KeghartAppointees at the Imperial Court of Ethiopia (Update 2017-10-04)
2009-08-05
Sevan Aslanian
If you start asking around a little in Addis Ababa if anyone knows any Armenians, Sevan’s name is often the first that is mentioned. The first time I heard of her was from a Swedish missionary in Addis Ababa, who got her hair cut at Sevan’s salon. Sevan Aslanian is about forty years of age. She was born in Addis Ababa and grew up in the Aratkilo area near the Armenian Church and school. She is named after Armenia’s largest lake, and has always felt herself to be a part of a large Armenian family. Sevan only has good things to say about her childhood and upbringing. All of the Armenian children always played with one another; they saw each other at school and at the club, as well as in church every Sunday. It was a community where everybody knew everybody else and where people took care of each other. Even though the Ethio-Armenian group has kept to itself, Sevan still feels herself to be an Ethiopian:
Appointees at the Imperial Court of Ethiopia (Update 2017-10-04)
2009-08-05
Sevan Aslanian
If you start asking around a little in Addis Ababa if anyone knows any Armenians, Sevan’s name is often the first that is mentioned. The first time I heard of her was from a Swedish missionary in Addis Ababa, who got her hair cut at Sevan’s salon. Sevan Aslanian is about forty years of age. She was born in Addis Ababa and grew up in the Aratkilo area near the Armenian Church and school. She is named after Armenia’s largest lake, and has always felt herself to be a part of a large Armenian family. Sevan only has good things to say about her childhood and upbringing. All of the Armenian children always played with one another; they saw each other at school and at the club, as well as in church every Sunday. It was a community where everybody knew everybody else and where people took care of each other. Even though the Ethio-Armenian group has kept to itself, Sevan still feels herself to be an Ethiopian:
‘This is home for me, I feel Ethiopian as well as Armenian. I mean, being here as an Armenian, we have lived here all our lives and we have taken on a lot of the Ethiopian mentality, so I can say that I feel both Ethiopian and Armenian.’
Sevan went to the Armenian school. When she finished Grade 6 there were 15 students in her class, all Armenian. Today, Sevan is the only one of them still in the country. After the Armenian school followed studies at Sanford School, which is one of Ethiopia’s best schools. She left the country in 1975 because of the situation at that time, and studied a few years on Cyprus, later to return home and complete her education at Sanford. When the Derg seized power, Sevan’s parents decided to remain, partly because they didn’t want to start a new life somewhere else, but also because Sevan’s siblings had already married. They chose to remain when all the others left, and this is something Sevan has never regretted even if the time under the Derg wasn’t the easiest. Sevan and her siblings are the last in the Aslanian family that remain in Ethiopia. She has a nine year old daughter and three sisters and a brother.
Sevan has also trained in London to be a hairdresser. She is well travelled and very good at languages. While Armenian and Amarinja are her first languages, she is also fluent in English, Italian and French. Her daughter is presently attending the French school, and she speaks all the languages that Sevan does.
It’s hard not to like Sevan. She is very nice and easy to communicate with, and she is never far from a laugh. Her voice only sounds sad when she speaks of Ethio-Armenians’ future. She admits that there is little that can be done. She herself wants to remain in Ethiopia, which after all is her home. Sevan refers a number of times to Armenians in Calcutta. Just like them, Ethio-Armenians are far too few to be able to survive as a group. Who will take over after us, she asks herself. What will happen with the church and the club? Her daughter thinks she herself should make her own decisions when the time comes, but hopes nevertheless to be able to complete her education in Ethiopia and in the best of cases remain there like her mother.
Sevan has always felt herself to be a part of the Ethiopian community. She realises that the larger community and the people she meets on the street often see her as a ferenji, but, she says laughing, as soon as she opens her mouth people are forced to admit that she’s an Ethiopian. Even though life is hard in Ethiopia, she nevertheless feels that it is easier than in Europe. There isn’t as much stress, and more than anything Ethiopia is a community that Sevan understands. There is no other community she would feel as integrated in, and this applies to Armenia as well. The Ethio-Armenians have perhaps lived separately, but all the same their participation has contributed to the country’s present condition. She points out that many of Ethiopia’s main industries were once founded by Armenians, even if they are today owned by ethnic Ethiopians. Ethio-Armenians are a part of the Ethiopian community. They early learned the language and customs, even if they kept to themselves to the extent that they retained their own language and culture.
‘What happens to Ethiopians also happens to us.’
