Freydun Atturaya
Encyclopedia
Freydun Bet-Abram Atturaya (1891 – 1926) was an Assyrian
physician
born in the town of Charbash in the district of Urmia
in Iran
. He was sent by his father to live with an uncle in Tbilisi
, then in the Russian Empire
, and studied medicine there. He worked as a medical doctor for the Russian Army
as soon as he graduated in 1915. He was later transferred to the Russian Forces in Iran
as a medical and political officer, and established an Assyrian National Committee in Urmia, sending 250 young Assyrian men to Russia for military training.
After the February 1917 Russian revolution
, Freydun Atturaya, Benjamin Bet Arsanis and Baba Bet Parhad founded the first Assyrian political party, the Assyrian Socialist Party
. Atturaya completed in April 1917 an Urmia Manifesto of the United Free Assyria
in Assyrian Neo-Aramaic
, stating in it that "the goal of the free Assyrian unity is to establish in the future the national self-governing in the regions like Urmia, Mosul, Turabdin, Nisibin, Jezira, Julamaerk along with the reunification with the great free Russia in terms of economic and military agreements".
After 1918, the Assyrian National Council which he ran moved to Tbilisi
and he was ousted, then imprisoned, under suspicion of being a British spy. After a failed attempt in 1921 to convince the Soviet Foreign minister to repatriate Assyrians to Urmia and Salamis, he married in 1922, and subsequently had two children. He was imprisoned again in 1924 under the accusation of being "a fanatic Assyrian nationalist". He died in prison in 1926, probably poisoned or hanged.
Alongside his military and political career, he wrote poems and founded an Assyrian magazine and an Assyrian library.
Assyrian people
The Assyrian people are a distinct ethnic group whose origins lie in ancient Mesopotamia...
physician
Physician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
born in the town of Charbash in the district of Urmia
Urmia
- Demographics :According to official census of 2006, the population of Urmia is about 871,204.- Language :The population of Urmia is mainly Azerbaijani people, with Kurdish, Assyrian Christian, and Armenian minorities...
in 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...
. He was sent by his father to live with an uncle in 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...
, then in the 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 studied medicine there. He worked as a medical doctor for the Russian Army
Imperial Russian Army
The Imperial Russian Army was the land armed force of the Russian Empire, active from around 1721 to the Russian Revolution of 1917. In the early 1850s, the Russian army consisted of around 938,731 regular soldiers and 245,850 irregulars . Until the time of military reform of Dmitry Milyutin in...
as soon as he graduated in 1915. He was later transferred to the Russian Forces in 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...
as a medical and political officer, and established an Assyrian National Committee in Urmia, sending 250 young Assyrian men to Russia for military training.
After the February 1917 Russian revolution
February Revolution
The February Revolution of 1917 was the first of two revolutions in Russia in 1917. Centered around the then capital Petrograd in March . Its immediate result was the abdication of Tsar Nicholas II, the end of the Romanov dynasty, and the end of the Russian Empire...
, Freydun Atturaya, Benjamin Bet Arsanis and Baba Bet Parhad founded the first Assyrian political party, the Assyrian Socialist Party
Assyrian Socialist Party
The Assyrian Socialist Party, the first Assyrian political party, was founded after the February 1917 Russian revolution, by Dr. Freydun Atturaya, Rabbi Benjamin Bet Arsanis and Dr. Baba Bet Parhad...
. Atturaya completed in April 1917 an Urmia Manifesto of the United Free Assyria
Urmia Manifesto of the United Free Assyria
Urmia Manifesto of the United Free Assyria was written by Assyrian nationalist Freydun Atturaya, in his struggle for Assyrian independence during and after World War I. It was written in Syriac and completed in April 1917. Its ideology was Marxism, and it supported self regional independence for...
in Assyrian Neo-Aramaic
Assyrian 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...
, stating in it that "the goal of the free Assyrian unity is to establish in the future the national self-governing in the regions like Urmia, Mosul, Turabdin, Nisibin, Jezira, Julamaerk along with the reunification with the great free Russia in terms of economic and military agreements".
After 1918, the Assyrian National Council which he ran moved to 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...
and he was ousted, then imprisoned, under suspicion of being a British spy. After a failed attempt in 1921 to convince the Soviet Foreign minister to repatriate Assyrians to Urmia and Salamis, he married in 1922, and subsequently had two children. He was imprisoned again in 1924 under the accusation of being "a fanatic Assyrian nationalist". He died in prison in 1926, probably poisoned or hanged.
Alongside his military and political career, he wrote poems and founded an Assyrian magazine and an Assyrian library.