Vakifli, Samandag
Encyclopedia
Vakıflı Köyü is the only remaining ethnic Armenian village in Turkey
. Located on the slopes of Musa Dagh
in the Samandağ
district of Hatay Province
, the village overlooks the Mediterranean Sea
and is within eyesight of the Syria
n border. It is home to a community of about 130 Turkish-Armenians
. Vakıflı is the only totally Armenian village in the world still speaking a dialect of Western Armenian
. The dialect is very thick, and cannot be understood by other Western Armenians.
The residents of Vakıflı are the descendants of those Armenians who resisted the deportations and massacres of 1915
on Musa Dagh
. For 53 days they repelled attacks by Turkish troops until French sailors sighted a banner that the Armenians had tied to a tree on the mountain emblazoned with the words "Christians in Distress: Rescue". After being transported to Port Said
by the French, seven Armenian villages returned to their homes while Hatay was under French occupation starting from 1918. Following an agreement between France
and Turkey
and a plebiscite
, the district reverted to Turkey on June 29, 1939, a move still not recognized by Syria. After this move the other six Armenian villages immigrated out of Hatay settling in Lebanon's Beqaa Valley
, especially Anjar
, while the residents of Vakıflı chose to stay.
Vakıflı suffered from a lack of jobs until the mid-2000s, prompting the younger generation to move to Istanbul. An estimated 500 former residents of Vakıflı live in Istanbul, and the village population increases to around 300 in summer as they visit. However, with the help of the district governor (kaymakam
) and the TEMA
Foundation, which identified ten villages and developed specific projects for each village to stop the urban migration, Vakıflı was selected for development of organic farming and eco-tourism, and the village obtained the only EU organic farming certification in the region. In 2004, Vakıflı Village Cooperative exported organic oranges worth one million Euros, giving hope of economic viability to the village and prompting some villagers to move back from Istanbul.
Between 1994 and 1997, the village church was reconstructed and expanded with assistance from the Turkish government. In 2005, Vakıflı restored its old school building, turning it into a bed-and-breakfast, with two more old houses being converted to bed-and-breakfasts. With the help of the local government and the Association for Development of Vakıflı, an Istanbul based organization, a project for ecotourism
is being implemented that aims to restore the traditional stone houses of the village.
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
. Located on the slopes of Musa Dagh
Musa Dagh
Musa Dagh was the site of resistance by the Armenians during the Armenian Genocide. The denizens of that region were violently expelled from their six villages by the Ottomans in 1915...
in the Samandağ
Samandag
Seleucia Pieria was a town in antiquity, the capital of Seleucus I Nicator, in Syria Prima. It was the port of the western Seleucid capital of Antioch, lying close to the mouth of the Orontes. Its ruins lie at the seaside village of Çevliknear the town of Samandağ in the Hatay Province of Turkey...
district of Hatay Province
Hatay Province
Hatay Province is a province in southern Turkey, on the Mediterranean coast. It is bordered by Syria to the south and east and the Turkish provinces of Adana and Osmaniye to the north. The province is part of Çukurova, a geographical, economical and cultural region that covers the provinces of...
, the village overlooks the Mediterranean Sea
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
and is within eyesight of the 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....
n border. It is home to a community of about 130 Turkish-Armenians
Armenians in Turkey
Armenians in Turkey have an estimated population of 40,000 to 70,000 . Most are concentrated around Istanbul. The Armenians support their own newspapers and schools...
. Vakıflı is the only totally Armenian village in the world still speaking a dialect of Western Armenian
Western Armenian language
Western Armenian is one of the two standardized forms of modern Armenian, the other being Eastern Armenian. The two standard forms form a pluricentric language. For historical reasons explained below, generally speaking, Western Armenian is used outside the Republic of Armenia, while Eastern...
. The dialect is very thick, and cannot be understood by other Western Armenians.