According to Sevan what makes Ethio-Armenians unique is their solidarity. They have always stuck together through the years. In the Armenian community everybody knows everybody else. People take care of each other, and that is why they have survived as a group. Sevan has daily contact with her siblings. If someone doesn’t get in touch within a few days, you immediately phone them to check that everything is ok, even to check that nobody has left the country, she jokes. Sevan hopes that she will be able to continue to live in Ethiopia. She operates a hair salon which is very popular among Addis Ababa’s expatriate population. Apart from hair, Sevan is enthusiastic about music. For many years she had a band together with her brother.
Vahe Tilbian
The first time I saw Vahe was in the Armenian Church one Sunday. Since most of the people in the congregation were over 50, I was surprised to see a young man, and wondered who he was. After the Mass we met. He spoke fluent English with me, the next moment to speak fluent Amharic with someone else. That he also spoke fluent Armenian I then took for granted, which was later confirmed.
Vahe Tilbian is 25 years old. He was born in Addis Ababa at the Black Lion Hospital. He is one of the few young Ethio-Armenians left. Just like Sevan he went to the Armenian school. The number of Armenian pupils at the school had dropped through the years, and when he left he was the only completely Armenian person in the class, the other three being half Armenian and half Ethiopian. All four in the class still live in Addis Ababa, and he meets with them socially. Altogether there were about 20 Armenian pupils at the school when Vahe was there. He remembers that they socialised both at and after school. Though the number of individuals was small, the solidarity was the same as before. Parents drove children to and from school and various activities. Vahe remembers his childhood as being good. He grew up in an area north of the Piassa, where he still lives with his parents. After the Armenian Community School, Vahe continued his studies at Sanford School.
Considering Vahe’s age, most Armenians had already left the country when he grew up. Vahe is an example of those who grew up during Ethiopia’s total isolation from the outside world. Despite this Vahe has never felt himself to be different. Even though the group was much smaller, the solidarity was the same, as was the Armenian identity. Often very small minorities are absorbed into the community of the majority.
‘No, honestly speaking, it’s as if it’s part of my identity so to speak to be of Armenian origin, being here, having so many Armenian friends, and in school so many half-Armenian half-Ethiopian friends. We are all mixed, always being together. Then I went to Sandford School and made a lot of Ethiopian friends there. I personally don’t feel I’m any different from other Ethiopians, because we all live here.’
Vahe admits that he has lived a rather sheltered life. This he thanks his parents for; and he doesn’t think he would be the person he is if it hadn’t been for them. Vahe thinks that life was simpler earlier for Armenians in Ethiopia; they must have had more freedom. Even though he has led a sheltered life, he has never felt unsure or afraid in Ethiopia. As he expresses it, he had the opportunity to study abroad, and did so for five years in Canada, where he also took his BA. When he socialised with people during his visit abroad there was never any doubt where he came from. He has met many Armenians from the diaspora and then his origins have never been questioned. He thinks only that there are some local differences between all Armenians in the diaspora, and he feels that they all share the same culture and have the same values. He sees himself as having more in common with the people in the diaspora then with those in Armenia, which he has also visited.
Most of his friends are Ethiopians or Ethio-Italians. He thinks he understands the Ethiopian mentality, which for many outsiders can be difficult to grasp. But he can easily identify with expatriates, for he has himself been one. At the same time as understanding all of the questions expatriates come up with, he can understand the answers they receive from Ethiopians. To understand a mentality that lies at the basis of a culture you have to be a part of that culture. He sees himself as being a part of an Armenian community that is a part of Ethiopia. The Armenians are one of three such communities that are left, the other two being the Greek and the Italian. His contacts with the others have mainly been with Ethio-Italians, perhaps because he is interested in music and the opportunities for playing were just at the Italian club, which in Addis Ababa is called the Juventus Club. The difference between these and other ethnic groups according to Vahe is that they have always lived in Ethiopia. Other groups have come and gone, but the Armenians together with the Greeks and Italians have always been there. When I asked which language is his mother tongue he replies that both Armenian and Amharic are his first languages. Apart from very good English Vahe also speaks French and rather good Italian.
The times outside of Ethiopia that he has felt himself to be different in relation to his surroundings was just because he comes from Ethiopia. Vahe is, like most Ethio-Armenians in Ethiopia, an Ethiopian citizen, which makes it more difficult for him to obtain a visa to various countries. When many of his classmates in Canada went for trips during the spring break to Mexico or the United States, he couldn’t accompany them. The visa-granting process for someone with an Ethiopian passport can take several weeks, and by that time the school break was most often already over. The most prejudice Vahe has met regarding his origins has been when he has been outside of Ethiopia.
