Margaryan
03.05.2008, 21:02
The Armenians of Isfahan, a Christian minority in the land of Mullahs [Outgoing Special Iran : 2/10]
Article published in 24/05/2005 Issue
By Célia CHAUFFOUR in Ispahan
Translated by Victoria BRYAN
Isfahan, the New Julfa district. At first glance, nothing appears to separate these roads from those found in the rest of the former Persian capital. However, a closer look reveals that it’s not domes perched atop mosques, but Christian crosses balanced jauntily atop churches. Living on the banks of the Zayandeh Rud river since the 17th century, the Armenians of Isfahan practise their faith freely. A look at the heart of a fragile Christian minority on Shiite soil.
Outgoing Special IRAN : 2/10
http://www.caucaz.com/img/RubriqueSOCIETE/Ispahan3.jpg
http://www.caucaz.com/img/RubriqueSOCIETE/Ispahan4.jpg
They are confused. And disappointed. In the last presidential elections of June 2001, the majority of Isfahan’s 8,000 Armenians put their cross in the box next to the name of Khatami, the reformer. However, the outgoing president did not keep the election promises that brought him to power.
The result of this is that in the Armenian community of Isfahan, as elsewhere in Iran, the level of participation in the presidential election in June looks set to be low. What has changed? The people want to believe in the election, but that’s something of a challenge.
“In 2001, I chose to protest against the conservatives by voting in favour of the left. But this time, I won’t be voting for either of them”, sighs Manuche, an Armenian originally from Abadan, in the Khouzestan province. Her words are indicative of the current trend. That of a rampant lack of interest for Iranian politics.
The owner of a jewellery shop in the New Julfa district, Manuche belongs to the liberal middle classes, a milieu that is often associated with the business-oriented Armenian diaspora.
Amongst the Armenians, making jewellery remains a minority activity compared to the mechanical trade in which they have become masters. With the exception of some large fortunes, the Armenian community of Isfahan could be described as middle-class, enjoying a more comfortable standard of living than the majority of Muslim Iranians.
Well-accustomed to talks of reform that they know do not have a future, the Armenians of Iran, no matter their social background, steer clear of national politics. It is only community issues that hold an interest for them and to such an extent that New Julfa places more importance on legislative rather than executive power.
Robert Belgarian, a representative in the Armenian parliament in southern Iran, is one of the two Armenian MPs elected to the Majlis (the Iranian parliament) in the last legislative elections at the start of 2005 and is also originally from Isfahan. “The ideal scenario would be for him to follow in the footsteps of his predecessor, Georgik Abrahamia”, suggests Manuche.
> Literally applauded by the Armenian minority in Iran, “ He tried to redress the balance between minority and majority, particularly on the issue of penal rights so that Armenians could enjoy the same rights, and punishments, as Muslim Iranians”, she says.
The former MP is also respected for having brought Armenians into the mysterious world of local, regional and central administration, the first time that had happened since the Islamic Revolution in 1979.
> Eyes glinting mischievously, Manuche drops in an aside. Having been used to lambasting a theocratic regime that imposed strict restrictions, she admits that certain religious minorities, hers in particular, but also Jews and Zoroastrians, enjoy a freedom that is as exceptional as it is unexpected within the Islamic Republic. Armenians could even pass for privileged members of society in this strict regime.
An identity that is curbed, but still present even in the public domain
“We live like Muslims - we have to work on Sundays and we’re subject to Islamic laws. But the government does allow us to have holidays for the most important religious festivals such as Christmas or Easter”, explains Levon, a young Armenian student of Armenology at the University of Isfahan. His words are clear, namely that the central authority in Iran practices a controlled form of tolerance.
http://www.caucaz.com/img/RubriqueSOCIETE/Ispahan6.jpg
Closer inspection reveals that New Julfa is teeming with symbols of a blatant ‘Armenianness’, even an exaggerated sense of community. The streets in the district hide a dozen churches, but also an Armenian nursery school, primary school and secondary school. As for Farsi, it is sometimes replaced by Armenian, even on the signs of some stalls.
In a grotesque turn of events, fashionable Armenian cafés are deemed ‘Turkish cafés’, yet all the while proudly displaying posters commemorating the 90th anniversary of the Armenian genocide of 1915. Women wear the standard Islamic veil, but in this part of town, the fabric used is much more colourful than normal.
In this district, it has to be said, just as in the rest of the southern part of town, locals are traditionally more middle-class and liberal than in the north of Isfahan, which is poorer. The makes of cars stand as testament to this fact – the few Mercedes around, apart from those used by the police, cross paths in New Julfa.
But the heart of Armenian identity is to be found elsewhere in the area. Archbishop Babgen Vartabet Tsharian, who has left for Tehran to welcome Catholicos II on a visit to Iran, is a key figure in New Julfa.
