![](\"/wiki/File:Assyrianfolkdance.jpg\")
The Assyrian diaspora (Syriac: ܓܠܘܬܐ, romanized: Galuta, lit. 'exile') refers to ethnic Assyrians living in communities outside their ancestral homeland. The Eastern Aramaic-speaking Assyrians claim descent from the ancient Assyrians and are one of the few ancient Semitic ethnicities in the Near East who resisted Arabization, Turkification, Persianization and Islamization during and after the Muslim conquest of Iraq, Iran, Syria and Turkey.\n
The indigenous Assyrian homeland is within the borders of northern Iraq, southeastern Turkey, northwestern Iran, and northeastern Syria, a region roughly corresponding with Assyria from the 25th century BC to the 7th century AD.[1] Assyrians are predominantly Christians; most are members of the Assyrian Church of the East, the Ancient Church of the East, the Chaldean Catholic Church, the Syriac Orthodox Church, the Syriac Catholic Church, the Assyrian Pentecostal Church and the Assyrian Evangelical Church.[2] The terms \"Syriac\", \"Chaldean\" and \"Chaldo-Assyrian\" can be used to describe ethnic Assyrians by their religious affiliation, and indeed the terms \"Syriac\" and \"Syrian\" are much later derivatives of the original \"Assyrian\", and historically, geographically and ethnically originally meant Assyrian (see Name of Syria).\n
Before the Assyrian genocide, the Assyrian people were largely unmoved from their native lands which they had occupied for about 5,000 years. Although a handful of Assyrians had migrated to the United Kingdom during the Victorian era, the Assyrian diaspora began in earnest during World War I (1914–1918) as the Ottoman Empire conducted both large scale genocide and ethnic cleansing against the Assyrian people with the aid of local Kurdish, Iranian and Arab tribes. This genocide was coordinated alongside the Armenian genocide, Greek genocide and Great Famine of Mount Lebanon.\n
Further atrocities such as the Simele massacres of the 1930s also stimulated emigration.\n
Additional emigration occurred in the 1980s, as Assyrian communities fled the violence of the Kurdish–Turkish conflict and the establishment of the Islamic Republic of Iran. During the 1990s and 2000s, Assyrians left the Middle East to evade persecution in Ba'athist Iraq and from Muslim fundamentalists. The exodus continued into the mid-2010s, as Assyrians fled Iraq and northeastern Syria due to genocide by the Islamic State and other Sunni Islamist groups.[3]\n
\n\nFormer USSR
[edit]From 1937 to 1959, the Assyrian population in the Soviet Union grew by 587.3 percent.[4]\n
\nFormer Soviet Union
[edit]History
[edit]![\"Warmly-dressed](\"/wiki/File:Assyrians_in_Russia.jpg\")
Assyrians came to Russia and the Soviet Union in three large waves. The first wave was after the Treaty of Turkmenchay in 1828, that delineated a border between Russia and Persia. The second was as a result of the Assyrian genocide during and after World War I; the third was after World War II, when the Soviet Union unsuccessfully tried to establish a satellite state in Iran.\n
Soviet troops withdrew in 1946, and left the Assyrians (who supported the coup) exposed to retaliation identical to that received from the Turks 30 years earlier. Soviet authorities persecuted Assyrian religious and community leaders in the same way that they persecuted Russians who remained members of the Russian Orthodox Church.\n
