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==History==
==History==
According to the Armenian-American historian George Bournoutian, "in the first quarter of the 19th century the Khanate of Erevan included most of Eastern Armenia and covered an area of approximately 7,000 square miles. The land was mountaneous and dry, the population of about 100,000 was roughly 80 percent Muslim (Persian, Azeri, Kurdish) and 20 percent Christian (Armenian)" <ref>George A. Bournoutian. ''Eastern Armenia in the Last Decades of Persian Rule'', 1807 - 1828 (Malibu: Undena Publications, 1982), pp. xxii + 165</ref>. According to the [[Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary]], by the beginning of the 20th century a significant population of Azerbaijanis lived in [[Russian Armenia]].
According to the Armenian-American historian George Bournoutian, "in the first quarter of the 19th century the Khanate of Erevan included most of Eastern Armenia and covered an area of approximately 7,000 square miles. The land was mountaneous and dry, the population of about 100,000 was roughly 80 percent [[Muslim]] (Persian, Azeri, Kurdish) and 20 percent Christian (Armenian)" <ref>George A. Bournoutian. ''Eastern Armenia in the Last Decades of Persian Rule'', 1807 - 1828 (Malibu: Undena Publications, 1982), pp. xxii + 165</ref>. According to the [[Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary]], by the beginning of the 20th century a significant population of Azerbaijanis lived in [[Russian Armenia]]. They numbered about 300,000 persons or 37.5% in [[Russia]]'s [[Erivan Governorate]] (roughly corresponding to most of present-day central [[Armenia]], the [[Iğdır Province]] of [[Turkey]], and [[Azerbaijan]]'s [[Nakhichevan]] exclave).<ref>{{ru icon}} [http://www.cultinfo.ru/fulltext/1/001/007/119/119474.htm Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary: Erivan Guberniya]</ref> Most lived in rural areas and were engaged in farming and carpet-weaving. They formed the majority in 4 of the guberniya's 7 districts, including the city of Erivan ([[Yerevan]]) itself where they constituted 49% of the population (compared to 48% constituted by Armenians).<ref>{{ru icon}} [http://www.cultinfo.ru/fulltext/1/001/007/119/119478.htm Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary: Erivan]</ref> At the time, Eastern Armenian cultural life was centered more around the holy city of [[Echmiadzin]], seat of the [[Armenian Apostolic Church]]. <ref name="DeWaal01">Thomas de Waal. ''Black Garden: Armenia And Azerbaijan Through Peace and War''. New York: New York University Press, p. 74. ISBN 0-8147-1945-7</ref> Historian Luigi Villari reported that in [[1905]], Azeris in Yerevan were generally wealthier than Armenians living the city. <ref>[http://www.armenianhouse.org/villari/caucasus/nakhitchevan-massacres.html Fire and Sword in the Caucasus] by Luigi Villari. London, T. F. Unwin, 1906: p. 267</ref>
They numbered about 300,000 persons or 37.5% in [[Russia]]'s [[Erivan guberniya]] (roughly corresponding to most of present-day central [[Armenia]], the [[Iğdır Province]] of [[Turkey]], and [[Azerbaijan]]'s [[Nakhichevan]] exclave).<ref>{{ru icon}} [http://www.cultinfo.ru/fulltext/1/001/007/119/119474.htm Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary: Erivan Guberniya]</ref> Most lived in rural areas and were engaged in farming and carpet-weaving. They formed the majority in 4 of the guberniya's 7 districts, including the city of Erivan ([[Yerevan]]) itself where they constituted 49% of the population (compared to 48% constituted by Armenians).<ref>{{ru icon}} [http://www.cultinfo.ru/fulltext/1/001/007/119/119478.htm Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary: Erivan]</ref> At the time, Eastern Armenian cultural life was centered more around the holy city of [[Echmiadzin]], seat of the [[Armenian Apostolic Church]]. <ref name="DeWaal01">Thomas de Waal. ''Black Garden: Armenia And Azerbaijan Through Peace and War''. New York: New York University Press, p. 74. ISBN 0-8147-1945-7</ref> Historian Luigi Villari reported that in [[1905]], Azeris in Yerevan were generally wealthier than Armenians living the city. <ref>[http://www.armenianhouse.org/villari/caucasus/nakhitchevan-massacres.html Fire and Sword in the Caucasus] by Luigi Villari. London, T. F. Unwin, 1906: p. 267</ref>