You’ll usually see him in the courtyard of the St Saviour church. The church is a marvel of religious architecture dating from the 17th century and, if its more fervent admirers are anything to go by, it is one of the most beautiful churches in the Muslim world.
http://www.caucaz.com/img/RubriqueSOCIETE/Ispahan8.jpg
“The history of St Saviour is linked to that of the Armenians of Isfahan”, explains Rima, a 33 year-old teacher. “The first chapel was built in 1606, at the time when Shah Abbas I forced 30,000 Armenians, mostly merchants, to emigrate out of present-day Nakhichevan to this part of Isfahan, which was the capital of Persia at the time.”
Having been afforded complete religious freedom right from the start, this merchant community played a key role back then in the trade of silk and spices, with a vast network of trading posts between East and West.
Threatened by emigration
But the golden past of New Julfa is over. After the Islamic revolution and the accession to power of Imam Khomeini, the Armenian diaspora of Isfahan and its surroundings started to decline. Many Armenians emigrated, either for the United States, Canada, Europe or sometimes even Armenia. But despite a slight relaxation in the Khatami regime over the past few years, living conditions still prompt young Armenians to leave.
“Nearly half of the Armenian community has left for Marseilles and Los Angeles”, continues Rima. Some people say that there are 200,000 Armenians in Iran, others, more pessimistically, place the figure nearer 100,000. And even though the community of New Julfa represents an historic minority, the 60,000 Armenians of Tehran today make up the largest Armenian community in Iran.
http://www.caucaz.com/img/RubriqueSOCIETE/Ispahan10.jpg
Rima most of all fears the exodus of intellect. “It’s become quite easy for the younger generation to go to university. But once they are qualified, many of them prefer to leave the country.” She admits that she once considered following her brother and going to Yerevan, the Armenian capital, or to Shoushi in Nagorno Karabakh.
http://www.caucaz.com/img/RubriqueSOCIETE/Ispahan11.jpg
Despite everything, those who remain in New Julfa continue to live life according to events in Armenia. “I only rarely glance at the Iranian news”, says Levon. “I prefer to follow what’s happening in Yerevan by watching satellite television.”
Many of them buy the daily Armenian newspaper Aliq, which is published in Tehran and, as with all papers in Iran, is subject to censorship and self-censorship. More rarely, people buy Asbarez, which is published in the United States. Word of mouth is also a source of information, a technique mostly employed during meetings in the leisure clubs that are strictly reserved for Armenians.
Today, the current watchword in New Julfa is the preservation of the Armenian identity. “We live separately from Muslims in order to protect our culture. We try to keep relations with those outside our society strictly to business”, explains Rima defensively, a smile on her lips and a certain sense of determination. “We have succeeded in keeping our community together for 400 years. We must carry on doing so.”
http://www.caucaz.com/img/RubriqueSOCIETE/Ispahan13.jpg
Article published in 24/05/2005 Issue
By Célia CHAUFFOUR in Ispahan
Translated by Victoria BRYAN
Isfahan, the New Julfa district. At first glance, nothing appears to separate these roads from those found in the rest of the former Persian capital. However, a closer look reveals that it’s not domes perched atop mosques, but Christian crosses balanced jauntily atop churches. Living on the banks of the Zayandeh Rud river since the 17th century, the Armenians of Isfahan practise their faith freely. A look at the heart of a fragile Christian minority on Shiite soil.
Outgoing Special IRAN : 2/10
http://www.caucaz.com/img/RubriqueSOCIETE/Ispahan3.jpg
http://www.caucaz.com/img/RubriqueSOCIETE/Ispahan4.jpg
They are confused. And disappointed. In the last presidential elections of June 2001, the majority of Isfahan’s 8,000 Armenians put their cross in the box next to the name of Khatami, the reformer. However, the outgoing president did not keep the election promises that brought him to power.
The result of this is that in the Armenian community of Isfahan, as elsewhere in Iran, the level of participation in the presidential election in June looks set to be low. What has changed? The people want to believe in the election, but that’s something of a challenge.
“In 2001, I chose to protest against the conservatives by voting in favour of the left. But this time, I won’t be voting for either of them”, sighs Manuche, an Armenian originally from Abadan, in the Khouzestan province. Her words are indicative of the current trend. That of a rampant lack of interest for Iranian politics.
The owner of a jewellery shop in the New Julfa district, Manuche belongs to the liberal middle classes, a milieu that is often associated with the business-oriented Armenian diaspora.
Amongst the Armenians, making jewellery remains a minority activity compared to the mechanical trade in which they have become masters. With the exception of some large fortunes, the Armenian community of Isfahan could be described as middle-class, enjoying a more comfortable standard of living than the majority of Muslim Iranians.
Well-accustomed to talks of reform that they know do not have a future, the Armenians of Iran, no matter their social background, steer clear of national politics. It is only community issues that hold an interest for them and to such an extent that New Julfa places more importance on legislative rather than executive power.
Robert Belgarian, a representative in the Armenian parliament in southern Iran, is one of the two Armenian MPs elected to the Majlis (the Iranian parliament) in the last legislative elections at the start of 2005 and is also originally from Isfahan. “The ideal scenario would be for him to follow in the footsteps of his predecessor, Georgik Abrahamia”, suggests Manuche.