Most Assyrians are members of the Assyrian Church of the East; other churches include the Syriac Orthodox Church and the Chaldean Catholic Church.[5]\n
\nUSSR census
[edit]- 1897 census: 5,300 \"Assyrians\" (by language)[6] \n
- 1919 refugee status:
- 7,000–8,000 Assyrian refugees in Tbilisi[7] \n
- 2,000 Assyrians in Yerevan[7] \n
- 15,000 Assyrians from Hakkari, 10,000 from Urmia and Salmas in the Russian region of Rostov[8]
- 1926 census: 9,808 Assyrians (Aisor)[7] \n
- 1959 census: 21,083 Assyrians[9] \n
- 1970 census: 24,294 Assyrians[10] \n
- 1979 census: 25,170 Assyrians[11] \n
- 1989 census: 26,289 Assyrians[9]
Russia
[edit]- 1989 census: 9,600 Assyrians, of whom 4,742 spoke the Syriac language; 1,738 in the Krasnodar region[5] \n
- 2002 census: 13,649 Assyrians (ассирийцы)[12]
Armenia
[edit]- 1926 (Soviet) census:[10] 21,215 Assyrians \n
- 1989 (Soviet) census:[13] 5,963 Assyrians \n
- 2001 census:[14] 3,409 Assyrians (3rd minority ethnic group after Yazidis and Russians): 524 urban, 2,485 rural \n
- 2011 census:[15] 2,769 Assyrians
Georgia
[edit]- 1926 census: 2,904 Assyrians[10] \n
- 1989 census: 6,206 Assyrians[16] \n
- 2002 census: 3,299 Assyrians[16]
Ukraine
[edit]- 2001 census: 3,143[17]
Kazakhstan
[edit]Lebanon
[edit]| Denomination\n | \nBeyrouth\n | \nMount Lebanon\n | \nNorth Lebanon\n | \nSouth Lebanon\n | \nBiqa'\n | \nTotal\n |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Syriac Catholics\n | \n4,089\n | \n275\n | \n169\n | \n9\n | \n442\n | \n4,984\n |
| Syriac Orthodox\n | \n2,070\n | \n209\n | \n100\n | \n22\n | \n1,352\n | \n3,753\n |
| Chaldean Catholic\n | \n974\n | \n120\n | \n1\n | \n10\n | \n225\n | \n1,330[19]\n |
| Denomination\n | \n1932 census[20]\n | \n1944 estimates[19]\n | \n1954 estimates[20]\n |
|---|---|---|---|
| Syriac Catholics\n | \n2,675\n | \n4,984\n | \n–\n |
| Chaldean Catholics\n | \n528\n | \n1,330\n | \n–\n |
| Syriac Orthodox\n | \n2,574\n | \n3,753\n | \n4,200\n |
| Church Of The East\n | \n800\n | \n1,200\n | \n1,400\n |
North America
[edit]Canada
[edit]United States
[edit]- 1990 census: 46,099 Assyrians[23]\n
- 19,066 born in the U.S. \n
- 16,783 arrived before 1980. \n
- 10,250 from 1980 to 1990 \n
- 27,494 listed Syriac as the \"Language Spoken at Home\"[24] \n
- Unemployment: 9.1 Percent
\n - 2000 census: 82,355 Assyrians/Chaldeans/Syrians[25]\n
- 34,484 in Michigan:[26]\n
- Sterling Heights: 5,515 (4.4 percent of the city) \n
- West Bloomfield: 4,874 (7.5 percent) \n
- Southfield: 3,684 (4.7 percent) \n
- Warren: 2,625 (1.9 percent) \n
- Farmington Hills 2,499 (3 percent) \n
- Troy: 2,047 (2.5 percent) \n
- Detroit, Michigan 1,963 (0.2 percent) \n
- Oak Park 1,864 (6.3 percent) \n
- Madison Heights: 1,428 (4.6 percent) \n
- Orchard Lake Village: 241 (10.9 percent)
\n - 22,671 in California:[27] \n
- 15,685 in Illinois[28]\n
- Chicago: 7,121 (0.2 percent) \n
- Niles, Illinois: 3,410 (3.3 percent) \n
- Maine Township, Park Ridge: 1,035 (0.8 percent)
\n - Syriac speakers: 46,932[29]
- 34,484 in Michigan:[26]\n
South America
[edit]Argentina
[edit]In Argentina the Syriac Orthodox Church counts with a Patriarchal Vicar.[30] However, the actual number of Assyrians is hard to know because the Argentine Census does not ask for ethnicity. Furthermore, their assimilation rate is very high, as it happens with other Middle Eastern communities settled in the country. There is an Assyrian presence in Buenos Aires, La Plata, Córdoba, Salta and Frías.[31][32] In the past, intellectuals like Farid Nuzha went into exile in Argentina. Although 2,000 Assyrians are listed in Argentina, the actual number may be lower.[33]\n