‘You know, they look at your passport and they go … They look at your face and then again at the passport and they ask: Are you sure? [ Yes that’s my passport; look at me, my face is in there.]’
He has just come home and plans to stay in Ethiopia, despite several of his friends’ considering it to be a bad decision, and that there are many more opportunities outside Ethiopia. Vahe chose to return; it is in Ethiopia that he has his home and his family. The family in particular is important for Vahe – he could never leave one of his family behind.
Ethiopia is no easy country to live in, and as he is unemployed Vahe lives off his parents. He wants a job but is unfortunately too well educated for many of the jobs he has been offered. He would rather wait than have to take some underpaid job just to pass the time. To work for the government isn’t enticing, and the work it provides is often very poorly paid.
Vahe is unsure of his future. He hopes to be able to keep his identity as an Ethio-Armenian, but is at the same time aware that it is difficult. He would like to marry, but there are no potential marriage partners left among the Ethio-Armenians. The people who remain in the country are all related in some way so that marriage is impossible. He hopes to be able to get married some day, preferably to an Armenian, but it will be what it will be. Just like many other Armenians he places his future ‘in God’s hands.’ What is interesting about Vahe is that he feels himself to be an Ethio-Armenian first, even if he should meet an Armenian from Armenia or from the larger diaspora he would never class them as Ethio-Armenians. He only shares the Ethio-Armenian identity with those who grew up in Ethiopia.
Garbis Korajian
When I had decided which subject I would write about the first difficulty was to find sources about Armenians in Ethiopia’s history. Most searches only led me to a text on ABGU’s homepage, which didn’t give particularly much reliable information. Then, via the Addis Tribune’s website, I finally found an article about the Armenian genocide written by an Armenian who had grown up in Ethiopia. Garbis Korajian became via e-mail my first real contact with Ethio-Armenians. When I told him about my chosen subject he became very enthusiastic, and I have a great deal to thank him for. It is primarily Garbis who has introduced me to people and taken me under his wing in meeting Ethiopia’s Armenians.Garbis was born in Addis Ababa in 1954 and grew up, just like many other Armenians, in the area around Aratkilo. He can trace his Armenian roots very far back in Ethiopia; the first Krajian came there already in 1852. Garbis’ mother, Zarig Hakagmazian, later Korajian, was a daughter of one of the orphans from Jerusalem adopted by Ethiopia.
Garbis grew up in a large family with six brothers. They all lived in a large compound that had been donated to his paternal grandfather Abraham Korajian by the Emperor himself, as thanks for his faithful service to the Empire for 40 years. The whole Korajian family, including paternal uncles and their families, lived in this compound. Like most other Ethio-Armenians, Garbis went to the Armenian school. The Korajian family mixed very early with ethnic Ethiopians, and in distinction to many other Ethio-Armenians Garbis socialised just as much with them as with Armenians.
‘… however intermarriage with Ethiopians was not widespread, although within a range for example, if I look at my own family, two of my uncles were married to Ethiopians. And their children are offspring to an Armenian and Ethiopian heritage. And they also attended Armenian school and went to the Armenian church and club, so they felt comfortable being Armenian as well as Ethiopian.’
Garbis was one of the Ethio-Armenians who chose to leave the country when the Derg seized power. He was 20 when he left in June of 1975. The new regime made it impossible for him as a young student to remain. The nationalisation hit the Korajian family hard, as they had invested large sums in properties. They also owned three plantations which were confiscated. Of everything they had worked for all that was left was a house to live in. Garbis was the only one in the family who left the country, though two of his brothers later followed him, as did some of his cousins. By applying as a refugee at the Canadian Embassy in Nairobi Garbis could come to Canada.
In Canada Garbis started afresh. A new life in a new country without capital or possessions. It would take until 1987 for him to return to Ethiopia for the first time. The country he returned to was not the same. Most of his friends were no longer there, and most of what had been built up by three generations of Armenians was no longer there. Armenians were no longer welcome in the country, despite their long presence and everything they had done for Ethiopia through the years. What saved most Armenians from death was the fact that they had never been involved in politics, though many of them, including Garbis’ paternal aunt and her brother, were imprisoned.
‘… so there was this uneasy feeling of persecution, and a feeling of not belonging to a country where you had been for a hundred years and developed an empire of families and estates. They stripped us of that, and finally we figured that there was no future for us in Ethiopia.’
