The Existential Challenges of the Armenian Middle East

Three years after the tragic explosion in the port of Beirut and 12 years after the outbreak of the Syrian Civil War, Armenian communities in the Middle East seem to be continuing their descent into the abyss. Christianity in the Land of Cedars, a state created by the Maronite Christian community, is in a state of inexorable decline, as is the Armenian community there — once the political and cultural center of the diaspora — whose hopes of a renaissance are no longer realistic.

The crisis facing Armenians in Lebanon is so severe that it affects virtually every facet of their lives: socio-economic, political, cultural and moral. It is a cognitive collapse that sweeps away everything in its path. Despite the rebuilding of taller, more beautiful, and more expensive buildings, and the bright sun welcoming tourists and holidaymakers, people carry an unhealed wound deep inside. 

During his visit to Lebanon this summer, Armenian-Lebanese-American historian Ara Sanjian expressed his disappointment with the collapse of cultural production in the country. He noted that Armenian book production is practically insignificant, with the number of books produced being far lower than at the height of the war. 

Publications were produced at a steady pace at the height of the Lebanese war, thanks to the presses of the Catholicosate of Cilicia and the Vahe Setian Printing House linked to Hamazkayin. The same applied to the partisan daily press. Affiliated with the ARF, the Aztag newspaper, which was founded in 1927, survived despite increasingly difficult material conditions. Ararat and Zartonk still appeared, but had ceased to be newspapers of reference. 

The only hope was the revival of PAKINE‘s editorial team, which leveraged its network of talent in the Armenian-Lebanese diaspora, as well as contributions from Armenia.

Within Syria, only 10,000 of the 100,000 Armenians living in this beacon of post-Cilician Western Armenian culture remain. Hopes of returning to normal life in the post-war context have been, for the most part, dashed. 

Political Crisis

Politically isolated from other Christians, the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF) is struggling to make its voice heard among other parliamentary forces. These forces take offence at the ARF’s support for Suleiman Frangiéh’s candidacy, which is backed by the Shiite tandem Amal Hezbollah and is close to Syria and Iran. Once again, Lebanon’s main Armenian political force is prioritizing its direct interests: not to alienate the all-powerful Hezbollah, whose militia constitutes Lebanon’s real army, and to avoid complications for the Armenians of Syria. 

It is worth noting that, during the height of the armed confrontations in Syria, the village of Anjar, a stronghold of the ARF in the Beqaa Valley and the last Lebanese locality before the Syrian border, was protected against ISIS thanks to the discreet and dissuasive role of Hezbollah.

Until recently, the Armenian communities of the Levant, and to a lesser extent Cyprus, were akin to an extraterritorial Cilicia, where the national Church still holds sway, although its influence is waning. Politically speaking, these communities are still living in the logic of the traditional Ottoman Millet system. The Armenian political scene today is divided into two parts: the traditional players (ARF Dashnaktsutyun, which still holds parliamentary representation, unlike the other two traditional parties, Ramgavar and Hnchakian); and Lebanese politicians of Armenian origin, elected based on their faith but with no concrete ties to the Armenian community.

Intellectual Crisis 

Lebanon, once an exporter of talent, executives and thinkers, is currently facing an intellectual crisis. Most of the intellectuals who have stayed in the country are older, and are struggling to break free from traditional clichés that prioritize the preservation of Armenian identity (hayabahbanum) and the sanctity of its language as an intransigent value. Their main obstacle is the inability to move beyond the framework of thought imposed by traditional structures. These structures, which allowed for the reconstruction of an extraterritorial Armenia in the Levant during the 1920s and 1930s, have become outdated due to a lack of critical self-examination, creativity, and a fear of confronting otherness.

In this respect, considering the diaspora as merely an extension of the political system of autonomy and administrative self-management inherited from the Ottoman Armenian Millet overlooks the complexity of the Armenian diaspora in the West and the immeasurable challenges it faces.

Sociologist Hratch Tchilinguirian quoted an editor at Aztag daily (established in 1927), who, over two decades ago, stated that his paper’s “biggest problem is that there are not enough writers. We don’t have intellectuals who are capable of writing, analyzing, and presenting local, regional, and international issues in Armenian.” He added that, “sadly, this pertains to all professions, not only to the media.”[1]

The absence of Armenian novels written in the Middle East by Armenian-speaking authors is a reflection of the cultural and intellectual crisis in the region. With the exception of Istanbul’s Zaven Berberian, the great Western Armenian novels of the diaspora were written and published in France between the two World Wars (including Shahan Shahnour and Zareh Vorpuni). Armenian writers from Lebanon and, to a lesser extent, Syria, still have a limited audience and cannot claim to be part of universal literature. The logic of the ghetto and self-enclosure has hindered self-expression, unburdened by the weight of norms and conventions.

According to Professor Hratch Tchilingirian’s study,[2] the digital revolution has had a dual effect. On one hand, it has made information and communication more accessible. On the other hand, it has caused a shift away from Armenian towards English, Arabic and even French. Except for the website of the well-established daily Aztag and the new online media Darperag21, there are not enough multimedia platforms in Western Armenian that can offer a compelling free service to the young readership of the diaspora. 