\nEurope
[edit]Belgium
[edit]Assyrians arrived in Belgium primarily as refugees from the Turkish towns of Midyat and Mardin in Tur Abdin. Most belong to the Syriac Orthodox Church, but some belong to the Assyrian Church of the East and the Chaldean Catholic Church. Their three main settlements are in the Brussels municipalities of Saint-Josse-ten-Noode (where their municipal councilman, Christian Democrat Ibrahim Erkan, is originally from Turkey) and Etterbeek, Liège and Mechelen.\n
Two more councilmen were elected in Etterbeek on October 8, 2006: the Liberal Sandrine Es (whose family is from Turkey) and the Christian Democrat Ibrahim Hanna (from Syria's Khabur region). Flemish author August Thiry wrote Mechelen aan de Tigris (Mechelen on the Tigris) about Assyrian refugees from Hassana in the southeastern Turkish district of Silopi. Municipal candidate Melikan Kucam is one of them. In the October 14, 2012 municipal elections, Kucam was elected in Mechelen as a member of the Flemisch nationalists N-VA.\n
\nFrance
[edit]An estimated 20,000 Assyrians live in France, primarily concentrated in the northern French suburbs of Sarcelles (where several thousand Chaldean Catholics live) and in Gonesse and Villiers-le-Bel. They are from several villages in southeastern Turkey.[34][35]\n
\nGermany
[edit]The number of Assyrians in Germany is estimated at 100,000.[36] Most Assyrian immigrants and their descendants in Germany live in Munich, Wiesbaden, Paderborn, Essen, Bietigheim-Bissingen, Ahlen, Göppingen, Köln, Hamburg, Berlin, Augsburg and Gütersloh.\n
Since they were persecuted throughout the 20th century, many Assyrians arrived from Turkey seeking a better life. The first large wave arrived during the 1960s and 1970s as part of the gastarbeiter (guest worker) economic program. Germany was seeking immigrant workers (largely from Turkey) and many Assyrians, seeing opportunities for freedom and success, applied for visas. Assyrians began working in restaurants or in construction, and many began operating their own shops. The first Assyrian immigrants in Germany organized by forming culture clubs and building churches. The second wave came in the 1980s and 1990s as refugees from the Kurdish–Turkish conflict.\n
\nGreece
[edit]The first Assyrian migrants arrived in Greece in 1934, and settled in Makronisos (today uninhabited), Keratsini, Pireus, Egaleo and Kalamata.[37] The vast majority of Assyrians (about 2,000) live in Peristeri, a suburb of Athens.[38] There are five Christian Assyrian marriages recorded at St. Paul's Anglican Church in Athens in 1924–25 (the transcripts can be viewed on St. Paul's Anglican Church website), indicating the arrival of refugees at that time.\n
\nNetherlands
[edit]The first Assyrians came to the Netherlands in the 1970s, primarily from Turkey and observing the West Syriac Rite. The number of Assyrians in the country is estimated at 25,000 to 35,000. They primarily live in the eastern Netherlands, in Enschede, Hengelo, Oldenzaal and Borne in the province of Overijssel.\n
\nSweden
