Simeon of Poland ( hy, Սիմեոն Լեհացի, Simeon Lehatsi, ; pl, Symeon z Zamoscia; 1584–1639) was a Polish- Armenian traveler known for his travelogue on his visit to the Ottoman domains as well as Italy from 1608 to 1619.

Background

With the consecutive invasions of the Armenian highlands by the Seljuks and Mongols during the 11th and 13th centuries, respectively, some Armenians fled far away from their homeland to regions such as

Galicia Galicia may refer to: Geographic regions * Galicia (Spain), a region and autonomous community of northwestern Spain ** Gallaecia, a Roman province ** The post-Roman Kingdom of the Suebi, also called the Kingdom of Gallaecia ** The medieval King ...

and Volhynia in Eastern Europe, which housed a small Armenian community at the time. The fall of the

Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia The Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia (Middle Armenian: , '), also known as Cilician Armenia ( hy, Կիլիկեան Հայաստան, '), Lesser Armenia, Little Armenia or New Armenia, and formerly known as the Armenian Principality of Cilicia ( hy, ...

in the 14th century, Ottoman conquest of parts of Crimea in the 15th century, and the Celali rebellions in the 16–17th centuries prompted more Armenians to pour out of Anatolia and Crimea, many of whom also settled in modern-day Western Ukraine and Poland, giving rise to around thirty Armenian settlements by the 17th century. Mostly composed of artisans and merchants, Armenians of Eastern Europe were concentrated in the cities of Kamianets-Podilskyi and Lvov. They had enjoyed cultural autonomy since medieval times as the Polish King Casimir III the Great allowed them to have their own courts and keep their traditions upon conquering the region. Lvov thus became the regional center of Armenians, with the Armenian Cathedral built in 1363 as well as two churches, a hospice, library, monastery, school, and printing press, which allowed for the creation of many literary works in the Armenian and Armeno-Kipchak languages.

Early life

Simeon's father Mahdesi Martiros and mother Dolvat Khatun were originally from the coastal city of Kaffa in Crimea. They had left their hometown around 1580 and later settled in Zamość. Simeon was born there in 1584 and had three siblings: Hovhannes, Juhar, and Hripsimeh. He lost his mother as an infant in 1586 and his father in 1605, as well as his only brother Hovhannes before 1608. He was raised by his older sister Juhar, who died in 1612, when Simeon was travelling around

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

. Both of his sisters, Juhar and Hripsimeh, were married and had children. Historian George Bournoutian proposes that Simeon's frequent usage of

Turkish Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and mi ...

words (or the Turkish forms of Arabic and Persian terms) and casual combination with Armenian prefixes and suffixes in his travelogue may not solely be due to him having picked them up during his travels but that he possibly knew Armeno-Kipchak from his youth.

Education

Although his family struggled with poverty, Simeon was able to go to school and was educated by Armenian clerics. According to historian Nerses Akinean, Simeon may have been classmates with renowned poet and translator Hakob Tokhatetsi, who settled in Zamość in 1602. He may have also been tutored by one of the Armenian patriarchs of Constantinople Grigor Kesaratsi and Vardapet Azaria Sasnetsi (died 1628). In his writings, Simeon acknowledged that he wasn't able to reach a prominent position in the Church as a mere (). Though, he grew passionate in collecting religious and historical books, which he continued to do so during his travels. He spent most of his time transcribing rare books and manuscripts. This allowed him to earn an income as a copier operating in Constantinople and Jerusalem.

Travels

According to his own account, Simeon had a deep interest in traveling to non-Christian lands as well as going on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, Rome, and Mush, where the relics of Saint John the Baptist were thought to be located. Simeon probably planned his travels beforehand. On 15 February 1608, he left Lvov joining a group of Armenian merchants traveling to

Rumelia Rumelia ( ota, روم ايلى, Rum İli; tr, Rumeli; el, Ρωμυλία), etymologically "Land of the Names of the Greeks#Romans (Ῥωμαῖοι), Romans", at the time meaning Eastern Orthodox Christians and more specifically Christians f ...

Lvov to Constantinople

Simeon first reported to have reached (either Siret or Sieniawa) after ten days in harsh winter conditions. He described the town as at the border between the "land of the

Poles Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, who share a common history, culture, the Polish language and are identified with the country of Poland in Ce ...

