Total population | |
---|---|
3,000 [1] | |
Regions with significant populations | |
Amman, Ma'an, Shobak, Al Karak, Madaba, Russeifa, Zarqa, Irbid, Aqaba | |
Languages | |
Armenian, Jordanian Arabic [2] | |
Religion | |
Armenian Apostolic Church |
Armenians in Jordan are ethnic Armenians living in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. There are an estimated 3,000 Armenians living in the country today with an estimated 2,500 of them being members of the Armenian Apostolic Church, [1] and predominantly speak Western Armenian dialect. [3] Armenians make up the biggest majority of non-Arab Christians in the country. [4]
There were about 6,000 Armenians living in Jordan during the period 1930-1946. After the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, a new wave of immigrants came from Palestine to Jordan increasing the number of Armenians to about 10,000. However starting in the 1950s, and particularly after the 1967 Arab-Israeli Six-Day War, Jordan witnessed the emigration of many Armenians to Australia, Canada and the United States a trend that continued in the 1970s, reducing the numbers of Jordanian Armenians to about 3,000.
The majority of these Armenians are the descendants of survivors from the Armenian genocide during World War I who were deported from the Ottoman Empire in Anatolia and Cilicia or fled to Syria and then Jordan. The early Armenian refugees in Jordan resided mainly in places like Ma'an, Shobak, Al Karak and Madaba and Russeifa. Nowadays, the majority of the Armenians lives in the capital Amman, with a few families in Irbid, Aqaba, Madaba and Zarqa.
Armenians have worked in photography, fashion, car mechanics and in professional businesses and small trade.
Most Armenian organizations and schools and religious structures are located in Amman's Jabal Al-Ashrafieh neighborhood also commonly called the Armenian Neighborhood (in Arabic : حي الأرمن pronounced Hayy al-Arman).
While most Armenians have now moved out of the Armenian quarter in Amman, the Armenian quarter currently comprises two Armenian churches.
Armenians in Jordan are mainly followers of the Armenian Apostolic Church, under the jurisdiction of the Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem. The patriarch of Jerusalem assigns a bishop to the Jordanian diocese. A small minority of Armenians in Jordan belong to the Armenian Catholic Church.
The churches:
Armenian education is very important in maintaining Armenian language and identity among the Armenian community in Jordan. Amman is host to many Armenian institutions, long-running schools and cultural associations. Armenian students, who graduate from those community schools, can immediately enter the Jordanian High school system, after passing the elementary school classes.
First Armenian school was founded in Jabal Al-Natheef in Amman . Called Hetoumyan Azkayeen Varjaran, it operated in the 1930s. Another smaller school operated in Russeifa founded by Samuel Agha Serpekian.
Currently, two Armenian elementary schools operate in Amman:
The majority of Armenian organizations are based in Amman. Those organizations aim to serve as a gathering for members of the Armenian community through engaging in various activities such as arts and culture, sports, dance, scouting, women activities, youth and charitable associations, and celebration of national events.
Armenians in Jordan participated in many of Jordan national leagues and Sport tournaments presented by the two clubs in Jordan Homenetmen and Watany Sporting Club.
WSC currently have a Chess Team and active in Jordan League tournaments, and hosted many tournaments on the occasion of King Abdullah's Birthday and Jordan Independence Day for the last decade.
Basketball is the most prominent of the activities of the two Armenian sports clubs Watany Sporting Club and Homenetmen. They both had prominent basketball teams and played in the official Jordanian Basketball League in first and second division starting 1950s and until the 1990s.
Some Jordanian Armenian players have represented Jordan and were members of the Jordanian National Basketball Team. In addition, Watany Sporting Club won Jordanian Basketball League tournament in 1963.
Madaba is the capital city of Madaba Governorate in central Jordan, with a population of about 60,000. It is best known for its Byzantine and Umayyad mosaics, especially a large Byzantine-era mosaic map of the Holy Land. Madaba is located 30 kilometres south-west of the capital Amman.
Armenians in Egypt are a community with a long history. They are a minority with their own language, churches, and social institutions. The number of Armenians in Egypt has decreased due to migrations to other countries and integration into the rest of Egyptian society, including extensive intermarriage with Muslims and Christians. Today they number about 6000, much smaller than a few generations ago. They are concentrated in Cairo and Alexandria, the two largest cities. Economically the Egyptian Armenians have tended to be self-employed businessmen or craftsmen and to have more years of education than the Egyptian average.
Madaba is one of the governorates of Jordan. It is located southwest of Amman, the capital of Jordan, and its capital is Madaba. The governorate is ranked 8th by population and by area. It is bordered by Balqa Governorate to the north, The Capital Governorate to the east, Karak Governorate to the south and the Dead Sea to the west.