Garbis feels that even if most Ethio-Armenians chose to leave the country, those who remained did all they could to keep the diaspora alive. Despite everything the Ethio-Armenians went through, the church, club and school still remained, even if the school had to be moved. Ethio-Armenians can thank their group’s fiery spirits for their success in surviving as a group. Garmis often names the Nalbandian family, who did much to see to it that the infrastructure would remain intact – that Ethio-Armenians, despite their small number, would be able to live on as a local ethnic and cultural community.
Since 1976 Garbis has lived in Canada. He has two children and is married to an Armenian from Egypt. He has often returned to Ethiopia. Garbis’ mother still lives in Ethiopia, but his love of the country also draws him back. As he says himself, he wants to be included in the restoration of the country. He plans to stay as long as he feels that he has something to contribute. Garbis sees a future in Ethiopia. His brother too has returned to look over his chances in the country. Garbis believes in Ethiopia; his family still lives in Canada, but he hopes one day to be able to bring them over as well. Everything depends on the future, which Garbis feels looks bright. Garbis thinks that the community that remains is strong; the group has survived a long time and is, according to him, far from dead. There exists a will in the group, and those who remain will not leave the country. Rather, more will return. According to Garbis, the Ethio-identity lives on outside Ethiopia. He gives an example: when an older man died his son came back to take over his father’s business.
‘I would say for now, still there is a torch that is burning, which is the club and the church and the school.’
Garbis is highly enthusiastic about Ethiopia and sees it as his country even though he has lived the greatest part of his life in exile. He will always have a connection to Ethiopia, and has made a codicil to his will that he wants to be buried in the Armenian graveyard in Addis Ababa. Garbis will forever be an Ethiopian of Armenian descent.
2017-10-04 (Update)
The below tables were prepared by Dr. Garo Yerevanian and are posted with his permission.
Appointees at the Imperial Court of Ethiopia
1905 – 1925
1925-1945
1945 – 1965
Consular Advisors
Keghart
Keghart
39 comments
I adored this article
I adored this article and I am even interested to go to Ethiopia to meet the Armenian community there: the church, the school, the club, people….
Thank you for sharing with us your feelings and your identity.
Armenians in Ethiopia were also my classmates
I’ve been back to Addis five times in the past five years, researching nine of my former classmates’ stories for my first non-fiction book "An Ethiopian Odyssey". Silva Hagopian is one – who now lives in LA with her husband Jack, and Mary Nalbandian another, who still lives in Addis. I discovered Silva from my local newspaper here in Britain: the Buckingham Advertiser. Silva’s second cousin, Jack Atamian lives just one mile from our house. What a small world! From Jack and Silva I learnt a great deal about the Armenian genocide, their important role in the Ethiopian economy and I support your call for recognition. Long live the Armenians of Ethiopia!
The search was inspired by a dream in 2000, that I’d returned to Addis to help provide water for the very poor. Thus, half the profits go to charity, the majority to WaterAid Ethiopia.
I’m returning to the US to promote it in September, via a a series of book talks in Washington DC and New York, as well as a Talk Radio campaign. (Please visit http://www.anethiopianodyssey.com)
Long live the Armenians of Ethiopia!
Best wishes
Annette Allen
Descendents of the 40 orphans from Jerusalem
While visiting Jerusalem he was entertained by a brass band of Armenian children. When he found out they were orphans from the Armenian Genocide….he declared, "they will no longer be orphans as I am adopting them and they will be the children of Ethiopia"
They prospered in the early years of Ethiopia and wrote the first national anthem.
Sadly, today that population is shrinking.
I have met many Ethiopians in America and our alphabets have similiarities. Were they ceated by the same people?
Armenian Alphabet
There are various opinions about the origins of the Armenian alphabet….Assyrian, Greek, etc. In "Mesrobian Darrerou Agoonknere" (The Roots of Mesrobian Letters), Dr. Mesrob Yeghayan says that the Ethiopian alphabet, derived from the Keyezi alphabet (originating in what is now eastern Yemen) is the main source of the Armenian alphabet.
While Ethiopia is distant from Armenia, in the 5th century there were Ethiopian priests and hermits in Egypt. Some people believe Mesrob Mashdots might have gone to Egypt and studied the Ethiopian alphabet there.
One of the 40 adopted orphans by the Emperor was my uncle
I am very glad to read about life and Armenians in Ethiopia where my uncle lived all his life.
Looking for contact
My great grandfather’s brother, Jirayr Markarian, was a very close friend of Hovaness Malkhasian. He also was one of the orphans who made up the orchestra. After many years contact was lost with him. Would anybody happen to know anything about him?
