Swiss-Armenians are citizens of

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...

ancestry. The exact number of Armenians in the country is unknown, but it is unofficially estimated that about 3,000–5,000 Armenians live in Switzerland. The majority of Swiss Armenians are members of the

Armenian Apostolic Church , native_name_lang = hy , icon = Armenian Apostolic Church logo.svg , icon_width = 100px , icon_alt = , image = Էջմիածնի_Մայր_Տաճար.jpg , imagewidth = 250px , a ...

under the jurisdiction of the Mother See of Holy Echmiadzin. There are four church regions (''tems''): Geneva, Zurich, Neuchatel and Lugano. The ''Saint Hagop Church'' in Troinex /

Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...

serves mainly the west of the country, whereas Armenians living in the east parts conduct their religious services in a number of sister Swiss churches. There are also a smaller number of Armenian Catholics belonging to the

Armenian Catholic Church , native_name_lang = hy , image = St Elie - St Gregory Armenian Catholic Cathedral.jpg , imagewidth = 260px , alt = , caption = Cathedral of Saint Elias and Saint Gregory the Illuminat ...

and even a smaller number of Armenian Evangelicals. Similarly to

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

, Switzerland in the early 20th century had a "small Armenian community" primarily concentrated in

"made up of professionals and merchants." Levon Nevruz was appointed by the Armenian government in September 1919 to "represent Armenian interests in Switzerland"; in February 1920, Nevruz became the

"diplomatic representative in Geneva", however, this was disallowed by the Federal Council of Switzerland pending Armenia's ''

de jure In law and government, ''de jure'' ( ; , "by law") describes practices that are legally recognized, regardless of whether the practice exists in reality. In contrast, ("in fact") describes situations that exist in reality, even if not legally ...

'' recognition by the

League of Nations The League of Nations (french: link=no, Société des Nations ) was the first worldwide intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by the Paris Peace Conference that ...

or the

major powers A great power is a sovereign state that is recognized as having the ability and expertise to exert its influence on a global scale. Great powers characteristically possess military and economic strength, as well as diplomatic and soft power inf ...

Armenian associations

A number of Armenian associations operate in Switzerland: * ' (UAS) is certainly the biggest operating Armenian association. Based in

, it organizes an annual European Intercommunity Tournament in the city. * AGBU - Armenian General Benevolent Union - 1211 Geneva, Founded in 1975 * ' (UGAB) * H.O.M – ' with the Swiss branch established in 2006. * AVZ – ' in Zurich established in 2005. * ' - Since 1986 it publishes the bilingual ' in French and Armenian. * ''Switzerland-Armenia Association'' / / , a major community organization for Armenians in Switzerland. * ' community center near Saint Hagop.

Armenian associations

Notable people

See also

References

External links