Armenians in the Netherlands (occasionally and colloquially Dutch Armenians or Armenian-Dutch; nl, Armeense Nederlanders; hy, Õ€Õ¸Õ¬Õ¡Õ¶Õ¤Õ¡Õ°Õ¡ÕµÕ¥Ö€) are the ethnic
Armenians living in the
Netherlands. The number of Armenians living in the country is around 40.000, according to the Armenian ambassador.
History
Armenian and Dutch interactions are believed to have started in the 13th and 14th centuries, when Dutch merchants arrived in Cilicia and Armenian trading houses opened in the
Low Countries. Armenians brought into the Low Countries carpets, dyes, cotton, and spices from Armenia and from around the world.
Apart from the contemporary Armenian community spread out over the Netherlands, there had been an independent Armenian community concentrated in Amsterdam during the 17th and 18th centuries.
Many Armenian merchants in
Amsterdam went to
Southeast Asia in the 19th century to trade, and to set up factories and plantations, establishing a community of
Armenians in Java.
The
Napoleonic wars put an end to the Armenian life in the Netherlands. The city of Amsterdam was almost depopulated after its occupation by the French. In 1713 the city of Amsterdam permitted the Armenians to erect a church of their own. After serving its purpose for about a century and a half, this edifice was closed because of the dwindling of its congregation. In 1874, by order of the
Catholicos
Catholicos, plural Catholicoi, is a title used for the head of certain churches in some Eastern Christian traditions. The title implies autocephaly and in some cases it is the title of the head of an autonomous church. The word comes from ancient ...
of
Echmiadzin, the building was sold for 10,000 florins, which was transmitted to him.
[Vahan M. Kurkjian. ''A History of Armenia'', pp. 471] It is probable that the Armenian community assimilated into the wider Dutch nation during the 19th century.
Armenians arrived in the Netherlands from
Indonesia (the former
Dutch Indies in the 1950s),
Turkey (1970s),
Lebanon (1970s),
Iran (1980s),
Iraq (early 1990s),
Russia and
Armenia (1990s).
Community
The largest group of Armenians arrived from
Turkey (
Diyarbakir and
Şırnak) in the 1970s as
guest workers in
chain migration, finding employment in textile plants in
Almelo and
Hengelo.
Currently most Armenians live in the major urban centres in the western part of the Netherlands:
Amsterdam,
Dordrecht,
The Hague,
Leiden and
Rotterdam. Armenian church services are held in Amsterdam,
Maastricht and
Almelo.
Notable people
*
Gago Aroetjunjan – kickboxer and
Muay Thai
Muay Thai ( th, มวยไทย, , ), sometimes referred to as Thai boxing, is a combat sport that uses stand-up striking along with various clinching techniques. This discipline is known as the "art of eight limbs", as it is characterised ...
fighter
*
Sahak Parparyan, kickboxer and
Muay Thai
Muay Thai ( th, มวยไทย, , ), sometimes referred to as Thai boxing, is a combat sport that uses stand-up striking along with various clinching techniques. This discipline is known as the "art of eight limbs", as it is characterised ...
fighter
*
Biurakn Hakhverdian
Biurakn Hakhverdian ( hy, Ô²ÕµÕ¸Ö‚Ö€Õ¡Õ¯Õ¶ Õ€Õ¡ÕÕ¾Õ¥Ö€Õ¤ÕµÕ¡Õ¶; born 4 October 1985 in Leiden) is a Dutch water polo player who represents the Dutch national team in international competitions. She is of Iranian Armenian descent. – water polo player, olympic gold medalist and former captain of the Dutch national junior water polo team
*
Karapet Karapetyan
Karapet Karapetyan ( hy, Ô¿Õ¡Ö€Õ¡ÕºÕ¥Õ¿ Ô¿Õ¡Ö€Õ¡ÕºÕ¥Õ¿ÕµÕ¡Õ¶; born 28 November 1982), also known as Karapet Papijan is an Armenian-Dutch kickboxer who competes in the super middleweight and light heavyweight divisions. A professional since 200 ...
, kickboxer
*
Gegard Mousasi, mixed martial artist
*
Aras Özbiliz
Aras Özbiliz ( hy, Արաս Օզբիլիզ; born 9 March 1990) is an Armenian professional footballer who plays as a winger for FC Pyunik and the Armenia national team.
Early life
Özbiliz was born on 9 March 1990 in the Bakırköy distric ...
, football player
*
Messia Garabedian, Armenian singer
See also
*
Armenia–Netherlands relations
*
Armenian diaspora
*
List of Armenians
This is a list of notable Armenians.
Historical
* List of Armenian monarchs
By country
;Americas
* List of Armenian Americans
* List of Armenian Canadians
;Caucasus
* List of Azerbaijani Armenians
* List of Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh
...
References
External links
Armenians in the Netherlands Armeense Nederlanders (Dutch Armenians)
Dutch
Middle Eastern diaspora in the Netherlands
Ethnic groups in the Netherlands
{{Netherlands-stub