Best of Regards,
Zhores Markaryan
Interested to know more about the 40 Orphans
Digeen Mardirossian, I am very interested to know more of your uncle and all the forty orphans. Would you be willing to email me some information on his life? I can be reached at [email protected]. I hope you see this. If anyone knows anything. I'm specifically interested in learning about the coronation and the aftermath of refusing to play the Turkish national anthem. Many thanks.
We need to be more proactive
A great article!
First, my Grandfather Arshag Sarkissian was one of the orphans from Van and a member of the brass band but he did not go to Ethiopia because he loved Nektar my Grandmother whom he married later and settled in Jaffa, and then a second time became a refugee in 1948, left for Jordan.
Second, being from Jerusalem and witnessing the shrinking number of our community, the Ethiopian Armenian experience reminds us that we need to be more proactive. We have the advantage of the Armenian Patriarchate and its strong presence, however the community is shrinking.
Third, a colleague of mine Dr. Kathlyn Matheos from Manitoba University has invited me several times to join her in manegement workshops which I regretfully had declined; but after reading about Garbis, Vahe and Sevan I will take on her next offer.
Best regards to our brethren in Ethiopia and across the Diaspora, and thanks for connecting us all.
To Saro Nakashian and Others
Baron Saro, I would love to hear more of your grandfather's story. I am the granddaughter of Genocide survivors and am writing about the forty orphans for an American website. I'm especially looking for stories on [Haile Sellassie's, born Tafari Makonnen] coronation and their [the adopted orphans'] refusal to play the national anthem of Turkey, as well as those who stayed behind in Jerusalem.
Many thanks.
You can contact me at ava.thefirstATyahoo.com
Very Touchy
My uncle went to Ethiopia for "a short time" in the 1940’s to make money. His name was Shoukri Manoushagian, originally from Aleppo, Syria. What I know is that he was running a candy factory.
Finally, after spending around 40 years away from his wife and children he decided to return back to Syria. On his way he made a stop in Beirut, Lebanon. Unfortunately, a couple of days later he passed away without being able to make it to Aleppo.
I am wondering if any one knows about this man, like if he got married while he was living in Ethiopia. Did he have any children? Any information concerning my uncle is appreciated. Kindly communicate with me on my e-mail [email protected]
.
I myself would like to go and meet this heroic people who are still in Addis Ababa.
Hagop Karlozian
Montreal, Canada
Attn: Hagop Karlozian
Hi Hagop,
Regarding your uncle Shoukri Manoushagian, I will try to get you some answers by the end of this week. My aunt is bound to know something about him.
Kind regards
Vrej Sakadjian
Hello to Armenians in Ethiopia
Hello to the Armenians in Ethiopia. Glad to know about you folks over there.
We here wish you blessings of Lord Jesus for you all. God loves you so much.
With The Love of the Lord towards you all.
Sarkies and family
Genocide servivors – From Jerusalem to Ethiopia
Still in Ethiopia
I re-stumbled on thie article and just read the comments. Annette is your book available in Ethiopia? i have to admit i hadn’t heard of it and i would be very interested to read it.
Those of you who wish to visit Ethiopia and the Armenian Community – we are still here!! For more infor you can e-mail me – [email protected].
Regarding the Armenian and Ethiopian alphabets – Mesrob Mashtots founded the Armenian one but the Ethiopian alphabet or rather the older language which is Ge’ez has been around for a very long time – dating before the Armenian alphabet so chances are our alphabets are similar to the Ge’ez alphabet
Vahe Tilbian
Visiting Addis Ababa
Hello Vahe,
I read about you and Sevan Aslanian. I'll be flying to Addis Ababa next Thursday morning, from Muscat, Oman. My plane will arrive at 7:30. I attempted to make reservations at Z Guest House, close to the Armenian club. I hope to visit with some of the Armenians of your community.
Gail Roberts Yeramian
Ethiopian Armenians
Wow, what an article that pulls at your heart strings…I left Ethiopia in 1981 with my family at the age of 14, but have not been back yet…Reading this article has made me homesick and curious enough to plan a trip…
Best wishes from Texas to all those left behind…
Armenians of Ethiopia
Greetings to all, especially to the Armenians of Ethiopia. A very happy New Year. Hope to hear from some of you from Ethiopia. I had a brief contact from one such person from Addis, but unfortunately it was short lived. Please email me and perhaps one day we will meet in Ethiopia.
I presently reside with my wife in Oregon, USA. Came here from Baghdad, in 1956.
My best wishes to all,
Varoujan
Ethiopian Armenians
I wonder where he now is.
Young student studyimg in Geneva
Serj,
This may be a belated news for you, nevertheless the young student you're referring to is Arshavir (Arsho) Aznavorian who was also a judo student with the late Armen Mardikian of Dire-Dawa.
