaic
Assyrian Neo-Aramaic is a Neo-Aramaic dialect, spoken by an estimated 220,000 people , formerly in the area between Lake Urmia, north-western Iran, and Siirt, south-eastern Turkey, but now more widely throughout the...
.