Due to conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan during the early 20th century, Armenia's Azerbaijani minority, much like Azerbaijan's Armenian minority diminished greatly. From [[1905]] to [[1907]], tensions between Armenians and Azerbaijanis culminated in the [[Armenian-Tatar massacres]].<ref name="Croissant-9">Michael P. Croissant. ''The Armenia-Azerbaijan Conflict: Causes and Implications'', p. 9. ISBN 0-275-96241-5</ref> Tensions rose again after both Armenia and Azerbaijan became briefly independent from the [[Russian Empire]] in 1918. Both quarreled over where their common borders lay. <ref name="DeWaal01">de Waal. ''Black Garden''. p. 127-8.</ref> Warfare coupled with the influx of Armenian refugees escaping the [[Armenian Genocide]] in the [[Ottoman Empire]], ultimately marginalized the country's Azeri community. Many emigrated to Azerbaijan during the conflict. After [[Sovietization]], a [[1926]] population census of [[Armenian SSR|Soviet Armenia]] reported that there were only 78,228 Azeris living in Armenia.<ref name="saparov">[http://monderusse.revues.org/docannexe4079.html The Alteration of Place Names and Construction of National Identity in Soviet Armenia] by Arseny Sarapov</ref> By [[1939]], however, the numbers increased to 131,000.<ref>{{ru icon}} [http://demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/sng_nac_39.php?reg=6 All-Soviet Population Census of 1939 - Ethnic Composition in the Republics of the USSR: Armenian SSR]. ''Demoscope.ru''</ref>
For Azeris of Armenia, the 20th century was the period of marginalization, discrimination, mass and often forcible migrations<ref name="dewaal">Black Garden: Armenia and Azerbaijan Through Peace and War by Thomas de Waal ISBN 0814719457</ref> resulting in significant changes in the country's ethnic composition, even though they have managed to stay its largest ethnic minority until the [[Nagorno-Karabakh conflict]]. In [[1905]]–[[1907]] Erivan Governorate became an arena of clashes between Armenians and Azeris believed to be instigated by the Russian government in order to draw public attention away from the [[Russian Revolution of 1905]].<ref>{{ru icon}} [http://www.dk1868.ru/history/ZAKAVKAZ.htm Memories of the Revolution in Transcaucasia] by Boris Baykov</ref> Tensions rose again after both Armenia and Azerbaijan became briefly independent from the [[Russian Empire]] in [[1918]]. Both quarreled over where their common borders lay.<ref name="DeWaal01">de Waal. ''Black Garden''. p. 127-8.</ref> Warfare coupled with the influx of Armenian refugees resulted in widespread massacres of Muslims in Armenia<ref>{{ru icon}} [http://safety.spbstu.ru/book/hrono/hrono/sobyt/1920arm.html Turkish-Armenian War of 1920]</ref><ref>[http://www.conflicts.rem33.com/images/Armenia/turkarwar.htm Turkish-Armenian War: Sep.24 – Dec.2, 1920] by Andrew Andersen</ref><ref>{{ru icon}} [http://www.auditorium.ru/books/469/p_6.htm Ethnic Conflicts in the USSR: 1917–1991]. State Archives of the Russian Federation, fund 1318, list 1, folder 413, document 21</ref> resulting in virtually all of them fleeing to Azerbaijan<ref name="dewaal"/>. Relatively few returned, as according to the [[1926]] All-Soviet population census of there were only 78,228 Azeris living in Armenia.<ref name="saparov">[http://monderusse.revues.org/docannexe4079.html The Alteration of Place Names and Construction of National Identity in Soviet Armenia] by Arseny Sarapov</ref> By [[1939]], however, the numbers increased to 131,000.<ref>{{ru icon}} [http://demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/sng_nac_39.php?reg=6 All-Soviet Population Census of 1939 - Ethnic Composition in the Republics of the USSR: Armenian SSR]. ''Demoscope.ru''</ref>