Thank you Harry
Thank you Harry for your information. Do you know where he is now?
Serj
About Arshavir (Arsho) Aznavourian
Dear Harry,
Do you know where is student Arshavir (Arsho) Aznavourian now?
Thank you.
Ethiopia
Does anyone know whether there was/is an Armenian community in Somalia, next to Ethiopia? The reason I am asking is because I noticed, in a recent article in a U.S. magazine about Somalia, an urban panorama with our distinctive church kmpet in the skyline.
Does anyone know about Armenians in Gambella, Ethiopia?
What an article?
Our grandfather might be among the descendents of the 40 orphans adopted by the Emperor.
My maternal grandfather, Vardan is an Armenian & was working for Seferian & Company Ltd. The company existed both in Sudan & Ethiopia. We do not know more on what happened to him. We are wondering, if anyone knows about him?
For your info, my mother was born in Gambella, Ethiopia. Hope to hear some news about my grandfather!
Bedilu
Memory lane from Addis
I just wanted to know about the fate of one old Armenian in Addis Abeba. I don’t know him by name, but I can describe him a little bit from my teen years.
He could have been in his late fifties or early sixties, bald headed, wore a grey goatie all the time, clean khaki out fit, and was always bare feett. He carried a neatly folded light orange colored blanket on his right shoulder. I think he was homeless, but I am not sure. He used to hang around the Ras Mekonen Bridge or the Seventy Steps ( Seba Dereja) vicinity. I was young then and hanging around Piaza or the tea rooms ( Shay Bet ), and especially, Expo (the then famous tea house). The old man was always there around the bridge area. One could see him coming out of the smaller tea room across the Expo and heading down under the bridge or just walking around. I never saw him smile. It seemed to me he had a story to tell, and I still believe he does, but I don’t think he is alive now. I am telling about my little world of the late sixties or early seventies. If he is alive he would be over over hundred years old.
This old man always ate my heart dearly, because he looked like a grand father or like one of my distant cousins from Yemen. Physically they looked alike. One was poor, but had a roof over his head, and the other was homeless. I never saw him talk to any one. He was a very lonsome person or may be didn’t speak Amharic. I believe he was known by the area buisness owners. The amazing thing is the gangsters never bothered him, amidst the then ongoing battle for terfs by Arat Kilo, Piaza, Iri Bekentu…gangsters.
I saw him for the last time in 1972. I took the courage to sit in front of him inside the little tea room. My intention was to strike up a conversation, but I didn’t know what to say. We stared at each other for a blissful moment, and then he left. A few months later I started wandering around the world–just left the country.
— I stumbled across your website by accident from an article written about Armenian and Ethiopian letters, and I don’t even remember which web site it was that led me to yours.
— I talked about the old man at one instance when I got to my neighborhood, and a friend of mine said he is an Armenian not Yemeni, but he didn’t explain to me about his Ethiopian citizenship, given the fact, that, our knowledge of foreign citizens acquiring Ethiopian citizenship was blank or never heard of…that’s how I learned about his identity, and I was surprised. You know, in my little world in those days, he looked like one of the Furnjee or Arabs based on his skin or physical attributes.
–I wonder if anyone can tell me who he was, and then again, he might have a family there in Addis or kins folks who are searching for him. Would he be lost, and forgotten as Mr. nobody? There must be a story behind this man.
Frankly yours
Mr. Mardekian & Judo in Ethiopia
Can you please tell me anything you know about Mr. Mardekian; his first name, when he came to Ethiopia and when he started Judo there? When and where he learnt Judo?
Thank you.
Armen Mardikian
I am trying to find any information on Mr. Armen Mardikian– his birth date, whether he is alive; when did he get involved in judo? When did he settle and leave Ethiopia?
He had a judo club at the Ararat Armenian Club in Addis Ababa. I believe he also lived in Dire Dawa.
I do know that he left Ethiopia for Canada. That is the last I heard of him.
Any information about Mr. Mardikian’s whereabouts would be appreciated.
Thank yo
Nabil Faragallah
A. Mardikian
attention: Nabil Faragallah
Mr. Armen lives in Toronto. In fact, half an hour from my house. He is now 83 years old and his health is recent years have declined quite fast. He was a jeweller and he did the same thing in Toronto ,as well.
He has 2 boys, both of them are married with 2 grandchildren. His wife Lucine takes very good care of him.
Armen was my judo teacher as well in Addis Ababa. I still have the group picture of all his judo sudents taken ,with him in the centre,a nice picture which carries many good memories.
