1. The Armenian Genocide

2. Historic Armenia

3. The Armenians
Ancient people whose home has been in the southern Caucasus since the 7th c. BCE
4th c. CE one of Armenia’s kings became a Christian and Christianity has been the state religion ever since
Armenian alphabet was created to translate the Bible to teach Christianity

4. Alphabet – 38 letters

5. 7th to 15th centuries
After Islam was founded in the 7th c., all the countries surrounding Armenia converted to Islam – Armenians held on to their Christian religion
They lived under series of foreign regimes, suffering hardships, persecution, discrimination, abuse and forced conversions
Ottomans allowed them to practice own culture, as long as they followed the rules

7. End of the 19th century
Turkey and Russia were recovering from a war with each other
2.5 million Armenians were ruled by the Turks
Eastern Armenia was in Russian hands
Surge in Armenian nationalism led to demands for political reforms

8. Armenians Want Civil Rights
Between ~200,000 Armenians were massacred under Sultan Abdul Hamid II in Turkish provinces
Russian Tsar closed Armenian schools, libraries, newspapers
1903 Tsar confiscated property of the Armenian church

9. The Young Turks
1909 – Ottoman Sultan overthrown by new political group who wanted a modern, westernized style of government
Talaat Pasha Enver Pasha Jemal Pasha

10. World War I
Young Turks supported Germany, and into conflict with Russia again
Good time to deal with the “Armenian Problem”
Under cover of war, plans are made to expel Turkey’s Armenian population – ~1.75 million people

11. Genocide
German ambassador wrote home: “The government is indeed pursuing its goal of exterminating the Armenian race in the Ottoman Empire.”
Hundreds of thousands of Armenians were either massacred or force-marched into the desert until they died.
Over 1 million Armenians died.

12. Who Knew?
Everyone knew.

14. Fast forward, 1939
“Accordingly, I have placed my death-head formation in readiness – for the present only in the East – with orders to them to send to death mercilessly and without compassion, men, women, and children of Polish derivation and language. Only thus shall we gain the living space which we need. Who, after all, speaks today of the annihilation of the Armenians?” A. Hitler

15. Raphael Lemkin (1900 – 1959) - Polish lawyer of Jewish descent.
Advocate for genocide victim groups Coined the word “genocide” in 1944 based on the Armenian experience.
The rooted words genos (Greek for family, tribe, or race) and -cide (Latin for killing to describe intentional destruction of a nation or an ethnic group.

16. Armenia Today
Armenia is an independent country with approx. 2.9 million population. 11,500 sq. miles (MA = 10,500 sq. miles)
Capital City: Yerevan, pop. 1.3 million
Languages: Armenian 98%, Yezidi, Russian
Ethnicity: Armenian 97.9%, Russian 0.5%, Kurds 1.3%, other 0.3%
Religion: Armenian Apostolic Orthodox 95%, other Christian 4%, Yezidi 1%