The residents of Vakıflı are the descendants of those Armenians who resisted the deportations and massacres of 1915
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...
on Musa Dagh
Musa Dagh
Musa Dagh was the site of resistance by the Armenians during the Armenian Genocide. The denizens of that region were violently expelled from their six villages by the Ottomans in 1915...
. For 53 days they repelled attacks by Turkish troops until French sailors sighted a banner that the Armenians had tied to a tree on the mountain emblazoned with the words "Christians in Distress: Rescue". After being transported to Port Said
Port Said
Port Said is a city that lies in north east Egypt extending about 30 km along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, north of the Suez Canal, with an approximate population of 603,787...
by the French, seven Armenian villages returned to their homes while Hatay was under French occupation starting from 1918. Following an agreement between France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
and a plebiscite
Referendum
A referendum is a direct vote in which an entire electorate is asked to either accept or reject a particular proposal. This may result in the adoption of a new constitution, a constitutional amendment, a law, the recall of an elected official or simply a specific government policy. It is a form of...
, the district reverted to Turkey on June 29, 1939, a move still not recognized by Syria. After this move the other six Armenian villages immigrated out of Hatay settling in Lebanon's Beqaa Valley
Beqaa Valley
The Beqaa Valley is a fertile valley in east Lebanon. For the Romans, the Beqaa Valley was a major agricultural source, and today it remains Lebanon’s most important farming region...
, especially 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...
, while the residents of Vakıflı chose to stay.
Vakıflı suffered from a lack of jobs until the mid-2000s, prompting the younger generation to move to Istanbul. An estimated 500 former residents of Vakıflı live in Istanbul, and the village population increases to around 300 in summer as they visit. However, with the help of the district governor (kaymakam
Kaymakam
Qaim Maqam or Qaimaqam or Kaymakam is the title used for the governor of a provincial district in the Republic of Turkey, Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus and in Lebanon; additionally, it was a title used for roughly the same official position in the Ottoman...
) and the TEMA
TEMA
TEMA may refer to:* Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America* Tennessee Emergency Management Agency*TEMA - Triple Entry & Momentum Accounting...
Foundation, which identified ten villages and developed specific projects for each village to stop the urban migration, Vakıflı was selected for development of organic farming and eco-tourism, and the village obtained the only EU organic farming certification in the region. In 2004, Vakıflı Village Cooperative exported organic oranges worth one million Euros, giving hope of economic viability to the village and prompting some villagers to move back from Istanbul.
Between 1994 and 1997, the village church was reconstructed and expanded with assistance from the Turkish government. In 2005, Vakıflı restored its old school building, turning it into a bed-and-breakfast, with two more old houses being converted to bed-and-breakfasts. With the help of the local government and the Association for Development of Vakıflı, an Istanbul based organization, a project for ecotourism
Ecotourism
Ecotourism is a form of tourism visiting fragile, pristine, and usually protected areas, intended as a low impact and often small scale alternative to standard commercial tourism...
is being implemented that aims to restore the traditional stone houses of the village.
See also
- Armenian-Turkish relationsArmenian-Turkish relationsArmenian–Turkish relations have been strained by a number of historical and political issues, including the Armenian Genocide and the continuing Turkish attempts at its denial. Although there are currently no formal diplomatic relations between the two modern states, it was announced on October 10,...
- The Forty Days of Musa DaghThe Forty Days of Musa DaghThe Forty Days of Musa Dagh is a 1933 novel by Austrian-Jewish author Franz Werfel based on the defense of a small community of Armenians living in the Musa Dagh of the Ottoman Empire in 1915 during the height of the Armenian Genocide. The book was originally published as Die Vierzig Tage des Musa...
- Republic of HatayRepublic of HatayHatay State , also known informally as the Republic of Hatay, was a transitional political entity that formally existed from September 7, 1938 to June 29, 1939 in the territory of the Sanjak of Alexandretta of the French Mandate of Syria. The State was transformed de jure into the Hatay Province on...
- Kesab