Armenians have lived in Lebanon for centuries. According to Minority Rights Group International, there are 156,000 Armenians in Lebanon, around 4% of the population. Prior to the Lebanese Civil War, the number was higher, but the community lost a portion of its population to emigration.
Rose and Alex Pilibos Armenian School is a K-12 Armenian school in the neighborhood of Little Armenia in Los Angeles, California. It was founded by Alex and Rose Pilibos in 1969. History and religion classes are taught in the Armenian language, and the rest of the classes are taught in English. The school is part of St. Garabed Armenian Apostolic Church.
Homenetmen is a pan-Armenian diaspora organization devoted to sport and scouting. The motto of Homenetmen is "Rise and Raise".
Jordan contains one of the oldest Christian communities in the world, their presence dating back to the crucifixion of Jesus Christ early in the 1st century AD. Christians today make up about 3% of the population. Jordanian Christians in a country of almost 10 million are thought to number 250,000-400,000, down from 20% in 1930, but their absolute numbers have increased. This is the result of high immigration rate of Muslims into Jordan, high emigration rates of Christians, and high birth rates for Muslims.
The Armenians in Syria are Syrian citizens of either full or partial Armenian descent.
Homenetmen Beirut, or simply Homenetmen, is the basketball department of Homenetmen, a Lebanese-Armenian multi-sports club based in Beirut, Lebanon. The club was established in 1924 in Beirut and is part of the worldwide pan-Armenian Homenetmen association. Homenetmen Beirut won its first Lebanese League Championship in 2018.
Jordan is a sovereign Arab state in the Middle East. The capital, Amman, is Jordan's most populous city as well as the country's economic, political and cultural centre.
The Armenians in Greece are Greek citizens of Armenian descent. The Armenian presence in Greece began centuries ago when Armenians, for various reasons, settled in the wider area of Thessaly, Macedonia (Thessaloniki) and Thrace. Traces of Armenians can also be found on the Greek islands of Crete and Kerkyra (Corfu). The Armenians in Greece however, acquired the character of a community after the 1920s, when 70,000 to 80,000 survivors of the Armenian genocide fled to Greece from Cilicia, Smyrna, Ionia, Constantinople and other regions of Asia Minor, scattering all over Greece.
The Pan-Armenian Games are a multi-sport event, held between competitors from the Armenian diaspora and Armenia. They consist of various competitions in individual and team sports among the Armenian athletes. It takes place in Yerevan, the capital of Armenia.
Armenian Australians refers to Australians of Armenian national background or descent. They have become one of the key Armenian diasporas around the world and among the largest in the English-speaking world.
The Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem, also known as the Armenian Patriarchate of Saint James, is located in the Armenian Quarter of Jerusalem. The Armenian Apostolic Church is officially recognised under Israel's confessional system, for the self-regulation of status issues, such as marriage and divorce.
Armenian Uruguayans number around 15,000–20,000 of the population, making Uruguay to have one of the largest Armenian diaspora populations around the world. The Armenian community in Uruguay is one of the oldest communities in South America, with most of them residing in the capital Montevideo. The majority of Armenians in Uruguay are either third or fourth-generation descendants of the first wave of immigrants coming from the Ottoman Empire between the end of the 19th century and the Armenian genocide.
Al-Yarmouk Sports Club is a Syrian sports club based in Aleppo, best known for their football. Founded in 1925, Al-Yarmouk is the 2nd oldest sports organization in Syria. The club have won the Syrian regions football championship for several times before the establishment of the official Syrian football league in 1966. They were the winners of the Syrian Cup in 1963–1964, being the only official achievement in the club's history. Between 1925 and 1946, Al-Yarmouk was known as Homenetmen Aleppo. In 1946, the name was changed to Al-Nadi As-Souri until 1971 when it was renamed Al-Yarmouk. The club play their home games at the 7 April Municipal Stadium.
Education is the foundation for the preservation of Armenian national and cultural heritage. Armenian schools teach and cultivate Armenophony, Armenology, the age-old Armenian history and the rich Armenian traditions, thus ensuring the perpetuation of Armenianism from generation to generation. The very existence of Armenian educational institutions in the countries of the Armenian Diaspora shows exactly the importance, the perseverance and the tireless efforts that the numerous Armenian communities make to avoid the "white massacre", the assimilation and peaceful disintegration of the Armenian nation. Therefore, in a way, the continuance of Armenian education up to our days is a sign of victory against the "red massacre", the Genocide.
Hayk Gyokchyan is a Lebanese professional basketball player. He currently plays for Al Riyadi Club Beirut in the Lebanese Basketball League.
Jabal al-Ashrafieh is a town and neighbourhood in Amman, Jordan. Located in East Amman, it is the highest point in the city and it features many services, such as schools, restaurants, and shopfronts.