FRANCE 24: TURKEY'S HIDDEN ARMENIANS SEARCH FOR STOLEN IDENTITY - VIDEO
15:21, 20 Apr 2015
Siranush Ghazanchyan
France 24 presents a report on hidden Armenians of Turkey.
In 1915, during World War I, the Ottoman Empire ordered the
extermination of the Armenian people. One and a half million were
killed in the first genocide of the 20th century. But up to 200,000
women and children survived, converting to Islam and being integrated
into the Kurdish and Turkish communities. Today, their descendants are
discovering their Armenian roots that had lain hidden for generations.
Our reporters followed them on their difficult search for identity.
Aithors of th eprogram Johan Bodin and Achren Verdian meet Armenak
and his friends, who thought they were Turkish or even Kurdish until
a few years ago. After discovering their Armenian roots, they decided
to travel through their ancestral lands in eastern Turkey.
They also meet Armen, who discovered his origins while rummaging
through some old family photos. Raised as a Muslim, he now plans
to convert to Christianity. It's a decision that his wife, a devout
Muslim, has difficulty accepting.
Their stories are typical of descendants of Armenians who survived
the genocide. Many of those who managed to escape forcibly erased
all traces of their identity, adopting Turkish or Kurdish names. A
century later, their descendants have opened a Pandora's box that
was locked by previous generations.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=13&v=FhNQdwGVM0Y
http://www.armradio.am/en/2015/04/20/france-24-turkeys-hidden-armenians-search-for-stolen-identity/
15:21, 20 Apr 2015
Siranush Ghazanchyan
France 24 presents a report on hidden Armenians of Turkey.
In 1915, during World War I, the Ottoman Empire ordered the
extermination of the Armenian people. One and a half million were
killed in the first genocide of the 20th century. But up to 200,000
women and children survived, converting to Islam and being integrated
into the Kurdish and Turkish communities. Today, their descendants are
discovering their Armenian roots that had lain hidden for generations.
Our reporters followed them on their difficult search for identity.
Aithors of th eprogram Johan Bodin and Achren Verdian meet Armenak
and his friends, who thought they were Turkish or even Kurdish until
a few years ago. After discovering their Armenian roots, they decided
to travel through their ancestral lands in eastern Turkey.
They also meet Armen, who discovered his origins while rummaging
through some old family photos. Raised as a Muslim, he now plans
to convert to Christianity. It's a decision that his wife, a devout
Muslim, has difficulty accepting.
Their stories are typical of descendants of Armenians who survived
the genocide. Many of those who managed to escape forcibly erased
all traces of their identity, adopting Turkish or Kurdish names. A
century later, their descendants have opened a Pandora's box that
was locked by previous generations.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=13&v=FhNQdwGVM0Y
http://www.armradio.am/en/2015/04/20/france-24-turkeys-hidden-armenians-search-for-stolen-identity/