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Armenians in France are ethnic Armenians living within the modern republic of France. Like much of the Armenian Diaspora, most Armenians immigrated to France after the Armenian Genocide of 1915–1923. Others came later, fleeing conflicts in places like Lebanon, Syria. More recently there is an influx of immigrants from the Republic of Armenia.
[edit] DistributionThe estimation of the number of Armenians in France varies. But most put it ap to around 500,000. Accoording to ArmeniaDiaspora.com there are 400,000 Armenians living in France. [1] Areas of Armenian concentration include Paris (200,000), Lyon (100,000), Marseille (80,000) and Valence (up to 10,000). [1] [edit] HistoryParis — An Armenian-style church at Germigny-des-Prés south of Pithiviers on the River Loire, lost like a lonely jewel in the depths of France, is one of the examples of early contacts between the French and Armenian people dating back to between the 10th and 12th centuries. Religious contacts were established during this period and these are documented in the country’s oldest historical records. The French were in no doubt, even way back, that Armenians would play an important role in the future. The Crusaders were a glorious turning point. Political and commercial links flourished between the French and Armenians. First of all there were blood ties, stretching right up to almost the royal palaces. The last Regent of the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia , Leon VI of Lusignan, of French stock, died in 1393 in Paris and was buried at the Saint Denis Basilica just to the north of the French capital. After that, Cardinal Richelieu and Colbert helped the Armenians set up trading posts. [edit] Succeeding waves of immigrantsHistory was to gather pace and the skies were to darken. The era of the Genocide dawned, the French sometimes present, and sometimes not. After the Treaty of Lausanne in 1923, the French authorities needed workers. The Armenian refugees and orphans crammed into Turkey, Egypt and Lebanon, arrived by the boatloads to Marseilles and journeyed to the mines and factories around Marseilles, Valence, Grenoble, Lyons and Paris. There, a quarter of a million Armenians settled down into tight little communities of between 2,000 and 4,000 people. The foundations of theArmenian community in France had been set. The Armenian immigrants who arrived between 1920-30 fought and died for France on the battlefields of World War II and in the Resistance during the occupation by Nazi Germany. They paid the price for their assimilation and integration. Their offspring, the first generation Armenians born in France, provided many celebrities like the singer Charles Aznavour and the film director Henri Verneuil, both the sons of refugees, or later still, world Formula One driving champion Alain Prost, whose father was Armenian. Also, the composer Michel Legrand (mother Der Mikaelian). Armenian refugees were also prominent in the arts. Paris is full of faded memories of artists famous in their days, entertainers who graced the prestigious stages of the French capital. Alice Sapritch, Grégoire Aslan and Jacques Helian are only a few of them. French-Armenian ties were preserved and consolidated over the years. Thousands of new immigrants who arrived after the troubles in Turkey (in 1956), Lebanon (in 1975) and Iran (in 1979) comprised the next wave of immigration. Today, many youngsters who are the product of this movement are completing their studies in France, setting up Armenian households and sending their children to Armenian language schools. Faced with the growing demand and the awakening of cultural identity, the future looks bright. Institutions with firm foundations: The Armenian General Benevolent Union, established in 1906, and its founder Boghos Nubar moved in 1921 to Paris, the diplomatic and political hub of the Armenian Question. AGBU chapters were set up in Paris, Lyon, Valence, Marseilles and Nice. The Armenian Social Aid Association, operating Armenian retirement homes, was founded before this period and is unique to France. National institutions, and first and foremost the Armenian Church of Paris founded in 1905, were very soon to co-exist in Paris, playing a fundamental role in defending and protecting the refugees. Today, Armenian classes are organized in many localities with full bilingual kindergartens and primary schools near Paris and Marseilles attended by several thousand children and youths. Armenian is currently a valid option counting toward the Baccalaureate, the French High School certificate. [edit] A caring communityIn 1983, the bloody attack at the Paris Orly airport, blamed on a badly divided Armenian Secret Army for the Liberation of Armenia (ASALA), raised a public outcry. Unlike the Orly attack, the occupation of the Turkish Consulate in Paris in 1981 was enthusiastically supported by young and old, and by all shades of public opinion. The campaign to pass the resolution condemning the Armenian Genocide at the European Council unleashed on June 19, 1987 at Strasbourg a demonstration rare in its emotional intensity. The earthquake on December 7, 1988 in Armenia and the huge mobilization of the French Armenian community in aid of the victims served not only to underline how numerous they were, but also proved that contrary to what was thought, they did care. The exhaustive effort made by French Armenians to provide humanitarian and logistical aid to the quake victims was probably unprecedented. The passage of time, despite some heart-rending tragedies along the way, has opened the doors to social and human progress which is at once powerful and worthy. Successive waves of immigrants have brought with them their own contributions. The Armenian legacy can be found in trade, industry, science, fashion and the arts. A lot has changed since the first Armenians arrived in France. They have rapidly become an extremely dynamic economic, social and intellectual component of French society. Jean-Claude Kebabdjian is the founder and director of the Centre de Recherches sur la Diaspora Arménienne. [2] [edit] ReligionThe majority of the Armenian French population is of the Armenian Apostolic (Orthodox) faith and belong to the See of Holy Echmiadzin of the Armenian Apostolic Church, with a minority belonging to the Armenian Catholic faith belonging to the Armenian Catholic Church. Fewer numbers are Armenian Evangelicals. The Armenian Apostolic Orthodox Churches (in French Eglise Apostolique Arménienne) in France: In the Île-de-France region:
In Lyon and the Rhône-Alpes region
In Marseille the Sud (South) regions:
The Armenian Catholic Church (Eglise Armenienne Catholique) has these churches:
The Armenian Evangelical group of churches includes churches three churches in Marseille, a church in Paris, also in Issy-les-Moulineaux, La Ciotat, Alfortville, Arnouville-Lès-Gonesse, Bourg-Lès-Valence, Décines, Lyons, Montélimar and Pont d’Aubenas [edit] France and the Armenian GenocideMain article: Recognition of the Armenian Genocide France is one of the countries that has recognized the Armenian Genocide. Furthermore, in 2006, the French parliament submitted a bill to create a law that would punish any person denying the Armenian genocide with imprisonment up to 5 years and a fine of €45,000.[3] Despite Turkish protests, the French National Assembly adopted a bill making it a crime to deny that Armenians suffered genocide in 1915 at the hands of the Ottoman Turks.[4] [edit] MediaHaratch (Armenian: Յառաջ) is an Armenian daily newspaper based in France. Haratch was founded in 1925 by Schavarch Missakian.
[edit] See alsoList of Armenian-French people [edit] References
[edit] External links
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