[edit]In the late 1970s, about 12,000 Assyrians from Turkey, Iran, Iraq and Syria emigrated to Sweden. Although they considered themselves persecuted for religious and ethnic reasons, they were not recognized as refugees. Those who had lived in Sweden for a longer period received residence permits for humanitarian reasons.[39]\n
Södertälje is considered the unofficial Assyrian capital of Europe because of the city's high percentage of Assyrians.[citation needed] The Assyrian TV channels Suryoyo Sat and Suroyo TV are based in Södertälje. From 2005 to 2006 and since 2014, the Assyrian Ibrahim Baylan has been a minister in the Swedish government.\n
\nUnited Kingdom
[edit]About 8,000 Assyrians live in the United Kingdom, primarily in London and Manchester. The first Assyrians arrived during the 1850s, most immigration began in the 1950s.[34]\n
\nPacific
[edit]Australia
[edit]In the 2016 census, 46,217 people identified themselves as having Assyrian ancestry, 0.13 percent of Australia's population.[40] Of the Assyrians in Australia, 21,000 are members of the Assyrian Church of the East and 9,000 are members of the Chaldean Catholic Church. The City of Fairfield, in Sydney, has the country's largest number of Assyrians.[41] In Sydney, Assyrians are the leading ethnic group in the Fairfield LGA suburbs of Fairfield, Fairfield Heights and Greenfield Park.[42]\n
In Melbourne, Assyrians live in the northwestern suburbs of Broadmeadows, Craigieburn, Meadow Heights, Roxburgh Park and Fawkner. In 2016, Melbourne had 13,812 people who claimed Assyrian ancestry.[42] The Assyrian community is growing, and there are new arrivals from Syria and Iraq, adding to those with origins in Iran, Jordan and the Caucasus. In May 2013, the New South Wales parliament formally recognised the Assyrian genocide.[43] Assyrians have been labelled as a successful minority group, and have established many churches, schools and community centres.\n
\nNew Zealand
[edit]- 1991 census: 315[44] \n
- 1996 census: 807[44] \n
- 2001 census: 1,176[44]\n
- 465 in the Auckland region \n
- 690 in the Wellington region \n
- Highest unemployment rate (40 percent) \n
- Highest-percentage-Christian ethnic group (99 percent) \n
- English spoken: 774; no English: 348. Number of languages spoken: 1: 225; 2: 405; 3: 423; 4: 63; 5: 3
\n - 2006 census: 1,683[45]
See also
[edit]- Assyrian continuity \n
- Assyrian culture \n
- Assyrian homeland \n
- Assyrian independence movement \n
- Assyrians in Israel \n
- Eastern Aramaic languages \n
- History of Mesopotamia \n
- Name of Syria \n
- Refugees of Iraq \n
- Terms for Syriac Christians
References
[edit]- \n
- ^ \"The Chaldean Assyrian Syriac People of Iraq: An Ethnic Identity Problem – Shak Hanish\". The American Foundation for Syriac Studies. Archived from the original on 2020-09-01. Retrieved 2015-02-11.\n \n
- ^ Minahan, James (2002). Encyclopedia of the Stateless Nations: A-C. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 206. ISBN 9780313321092.
The Assyrians, although closely assiociated with their Christian religion, are divided among a number of Christian sects. The largest denominations are the Chaldean Catholic Church with about 45% of the Assyrian population, the Syriac Orthodox with 26%, the Assyrian Church of the East with 19%, the free Orthodox Church of Antioch or Syriac Catholic Church with 4%, and various Protestant sects with a combined 6%.