Crisis of the Armenian School

The historic breeding ground of modern Western Armenian, now classified as an endangered language in the 2010 edition of UNESCO’s Atlas of World Languages, faces multi-dimensional challenges that require adaptation. Schools play a key role in this regard. As a center of the diaspora, Armenian school networks in Egypt, Syria and Lebanon are struggling to cope with the challenges they face.

According to Tchilingirian, in the 1980s, there were 38 Armenian day schools in Syria, with 24 located in Aleppo and its environs. In Lebanon, there were 60 schools. Prior to the start of the Civil War in Lebanon in 1975, approximately 21,000 students were enrolled in Armenian schools. 

However, the current situation in the Middle East has led to a decline in the Armenian communities and their schools. In the last decade, schools in Lebanon, Egypt, Iraq, Iran and Turkey have seen a drastic decrease in enrollment numbers, quality of teaching staff, and available financial resources. Between 1991 and 2001, the number of Armenian schools in Lebanon fell from 45 to 33, and further down to 16 in 2022. The number of students has also declined from about 12,000 in the 1990s to less than 5,000 in 2022. 

In Iran, the trend has been even more severe. Before the Islamic Revolution, there were 17,000 students enrolled in Armenian schools, but in 2022, the figure stands at less than 2,000. Similar trends are observed in Egypt and Syria. In Aleppo alone, the number of students has decreased by 75% within a decade (2011-2022).[3] In Jordan, the only Armenian school, which had 88 students in 2011, closed its doors for good in 2018.[4]

The Urgent Need to Think About the Future

What solutions should be considered? One option is to consolidate existing schools into a single structure to save unnecessary costs. Another option is to open them up to a non-Armenian public, even if it means losing the majority of Armenian pupils, as is often the case in Syria. 

In Damascus, the Miatsal Varjaran Secondary School was inaugurated on its new campus on the outskirts of the city, in brand-new premises. This initiative was made possible thanks to Syrian public funding, with the aim of preserving an Armenian presence in the country.

The critical situation of Armenian teachers is currently a serious problem that, unfortunately, has not yet attracted the interest of pan-Armenian structures concerned with the issue.

Another alarming issue is the disappearance of Armenian studies from Lebanon. Until the 1990s, there were three chairs of Armenology: one at Hamazkayin, one at Saint Joseph University, and the other at Haigazian University. The latter has adapted to the contemporary challenges facing the Armenian world by establishing a diasporic research center led by the energetic Antranig Dakessian. Thanks to his impetus, numerous conferences on Middle Eastern communities have produced high-quality scientific literature on the subject in Armenian, English, French and Arabic. 

In Aleppo, the philologist Professor Levon Sharoyan valiantly continues his work, training dozens of students each year in Armenology despite the challenges of war and sanctions.

The Catholicosate of the Great House of Cilicia is reconsidering the diaspora, recognizing that the majority of its human resources are now in North America and Europe. Despite 2022 being declared the Year of the Diaspora, the Catholicosate has yet to draw up a clear plan for the future. The challenge of reforming the diaspora model and its structures feels like “making something new out of something old”. It is worth noting, however, the impressive rejuvenation of the Armenian clergy. A significant proportion of priests in their thirties serve their respective dioceses connected to Antelias with faith and dynamism. 

The Armenian elite, lacking a long-term vision and relying solely on emergency management,  cannot face the future with confidence. Armenian executives in the Diaspora, along with the High Commission for the Diaspora, have a historic responsibility to preserve the existing heritage, which includes the Armenian Quarter in Jerusalem and its dependencies in the Holy Land, the Primacy Library in Aleppo, the Yegavian Library in Aleppo, the Cathedral of the Forty Martyrs in Aleppo, and orphanages in Lebanon. This can be achieved by strengthening synergies and cooperation programs based on mutual interests. Such programs could bring about a paradigm shift in the traditional representation of Armenians in the Middle East, which has been centered on the idea of the Armenian nation, and for whom the Armenian state is an abstract reality. 

The latest conference organized at Haigazian University at the end of June this year focused on the idea of transformations of the Armenian World. The conference encouraged transnational  thinking and emphasized the importance of recognizing the tangible and intangible heritage of the Armenian community. Rather than starting from scratch, it is necessary to invest in culture and education on an international level and distribute tasks accordingly.

 

Footnotes: 

[1]  Tchilingirian, “Crisis Without Borders”, 1999.
[2] Hratch Tchilingirian, ARMENIAN COMMUNITIES IN THE MIDDLE EAST: LOSING THE PAST IN THE FUTURE? FROM PLURALISM TO EXTINCTION? Perspectives and Challenges for Christians in The Middle East Edited by Sotiris Roussos TRANSNATIONAL PRESS LONDON 2023
[3]  Ibid.
[4]  Ibid.

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