In [[1948]]–[[1951]], with the [[Council of Ministers of the USSR]]'s adoption of the resolution entitled "Planned measures for the resettlement of collective farm workers and other Azerbaijanis from the Armenian SSR to the Kura-Arax lowlands", the growing Azeri community became partly subject to "voluntary resettlement" (classified by Azerbaijani sources as in fact [[deportation]]<ref>[http://www.azerbembassy.org.cn/eng/31march_bg.html Deportation of 1948-1953]. ''Azerbembassy.org.cn''</ref>) into central Azerbaijan<ref>[http://www.archiveeditions.co.uk/Leafcopy/955LFLT.htm Armenia: Political and Ethnic Boundaries 1878-1948] by Anita L. P. Burdett (ed.) ISBN: 1-85207-955-X</ref> to make way for incoming Armenian immigrants from the [[Armenian diaspora]]. Some 100,000 Azeris left Armenia within those three years<ref name="saparov"/> bringing the number of those in Armenia further down to 107,748 in [[1959]].<ref>{{ru icon}} [http://demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/sng_nac_59.php?reg=9 All-Soviet Population Census of 1959 - Ethnic Composition in the Republics of the USSR: Armenian SSR]. ''Demoscope.ru''</ref> By [[1979]], Azeris numbering 160,841 were constituting 6.5% of Armenia's population.<ref>{{ru icon}} [http://demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/sng_nac_79.php?reg=13 All-Soviet Population Census of 1979 - Ethnic Composition in the Republics of the USSR: Armenian SSR]. ''Demoscope.ru''</ref>
In [[1948]]–[[1951]], with the [[Council of Ministers of the USSR]]'s adoption of the resolution entitled "Planned measures for the resettlement of collective farm workers and other Azerbaijanis from the Armenian SSR to the Kura-Arax lowlands", the growing Azeri community became partly subject to "voluntary resettlement" (classified by Azerbaijani sources as in fact [[deportation]]<ref>[http://www.azerbembassy.org.cn/eng/31march_bg.html Deportation of 1948-1953]. ''Azerbembassy.org.cn''</ref>) into central Azerbaijan<ref>[http://www.archiveeditions.co.uk/Leafcopy/955LFLT.htm Armenia: Political and Ethnic Boundaries 1878-1948] by Anita L. P. Burdett (ed.) ISBN: 1-85207-955-X</ref> to make way for incoming Armenian immigrants from the [[Armenian diaspora]]. Some 100,000 Azeris left Armenia within those three years<ref name="saparov"/> bringing the number of those in Armenia further down to 107,748 in [[1959]].<ref>{{ru icon}} [http://demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/sng_nac_59.php?reg=9 All-Soviet Population Census of 1959 - Ethnic Composition in the Republics of the USSR: Armenian SSR]. ''Demoscope.ru''</ref> By [[1979]], Azeris numbering 160,841 were constituting 6.5% of Armenia's population.<ref>{{ru icon}} [http://demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/sng_nac_79.php?reg=13 All-Soviet Population Census of 1979 - Ethnic Composition in the Republics of the USSR: Armenian SSR]. ''Demoscope.ru''</ref>

Revision as of 05:39, 22 March 2007

This article is about Azeris in Armenia. For Azeris in general, see the respective article.

The Azeri community in Armenia has historically been present on these lands in large numbers but has been virtually non-existent since 1988–1991, when the overwhelming majority of Azeris fled the country as a result of the Nagorno-Karabakh War and the ongoing conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan. UNHCR estimates the current population numbers for Azeris in Armenia to be somewhere between 30 and a few hundred persons[1], with the majority of them living in rural areas and being members of mixed couples (mostly Azeri women married to Armenian men), as well as elderly and sick, and thus unable to leave the country. Most of them are also reported to have changed their names and maintain a low profile to avoid discrimination.[2][3]

History

According to the Armenian-American historian George Bournoutian, "in the first quarter of the 19th century the Khanate of Erevan included most of Eastern Armenia and covered an area of approximately 7,000 square miles. The land was mountaneous and dry, the population of about 100,000 was roughly 80 percent Muslim (Persian, Azeri, Kurdish) and 20 percent Christian (Armenian)" [4]. According to the Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary, by the beginning of the 20th century a significant population of Azerbaijanis lived in Russian Armenia. They numbered about 300,000 persons or 37.5% in Russia's Erivan Governorate (roughly corresponding to most of present-day central Armenia, the Iğdır Province of Turkey, and Azerbaijan's Nakhichevan exclave).[5] Most lived in rural areas and were engaged in farming and carpet-weaving. They formed the majority in 4 of the guberniya's 7 districts, including the city of Erivan (Yerevan) itself where they constituted 49% of the population (compared to 48% constituted by Armenians).[6] At the time, Eastern Armenian cultural life was centered more around the holy city of Echmiadzin, seat of the Armenian Apostolic Church. [7] Historian Luigi Villari reported that in 1905, Azeris in Yerevan were generally wealthier than Armenians living the city. [8]

For Azeris of Armenia, the 20th century was the period of marginalization, discrimination, mass and often forcible migrations[9] resulting in significant changes in the country's ethnic composition, even though they have managed to stay its largest ethnic minority until the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. In 1905–1907 Erivan Governorate became an arena of clashes between Armenians and Azeris believed to be instigated by the Russian government in order to draw public attention away from the Russian Revolution of 1905.[10] Tensions rose again after both Armenia and Azerbaijan became briefly independent from the Russian Empire in 1918. Both quarreled over where their common borders lay.[7] Warfare coupled with the influx of Armenian refugees resulted in widespread massacres of Muslims in Armenia[11][12][13] resulting in virtually all of them fleeing to Azerbaijan[9]. Relatively few returned, as according to the 1926 All-Soviet population census of there were only 78,228 Azeris living in Armenia.[14] By 1939, however, the numbers increased to 131,000.[15]