> Literally applauded by the Armenian minority in Iran, “ He tried to redress the balance between minority and majority, particularly on the issue of penal rights so that Armenians could enjoy the same rights, and punishments, as Muslim Iranians”, she says.
The former MP is also respected for having brought Armenians into the mysterious world of local, regional and central administration, the first time that had happened since the Islamic Revolution in 1979.
> Eyes glinting mischievously, Manuche drops in an aside. Having been used to lambasting a theocratic regime that imposed strict restrictions, she admits that certain religious minorities, hers in particular, but also Jews and Zoroastrians, enjoy a freedom that is as exceptional as it is unexpected within the Islamic Republic. Armenians could even pass for privileged members of society in this strict regime.
An identity that is curbed, but still present even in the public domain
“We live like Muslims - we have to work on Sundays and we’re subject to Islamic laws. But the government does allow us to have holidays for the most important religious festivals such as Christmas or Easter”, explains Levon, a young Armenian student of Armenology at the University of Isfahan. His words are clear, namely that the central authority in Iran practices a controlled form of tolerance.
http://www.caucaz.com/img/RubriqueSOCIETE/Ispahan6.jpg
Closer inspection reveals that New Julfa is teeming with symbols of a blatant ‘Armenianness’, even an exaggerated sense of community. The streets in the district hide a dozen churches, but also an Armenian nursery school, primary school and secondary school. As for Farsi, it is sometimes replaced by Armenian, even on the signs of some stalls.
In a grotesque turn of events, fashionable Armenian cafés are deemed ‘Turkish cafés’, yet all the while proudly displaying posters commemorating the 90th anniversary of the Armenian genocide of 1915. Women wear the standard Islamic veil, but in this part of town, the fabric used is much more colourful than normal.
In this district, it has to be said, just as in the rest of the southern part of town, locals are traditionally more middle-class and liberal than in the north of Isfahan, which is poorer. The makes of cars stand as testament to this fact – the few Mercedes around, apart from those used by the police, cross paths in New Julfa.
But the heart of Armenian identity is to be found elsewhere in the area. Archbishop Babgen Vartabet Tsharian, who has left for Tehran to welcome Catholicos II on a visit to Iran, is a key figure in New Julfa.
You’ll usually see him in the courtyard of the St Saviour church. The church is a marvel of religious architecture dating from the 17th century and, if its more fervent admirers are anything to go by, it is one of the most beautiful churches in the Muslim world.
http://www.caucaz.com/img/RubriqueSOCIETE/Ispahan8.jpg
“The history of St Saviour is linked to that of the Armenians of Isfahan”, explains Rima, a 33 year-old teacher. “The first chapel was built in 1606, at the time when Shah Abbas I forced 30,000 Armenians, mostly merchants, to emigrate out of present-day Nakhichevan to this part of Isfahan, which was the capital of Persia at the time.”
Having been afforded complete religious freedom right from the start, this merchant community played a key role back then in the trade of silk and spices, with a vast network of trading posts between East and West.
Threatened by emigration
But the golden past of New Julfa is over. After the Islamic revolution and the accession to power of Imam Khomeini, the Armenian diaspora of Isfahan and its surroundings started to decline. Many Armenians emigrated, either for the United States, Canada, Europe or sometimes even Armenia. But despite a slight relaxation in the Khatami regime over the past few years, living conditions still prompt young Armenians to leave.
“Nearly half of the Armenian community has left for Marseilles and Los Angeles”, continues Rima. Some people say that there are 200,000 Armenians in Iran, others, more pessimistically, place the figure nearer 100,000. And even though the community of New Julfa represents an historic minority, the 60,000 Armenians of Tehran today make up the largest Armenian community in Iran.
http://www.caucaz.com/img/RubriqueSOCIETE/Ispahan10.jpg
Rima most of all fears the exodus of intellect. “It’s become quite easy for the younger generation to go to university. But once they are qualified, many of them prefer to leave the country.” She admits that she once considered following her brother and going to Yerevan, the Armenian capital, or to Shoushi in Nagorno Karabakh.
http://www.caucaz.com/img/RubriqueSOCIETE/Ispahan11.jpg
Despite everything, those who remain in New Julfa continue to live life according to events in Armenia. “I only rarely glance at the Iranian news”, says Levon. “I prefer to follow what’s happening in Yerevan by watching satellite television.”
Many of them buy the daily Armenian newspaper Aliq, which is published in Tehran and, as with all papers in Iran, is subject to censorship and self-censorship. More rarely, people buy Asbarez, which is published in the United States. Word of mouth is also a source of information, a technique mostly employed during meetings in the leisure clubs that are strictly reserved for Armenians.
Today, the current watchword in New Julfa is the preservation of the Armenian identity. “We live separately from Muslims in order to protect our culture. We try to keep relations with those outside our society strictly to business”, explains Rima defensively, a smile on her lips and a certain sense of determination. “We have succeeded in keeping our community together for 400 years. We must carry on doing so.”
http://www.caucaz.com/img/RubriqueSOCIETE/Ispahan13.jpg