\n \n - ^ Jacobson, Rodolfo (2001). Codeswitching Worldwide II. Walter de Gruyter. p. 159. ISBN 978-3-11-016768-9.\n \n
- ^ Mastyugina, Tatiana; Perepelkin, Lev; Naumkin, Vitaliĭ Vi︠a︡cheslavovich; Zvi︠a︡gelʹskai︠a︡, Irina Donovna (1996). An Ethnic History of Russia Pre-revolutionary Times to the Present. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 83. ISBN 978-0-313-29315-3.\n \n
- ^ a b Assyrians Archived September 30, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, Center for Russian Studies, NUPI - Norwegian Institute of International Affairs Archived 2006-02-10 at the Wayback Machine\n \n
- ^ Youri Bromlei et al., Processus ethniques en U.R.S.S., Editions du Progrès, 1977\n \n
- ^ a b c Eden Naby, \"Les Assyriens d'Union soviétique,\" Cahiers du Monde russe, 16/3-4. 1975\n \n
- ^ A. Chatelet (Supérieur de la mission catholique de Téhéran), Question assyro-chaldéenne, Quartier général - Bureau de la Marine, Constantinople, 31 août 1919\n \n
- ^ a b An Ethnohistorical Dictionary of the Russian and Soviet Empires, by James Stuart Olson, Lee Brigance Pappas, Nicholas Charles\n \n
- ^ a b c Eden Naby 1975\n \n
- ^ Annuaire démographique des Nations-Unies 1983, Département des affaires économiques et sociales internationales, New York, 1985\n \n
- ^ \"2002 census\" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-02-04. Retrieved 2006-02-17.\n \n
- ^ \"Armenian Helsinki Committee - Reflections over Annual Report on International Religious Freedom: Armenia\". Archived from the original on 2007-02-13. Retrieved 2006-02-07.\n \n
- ^ \"2001 Armenian Census - De Jure Population (Urban, Rural) by Age and Ethnicity\" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2012-02-05. Retrieved 2006-02-07.\n \n
- ^ \"2011 Armenian Census - De Jure Population (Urban, Rural) by Age and Ethnicity\" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2017-10-10. Retrieved 2013-08-07.\n \n
- ^ a b \"Eurominority – La solidarité avec le peuple palestinien\". Archived from the original on 19 December 2007. Retrieved 13 March 2017.\n \n
- ^ \"All-Ukraine population census 2001\". Archived from the original on 2007-09-30. Retrieved 2006-04-05.\n \n
- ^ Assyrian cultural center in Kazakhstan[permanent dead link]\n \n
- ^ a b Albert H. Hourani, Minorities in the Arab World, London: Oxford University Press, 1947\n \n
- ^ a b Kenneth C. Bruss, \"Lebanon - Area and population,\" Encyclopædia Britannica, 1963\n \n
- ^ Canada, Government of Canada, Statistics. \"Statistics Canada: Ethnocultural Portrait of Canada Highlight Tables, 2006 Census\". Archived from the original on 6 January 2019. Retrieved 13 March 2017.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)\n \n - ^ Canada, Government of Canada, Statistics (8 May 2013). \"2011 National Household Survey: Data tables – Ethnic Origin (264), Single and Multiple Ethnic Origin Responses (3), Generation Status (4), Age Groups (10) and Sex (3) for the Population in Private Households of Canada, Provinces, Territories, Census Metropolitan Areas and Census Agglomerations, 2011 National Household Survey\". Archived from the original on 24 December 2018. Retrieved 13 March 2017.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)\n \n - ^ \"U.S. Bureau of the Census - Selected Characteristics for Persons of Assyrian Ancestry: 1990\". Archived from the original on 2015-09-24. Retrieved 2017-12-07.\n \n
- ^ U.S. Bureau of the Census, Language Spoken at Home for the Foreign-Born Population 5 Years and Over: 1980 and 1990 Archived 2018-07-19 at the Wayback Machine, Internet Release date: March 9, 1999\n \n
- ^ US Census, QT-P13. Ancestry: 2000 Deprecated link archived February 10, 2020, at archive.today\n \n
- ^ \"2000 Michigan Census\". Retrieved November 18, 2017.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)\n \n - ^ \"2000 California Census\". Retrieved November 18, 2017.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)\n \n - ^ \"2000 Illinois Census\". Retrieved November 18, 2017.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)\n \n - ^ \"U.S. Census 2000, Language Spoken at Home for the Foreign-Born Population 5 Years and Over: 1980 to 2000\". Archived from the original on 2017-07-23. Retrieved 2017-12-07.\n \n