In 1948–1951, with the Council of Ministers of the USSR's adoption of the resolution entitled "Planned measures for the resettlement of collective farm workers and other Azerbaijanis from the Armenian SSR to the Kura-Arax lowlands", the growing Azeri community became partly subject to "voluntary resettlement" (classified by Azerbaijani sources as in fact deportation[16]) into central Azerbaijan[17] to make way for incoming Armenian immigrants from the Armenian diaspora. Some 100,000 Azeris left Armenia within those three years[14] bringing the number of those in Armenia further down to 107,748 in 1959.[18] By 1979, Azeris numbering 160,841 were constituting 6.5% of Armenia's population.[19]

Present day

It is impossible to determine the exact population numbers for Azeris in Armenia at the time of the conflict's escalation, since during the 1989 census forced Azeri migration from Armenia was already in progress. UNHCR's estimate is 200,000 persons.[2] Civil unrest in Nagorno-Karabakh in 1987 led to Azeris' being often harrassed and forced to leave Armenia.[20] On 25 January 1988 the first wave of Azeri refugees from Armenia settled in the city of Sumgait.[20][21] Another major wave occured in November 1988[21] as Azeris were either expelled by the local authorities or fled fearing for their lives[2]. This ensured the total Azeri emigration by 1991[22] and them settling primarily in Azerbaijan and Russia.

Hranoush Kharatyan, Head of Department on National Minorities and Religion Matters of Armenia, has made the following statement in February 2007:

Yes, ethnic Azerbaijanis are living live in Armenia. I know many of them but I can't give numbers. Armenia has signed a UN convention according to which the states take an obligation not to publish statistical data related to groups under threat or who consider themselves to be under threat if these groups are not numerous and might face problems. During the census, a number of people described their ethnicity as Azerbaijani. I know some Azerbaijanis who came here with their wives or husbands. Some prefer not to speak out about their ethnic affiliation; others take it more easily. We spoke with some known Azerbaijanis residing in Armenia but they haven't manifested a will to form an ethnic community yet.[23]

See also

References

  1. ^ Second Report Submitted by Armenia Pursuant to Article 25, Paragraph 1 of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities. Received on 24 November 2004
  2. ^ a b c International Protection Considerations Regarding Armenian Asylum-Seekers and Refugees. United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. Geneva: September 2003
  3. ^ Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2003: Armenia U.S. Department of State. Released 25 February, 2004
  4. ^ George A. Bournoutian. Eastern Armenia in the Last Decades of Persian Rule, 1807 - 1828 (Malibu: Undena Publications, 1982), pp. xxii + 165
  5. ^ Template:Ru icon Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary: Erivan Guberniya
  6. ^ Template:Ru icon Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary: Erivan
  7. ^ a b Thomas de Waal. Black Garden: Armenia And Azerbaijan Through Peace and War. New York: New York University Press, p. 74. ISBN 0-8147-1945-7 Cite error: The named reference "DeWaal01" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  8. ^ Fire and Sword in the Caucasus by Luigi Villari. London, T. F. Unwin, 1906: p. 267
  9. ^ a b Black Garden: Armenia and Azerbaijan Through Peace and War by Thomas de Waal ISBN 0814719457
  10. ^ Template:Ru icon Memories of the Revolution in Transcaucasia by Boris Baykov
  11. ^ Template:Ru icon Turkish-Armenian War of 1920
  12. ^ Turkish-Armenian War: Sep.24 – Dec.2, 1920 by Andrew Andersen
  13. ^ Template:Ru icon Ethnic Conflicts in the USSR: 1917–1991. State Archives of the Russian Federation, fund 1318, list 1, folder 413, document 21
  14. ^ a b The Alteration of Place Names and Construction of National Identity in Soviet Armenia by Arseny Sarapov
  15. ^ Template:Ru icon All-Soviet Population Census of 1939 - Ethnic Composition in the Republics of the USSR: Armenian SSR. Demoscope.ru
  16. ^ Deportation of 1948-1953. Azerbembassy.org.cn
  17. ^ Armenia: Political and Ethnic Boundaries 1878-1948 by Anita L. P. Burdett (ed.) ISBN: 1-85207-955-X
  18. ^ Template:Ru icon All-Soviet Population Census of 1959 - Ethnic Composition in the Republics of the USSR: Armenian SSR. Demoscope.ru
  19. ^ Template:Ru icon All-Soviet Population Census of 1979 - Ethnic Composition in the Republics of the USSR: Armenian SSR. Demoscope.ru
  20. ^ a b Template:Ru icon The Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict by Svante Cornell. Sakharov-Center.ru
  21. ^ a b Template:Ru icon Karabakh: Timeline of the Conflict. BBC Russian
  22. ^ Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2004: Armenia. U.S. Department of State
  23. ^ The Azerbaijanis Residing in Armenia Don’t Want to Form an Ethnic Community by Tatul Hakobyan. Hetq.am 26 February, 2007


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