" and the "land of the Vlachs", staying there for a day. After nine days, he was in Suceava, which he described "pleasant-looking" and "pretty". He recorded that the town had three to four hundred Armenian households. Moreover, there were three stone churches, a monastery next to the city, and another two miles away. Among the local population of Armenians, he listed a bishop and two vardapets, one of whom was originally from

Hizan Hizan ( hy, Խիզան, translit=Khizan, ku, Xîzan) is a town in Bitlis Province, Turkey. It is the seat of Hizan District. He then joined the Ottoman tax collectors, traveling to Yash-Bazar, where he reported the presence of a wealthy community of 200 Armenian households along with a

stone church In geology, rock (or stone) is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloid matter. It is categorized by the minerals included, its chemical composition, and the way in which it is formed. Rocks form the Earth's o ...

and a s (). Escorted by the officials and local Armenians, Khoja Hovhannes Keronents and Khoja Khachik, he arrived in Vaslov after two days, again noting an Armenian community, of 20 households, a wooden church, and a s. One and a half days later, he reached Bârlad, where he had to stay for four days, which was customary for the officials. In three days, Simeon was in

Galas In Greek mythology, Galas (; Ancient Greek: Γάλας ''Gálas'') was the eponymous founder of the Gauls. He was the son of Polyphemos and Galatea and the brother of Illyrius and Celtus In Greek mythology, Celtus (; grc, Κέλτος ''Keltos'' ...

, where Moldavia ended and the "land of the Turks" began. Simeon regarded the nearby Danube as "terrifying, ferocious, wide, and deep, and like a bloodthirsty abyss swallowed people". On Sunday, 22 August 1608, he passed the river and paid the customs tariff in the village of Mijin, not continuing the travel until three days. He then reached the village of Karasu (in two and a half days), Pazarchik (on 26 August), and Provadia (after three days), which included many Armenians with a chapel. Through the challenging path in the

Balkan Mountains The Balkan mountain range (, , known locally also as Stara planina) is a mountain range in the eastern part of the Balkan Peninsula in Southeastern Europe. The range is conventionally taken to begin at the peak of Vrashka Chuka on the border betw ...

, he crossed Deliorman and found himself in Kırkkilise, describing it as "an amazing place; there among the mountains, in the ravine, were great cliffs, which grew like trees in a forest".

Constantinople and Galata

On September 10, he arrived in Constantinople, where he had to spend the whole winter, since he had missed the ship to Egypt. At the time, the land route through Jerusalem was closed as a measure against

Safavid Iran Safavid Iran or Safavid Persia (), also referred to as the Safavid Empire, '. was one of the greatest Iranian empires after the 7th-century Muslim conquest of Persia, which was ruled from 1501 to 1736 by the Safavid dynasty. It is often conside ...

. Simeon recorded five Armenian churches in Constantinople: Surp Nikoghayos, Surp Asdvadzadzin, and Surp Sarkis in the neighborhood of Langa, another church in

Balat Balat may refer to: Places * Balat, Fatih Balat is in the old city on the European side of Istanbul, on the western shore of the Golden Horn, sandwiched between Fener and Ayvansaray. Historically, it was the centre of the Jewish community ...

, and Surp Georg in Sulumanastır. Apart from monks, there were 4–5 vardapets, 3 bishops, and over 100 priests in the city. He put the number of native Armenian households at about 80, while Anatolian Armenian households who took refuge in Constantinople,

Galata Galata is the former name of the Karaköy neighbourhood in Istanbul, which is located at the northern shore of the Golden Horn. The district is connected to the historic Fatih district by several bridges that cross the Golden Horn, most notabl ...

, and Üsküdar after the Celali rebellions, were more than 40 thousand. Overall, he claimed the presence of 40,000 Jewish, 40,000 Greek, and 10,000 Armenian households in the city, with no set number of Muslims, along with 80,000 shops, 30,000 taverns, and unnumbered amount of mosques, charitable organizations, religious schools, hospitals, bazaars, inns, plazas, gardens, orchards, and more. He also wrote: Simeon mistook Galata for a "large and wide island". He mentioned twenty one churches in Galata: ten Greek, ten Frank, the most significant of which was San Domenic, and one Armenian, Surb Lusaworich. Armenian-church-in-Istanbul

He further detailed that in San Domenic, a large pilgrimage used to take place nine weeks after Easter, when both Muslims and Christians, as well as ambassadors of European states gather for a festival. At the time, Galata also had "large and high taverns, some three or four stories high, from where Istanbul, the sea and the boats ereclearly visible". Galata was very fertile, supplying much of the seafood and produce demands of Istanbul and Egypt.