If you need any more info,please be in touch.
Best wishes,
Eddie
Armen Mardikian
Hey Eddie,
Thank you very much for contacting me.I would like to hear from you.
If you would, please contact me at airgasmyesATmsn.com. I am very interested in any pictures and information you might have. I will give you credir for any images I use.
I am in touch with Mardik and Armen is now aware of what I am doing, history of Judo in Ethiopia. If you wish, you may visit the "Judo" page in my web page at http://www.nfaragallah.com/judo/. It has been a very successful page with over 200,000 hits a month and growing.
Please contact me, thank you.
Nabil
He Taught My Father
He taught my family the goldsmith trade. My family includes Teklu Desta, Paulos Baraki, Asfaw Ghiwot. He also had a big impact on the industry. As you can see, the names mentioned are very popular in Ethiopia. I want to say 'thank you' on behalf of the Ethiopian goldsmith association.
Armenians in Ethiopia
Thanks for this article.
I'm interested in meeting up with Armenians who used to live in Ethiopia. I live in Toronto, Canada.
Armenians in Ethiopia
I am an Ethiopian who has rarely heard of Ethio-Armenians. My interest to learn about the history of Armenians led me to the Genocide committed by Turks. As a human being, it stuck in my heart. Seven years ago, when I was in New York working for the Ethiopian Airlines (ET), I met Vahe Arukian who used to work for ET a long time ago. He told me so many stories about his life. I am wondering if he is still in New York. I would like to contact him. Can a Keghart reader advise me?
Thanks
Amha
Arukian
Amha,
Please respond to this email: [email protected]. I will forward you the address and the telephone number of Vahe Arukian's brother. The family lives in NY.
I met Vahe decades ago in Beirut when he came to visit his parents who were staying at Hotel Lux which my father ran.They were on their way to the U.S. to join their other son. I met him once in NY, as well. Vahe's father was the principal of the Armenian school in Adis Ababa where his mother taught in the heyday of the Ethiopian-Armenian community.
Vahe
Vahe Arukian
Amaha,
You will be as sorry to learn that Vahe Arukian passed away four days ago in New York, at the age of 84, after a long illness. He's survived by his wife and three children. His father was my teacher at the Armenian Kevorkoff school in Addis. Should you wish more info, I am prepared to extend it to you. Kind regards,
Harry Malkasian
Vahe Arukian
It saddens me greatly to hear of the passing away of Vahe Arukian. I remain with the recollection of bygone and happier times with my parents, Vahe, Hrach Arukian and their parents in Beirut, and later on for just a few visits to the United States.
It is through them that I learned with fascination about the Armenian-Ethiopian community whose "rise and fall" I associate with the Arukian family.
My condolences to his and his brother Hrach's family. May he rest in peace.
Was this man Armenian?
Great to read such an uplifting article. Thank you.
I personally know Garbis; he is a really honourable man.
My Ethiopian grandmother always talked about a certain white man who settled in Addis Ababa a long time ago. His last name was Babich or Babicheff or Babichev. And his first name was either Moses or Mussie or Moshe. These names sound like Russian, rather than Armenian, but I am not sure.
Does any one know this man? Was he Armenian? Apparently, he was appointed as "Fitawrari" by Emperor Haile Selassie during the Italian occupation, if I recall the story told by my grandmother.
Please post your comments below as I am really eager to learn about this man and his family. I regret for not paying attention to my grandmother when she was talking about all the history, but unfortunately, she passed away in Addis in 2010 at the age of 105.
We should be thankful that there is a nation called Ethiopia that accommodates Islam, Christian, Jews, Pagans and Atheists.
May God bless Ethiopia.
I Don’t Know
I don't know if someone has answered your question, but I have just finished a book in Italian about Babitcheff's nephew, Martha Nasibu ("Memorie di una Principessa Etiope"–Memories of an Ethiopian Princess). He was Russian and remained in Ethiopia after the Russian Revolution to escape the massacre of the aristocracy. In the book it does not say that he was Armenian. Babitcheff became Fitawrari before the Italian occupation because he had proved his loyalty to the emperor. His daughter married Nasibu Emmanual, army commander and mayor of Addis Ababa. He died because of Italian illegal gas weapons.
Hope this helped.
Daily Star, Lebanon
"Some people don't come to church vertically. Only horizontally," Vartkes Nalbandian said with a laugh.
Vartkes is among a small handful of people keeping Ethiopia's Armenian community alive. Despite a fall in numbers from a peak of 1,200 in the 1960s to less than 100 people today, the Armenian school, church and social club still open their doors.