- ^ \"World\". November 22, 2014. Archived from the original on January 25, 2021. Retrieved January 12, 2021.\n \n
- ^ \"Argentina recibe al Patriarca de la Iglesia Siriana Ortodoxa\". www.diariosiriolibanes.com.ar. Archived from the original on 2020-09-04. Retrieved 2020-04-01.\n \n
- ^ \"El líder de la Iglesia Siriano Ortodoxa de Antioquía llega a Argentina e inaugurará un monumento en La Plata\".\n \n
- ^ \"State of Assyria\". www.atour.com. Archived from the original on 2020-02-19. Retrieved 2020-04-04.\n \n
- ^ a b \"Brief History of Assyrians\". Archived from the original on 17 October 2013. Retrieved 13 March 2017.\n \n
- ^ Gaunt, David, \"Cultural diversity, Multilingualism and Ethnic minorities in Sweden - Identity conflicts among Oriental Christian in Sweden\", s.10.\n \n
- ^ \"Diskussion zum Thema 'Aaramäische Christen' im Kapitelshaus\" Borkener Zeitung (in German) (archived link, 8 October 2011)\n \n
- ^ ZINDA. \"ZENDA - May 10, 1999\". Archived from the original on 28 August 2003. Retrieved 13 March 2017.\n \n
- ^ \"Greece\". Archived from the original on 19 July 2013. Retrieved 13 March 2017.\n \n
- ^ Swedish Minister for Development Co-operation, Migration and Asylum Policy, Migration 2002, June 2002 Archived September 26, 2006, at the Wayback Machine\n \n
- ^ Kinarah: Twentieth Anniversary of Assyrian Australian Association 1989, Assyrian Australian Association, Edensor Park.\n \n
- ^ Community Relations Commission For a Multicultural NSW 2004, Cultural Harmony. The Next Decade 2002-2012 (White Paper), New South Wales Government, Sydney South.\n \n
- ^ a b \"Ancestry | Australia | Community profile\". profile.id.com.au. Archived from the original on 2022-11-19. Retrieved 2021-10-28.\n \n
- ^ McMah, Lauren (2013-05-14). \"NSW Parliament recognises Assyrian genocide\". Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 2020-10-26. Retrieved 2021-10-28.\n \n
- ^ a b c \"Statistics New Zealand - 2001 Census of Population and Dwellings - Ethnic Groups\" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2006-02-19. Retrieved 2006-02-05.\n \n
- ^ \"Home\". Archived from the original on 26 February 2011. Retrieved 13 March 2017.\n \n
Bibliography
[edit]- Eden Naby, \"Les Assyriens d'Union soviétique,\" Cahiers du Monde russe, 16/3-4. 1975 \n
- Eden Naby, The Iranian Frontier Nationalities: The Kurds, the Assyrians, the Baluch and the Turkmens, in: McCagg and Silver (eds) Soviet Asian Ethnic Frontiers, New York, Pergamon Press, 1979 \n
- Iraklii Chikhladze and Giga Chikhladze, \"The Yezidi Kurds and Assyrians of Georgia. The Problem of Diasporas and Integration into Contemporary Society,\" Journal of the Central Asia & the Caucasus (3 /21, 2003) Archived 2018-02-19 at the Wayback Machine \n
- Anna Saghabalian, Assyrians in Armenia, RFE/RL Armenian Service, Armenia Report, Thursday 13 August 1998 \n
- Onnik Krikorian, The Assyrian Community in Armenia, The Armenian Weekly Archived 2006-01-15 at the Wayback Machine \n
- Assyrians in Armenia Archived 2019-11-12 at the Wayback Machine
- Robert Alaux, The Last Assyrians, documentary film, 2004
Further reading
[edit]- Talia, Peter. Assyrians in the West. Chicago: Nineveh Printing Co. [199-]. 106 p. Without ISBN
![\"The](\"/wiki/File:Flag_of_the_Assyrians_(gold_and_blue_Assur).svg\")
![\"The](\"/wiki/File:Flag_of_the_Syriac-Aramaic_People.svg\")
![\"The](\"/wiki/File:Chaldean_flag.svg\")
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![\"icon\"](\"/wiki/File:P_christianity.svg\")
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| East Syriac, legacy of the Church of the East (the \"Nestorian Church\") (410–1552) |
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| Saint Thomas Christians, legacy of the Malankara Church (active 1st century–1601) in Kerala, India |
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