Shores of Marmara and the Aegean Sea

A vardapet, Mkrtich Kharpertsi, who was visiting Istanbul at the time, offered Simeon to go on a journey through

Bithynia Bithynia (; Koine Greek: , ''Bithynía'') was an ancient region, kingdom and Roman province in the northwest of Asia Minor (present-day Turkey), adjoining the Sea of Marmara, the Bosporus, and the Black Sea. It bordered Mysia to the southwest, Pa ...

stating that it was five-days from Mush. Simeon accepted, and they embarked on a boat to Mudanya. On the second day, they arrived in the town, where Simeon recorded the existence of several Armenian households and one but no churches, due to which Armenians performed their religious duties at home. They stayed in the town for five days and visited the bath where John the Evangelist supposedly once served as an attendant and

Prochorus Prochorus (Latin form of the gr, Πρόχορος, ''Prochoros'') was one of the Seven Deacons chosen to care for the poor of the Christian community in Jerusalem (Acts ). According to later tradition he was also one of the Seventy Disciples sent ...

was in charge of the heating. Then, they reached

Bursa ( grc-gre, Προῦσα, Proûsa, Latin: Prusa, ota, بورسه, Arabic:بورصة) is a city in northwestern Turkey and the administrative center of Bursa Province. The fourth-most populous city in Turkey and second-most populous in the ...

, which Simeon mistook for

Ephesus Ephesus (; grc-gre, Ἔφεσος, Éphesos; tr, Efes; may ultimately derive from hit, 𒀀𒉺𒊭, Apaša) was a city in ancient Greece on the coast of Ionia, southwest of present-day Selçuk in İzmir Province, Turkey. It was built in t ...

. He wrote about 300 Armenian families, 5 , and an old chapel. While he described the city "very pleasant, rich with fruits and rich in blessings," he also touched on the unhealthy climate, contaminated water, and that half of the city was decimated by the rebels. Simeon and his companion later found themselves in the town of Mukhalij, staying there for one month and five days, then staying in Bandırma for ten days, and subsequently spending two months in the nearby settlement of Etnjuk, half a mile from where there was a large abandoned island housing the ruins of a former colony, Simeon claimed as the original

Byzantium Byzantium () or Byzantion ( grc, Βυζάντιον) was an ancient Greek city in classical antiquity that became known as Constantinople in late antiquity and Istanbul today. The Greek name ''Byzantion'' and its Latinization ''Byzantium'' cont ...

''Travel Accounts of the dpir''

Linguistic features

The language used by Simeon in his travelogue is a combination of Classical and early Modern Armenian mixed with various terms from regional

Armenian dialects The Armenian language has two standardized forms: Western Armenian and Eastern Armenian. Before the Armenian genocide and other significant demographic changes that affected the Armenians, several dozen Armenian dialects existed in the area histor ...

and Turkish. Simeon wrote his travelogue on the road and later edited it in Poland; therefore, the text includes paragraphs that abruptly switch tenses.

Editions

The original copy in the University of Lviv was lost following the German occupation of the city. Though, Nerses Akinean had earlier copied the manuscript and published it in Vienna in 1936. Upon the initiative taken by

Istanbul University , image = Istanbul_University_logo.svg , image_size = 200px , latin_name = Universitas Istanbulensis , motto = tr, Tarihten Geleceğe Bilim Köprüsü , mottoeng = Science Bridge from Past to the Future , established = 1453 1846 1933 ...

, Hrand D. Andreasyan produced the Turkish translation, which according to George Bournoutian, left out the work's introduction, chapters concerning Simeon's travels after he left the Ottoman Empire, and Simeon's

anti-Turkish Anti-Turkish sentiment, also known as Anti-Turkism ( tr, Türk karşıtlığı), or Turkophobia () is hostility, intolerance, or xenophobia against Turkish people, Turkish culture and the Turkish language. The term refers to intolerance, not onl ...

and anti-Muslim comments. Simeon Lehatsi

List of available versions and translations

* Armenian () by Nerses Akinean (1936) * English (''The Travel Accounts of Simēon of Poland'') by George Bournoutian (2007) * Turkish () by Hrand D. Andreasyan (1964) * Russian () by M. Darbinian (1965) * Bulgarian () by Hakob Ormandjian (1984)

Notes

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * {{Authority control People from Zamość 17th-century Armenian writers 16th-century Armenian writers Polish travel writers 17th-century travel writers Explorers of West Asia Polish people of Armenian descent 1584 births 1639 deaths Armenian travel writers