"There is more to a community than just statistics. We are proud of the Armenian contribution to Ethiopia. It's worth fighting for," said 64-year old Vartkes, the church's fulltime acting archdeacon since the last priest left in 2002.
But given the shrinking numbers, the fight can feel daunting.
Armenian goldsmiths, traders and architects were invited to settle in Ethiopia more than 150 years ago by Emperor Johannes IV. Buoyed by the ties between Ethiopian and Armenian Orthodoxy, the community thrived.
After the Armenian Genocide in 1915, Haile Selassie, Ethiopia's regent who later became emperor, opened his arms to the Armenian people even wider, adopting 40 orphans as wards of court. In return, the Ethio-Armenians proved fiercely loyal.
One trader used his European connections to buy arms for Ethiopia's resistance movement against the Italian occupation during World War II. Others ran an underground newspaper. Several gave their lives in service of their adopted homeland.
"Those were the best days," said 61-year old Salpi Nalbandian, who runs a leather business with her brother Vartkes and other family members. "We were valued members of the court. We made the crowns the emperors wore on their heads. We were not like the Italians, we weren't invaders. We contributed."
But the community's fortunes have changed through the years.
Ethio-Armenians had their property and businesses confiscated when the communist Derg seized power in 1974. Many families left then, fearing for their lives. The Nalbandians stayed, determined not to give up on a country they had called home for four generations.
Salpi and Vartkes' musical family has made a lasting contribution to Ethiopia's heritage. Great uncle Kervork wrote Ethiopia's first national anthem, and their father Nerses became well known for his pioneering work in Ethio-Jazz, which blends traditional Ethiopian five-tone scales with the diminished scales of Western jazz.
The pair have become the gatekeepers to a part of Ethiopian culture and history that is in danger of being forgotten.
Ethio-Armenians are gradually resembling a diaspora within a diaspora. Children and grandchildren who live in the U.S. and Canada now make pilgrimages to Addis to see the place where their ancestors grew up.
Most of the Armenian buildings in the Armenian "safar" – or neighborhood – in Addis Ababa's city center are now empty or gone, victim to the city's appetite for high-rise buildings that are beginning to dominate the skyline.
St. George's Church holds maybe 200 people but seems larger because it often stands dark and empty. Golden orthodox crosses are the only objects that catch the light from high small windows in the church's pointed dome. The African sunshine struggles to brighten the church's dark green walls.
The remaining Armenian families are scattered around Addis' outskirts, including the Nalbandians, who were forced to vacate their family home.
The only reason the house, which in a traditional Armenian style has a wrap-round balcony – is still standing is because Salpi is fighting against the local government to preserve it as a museum dedicated to her father's life and work.
She has had some help upholding her father's legacy from Aramatz Kalayjian, an Armenian filmmaker. He has being working on "Tezeta," a documentary about Ethio-Armenian music, since 2012.
"The only remnants of a great cross-pollination of cultures are the few Armenian community members left, the music, history books, and memories that tell of the relationship between Armenians and Ethiopians," Kalayjian said.
Vartkes Nalbandian disagrees with Kalayjian's view that the community is fading. He notes that a Syrian-Armenian man recently visited the Addis community with a view to moving there with his family.
"The school is open, the church is open, the club is open," he said. "It doesn't matter if I open the church on a Sunday and preach to many people or just a handful. As long as our spirit is strong, our identity is, too."
Armenians in Ethiopia
Hello my Great Armenian brothers. After reading this article I have decided to visit the Armenian community in Addis Ababa tomorrow, even though it will be a very short one on my first business trip. I have always wanted to say to everyone of us Armenians, we are a Great nation. Unfortunately we are spread all over the world. I understand that it is not easy, but I wish every Armenian to live in our great motherland Armenia.
Looking for “Muse'” Dikran
I am from AA. Growing up, I remember my parents had a wonderful friend who we called Muse' Dikran. Muse' is the Ethiopianized version of monsieur and was often used to instead of Ato for Ethiopians who had been educated abroad or other "Ferenj". As is customary in Ethiopia, I suspect that Dikran is a first name and I do not know Muse' Dikran's last name. I also do not remember his wife's name but I do recall that she was an expert seamstress…..I think.
With the absolute disruption of our family during the time of the Derg, one of the many persons we lost touch with was Muse' Dikran. I vaguely remember my mother telling me that he had moved to Canada and that his children had become dentists. If you might know of Muse' Dikran, my parents names were Almaz and Haile-Mariam.
Please let me know of you know Muse Dikran or any of his children.
Thank you
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