Armenians in India

The association of Armenians with India and the presence of Armenians in India dates back over a millennium, and there has been a mutual economic and cultural association of Armenians with India.

An archive directory (published 1956) in Delhi, India states that an Armenian merchant and diplomat named Thomas of Cana had reached the Malabar Coast in 780 using the overland route.

thumb|Miniature painting of [[Gurgin Khan (Bengal)|Gurgin Khan, the Armenian general of Nawab Mir Qasim, seated smoking on a terrace, with two servants, ca.1760–63]]

Ottoman and the Safavid imperial conquests of the Armenian highlands in the 15th century meant that many Armenians dispersed across theses empires, with some eventually reaching North India, which was ruled by the Mughal Empire (Northern India). During the reign of the Mughal emperor Akbar, Armenians—such as Akbar's third wife Mariam-uz-Zamani and Chief Justice Abdul Hai—gained prestige in the empire. While Armenians gained prestige serving as governors and generals elsewhere in the empire, such as Delhi, Lahore, and Bengal, they lived in enclosed colonies and established churches. Armenians worked as merchants, gunsmiths, gunners, priests and mercenaries for some of the Islamic rulers in India, with many noted to have served in the armies of various nawabs in Bengal and Punjab, such as Khojah Petrus Nicholas and Gurgin Khan.

Centuries later, an additional incentive for Armenian settlements in India was an Armenian agreement with the British East India Company. A Julfan merchant named Khoja Panos Calendar (Ghandalarian), resident in London at the time, signed the treaty on behalf of the “Armenian Nation” on June 22, 1688. Competing with the Portuguese and the French, the British sought to enhance the Armenian presence in India. The agreement granted special trading privileges to the Armenians, as well as equal rights with British subjects regarding freedom of residence, travel, religion, and unrestricted access to civil offices.

Due to Armenians not having a country of their own, the colonial powers of Europe massively favored trading with Armenians compared to their European counterparts during the age of mercantilism. Most notably, they became an intermediary between the Spaniards and the English. Armenians were known for their honesty. Hence, it made them a great candidate to become international traders. Armenians grew to be very wealthy in India; due to their wealth, they established their own settlements in various Indian cities where they constructed their churches, newspaper publications, and even the first-ever Armenian constitution was written in Madras, India, 1773, by Shahamir Shahamirian, 14 years before the American constitution was written. The Armenian trade network stretched from Manila all the way to Amsterdam but Armenian traders were most successful in India.

Former settlements

thumb|Dutch-Armenian Cemetery of [[Surat]]

thumb|200px|An Armenian Jew, photographed in the Bourne and Shepherd Calcutta studio

Several centuries of presence of Armenians resulted in the emergence of a number of several large and small Armenian settlements in several places in India, including Agra, Surat, Mumbai, Kanpur, Chinsurah, Chandernagore, Calcutta, Saidabad, a suburb of Murshidabad, Chennai, Gwalior, Lucknow, and several other locations currently in the Republic of India. Lahore and Dhaka – currently respectively in Pakistan and Bangladesh, – but, earlier part of Undivided India, and Kabul, capital of Afghanistan, also had an Armenian population. There were also many Armenians in Burma and Southeast Asia.

Agra

Akbar (1556–1605), the Mughal emperor, invited Armenians to settle in Agra in the 16th century, and by the middle of the 19th century, Agra had a sizeable Armenian population. By an imperial decree, Armenian merchants were exempted from paying taxes on the merchandise imported and exported by them, and they were also allowed to move around in the areas of the Mughal Empire where entry of foreigners was otherwise prohibited. However, for the Armenians, who were recognized by the emperors for their innovative skills, earned their exceptional status in India. In 1562, an Armenian Church was constructed in Agra.

Surat

Armenian gravestones from the 16th and 17th centuries in Surat, India, reflect the historical presence of the Armenian community in the region. These gravestones, featuring intricate designs and inscriptions, are part of the Armenian cemetery in Surat, alongside the cemeteries of early British and Dutch settlers. Historians suggest Armenians began settling in Surat as early as the 14th century, with a notable increase in the 16th century.

The Armenians in Surat were primarily traders, dealing in jewelry, precious stones, cotton, silk, and other commodities. They engaged in trade with Armenian-owned merchant vessels, exporting goods to various destinations including Egypt, the Levant, Anatolia, Venice, and Livorno. Unlike other traders from West Asia, who often traveled alone, Armenian merchants often brought their families with them. and a tombstone (of 1579) in Surat bears Armenian inscriptions. The second Church was built in 1778 and was dedicated to Mary, mother of Jesus. A manuscript written in the Armenian language in 1678 (currently preserved in Saltikov-Shchedrin Library, St. Petersburg) has an account of a permanent colony of Armenians in Surat.

The British valued the business acumen of the Armenian community and sought their cooperation to secure trading privileges in the Mughal court. Today, the Armenian gravestones in Surat serve as a poignant reminder of the community's significant contributions to the city's history and its enduring commercial and cultural ties with various regions.

Kolkata

The Armenians settled in Chinsurah, near Kolkata, West Bengal, and in 1688 built a church now known as the Armenian Church of the Holy Nazareth This is the second oldest church in Bengal and is still in well preserved on account of the care of the Calcutta Armenian Church Committee.

Demography

thumb|175px|The grave of Astwasatoor Mooradkhan (died at Calcutta on 29.09.1799), who was one of the founders of the [[Armenian College (Kolkata)|Armenian College and Philanthropic Academy, Kolkata.]]

Armenian population in India (1951–2011)

{| class="wikitable"

|+ Armenian population in India from 1951 to 2011

! Year !! Population

| 1951 || 3,078

| 1961 || 2,871

| 1971 || 2,474

| 1981 || 2,056

| 1991 || 1,758

| 2001 || 1,015

| 2011 || 426

Population

After Armenia's independence from USSR, many Armenian-Indians went to Armenia. Kolkata still has about 150 Armenians and they still celebrate Christmas on 6 January, and Easter. Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day is also observed in Armenian Church, Kolkata. The best known Armenian institution in India is the Armenian College and Philanthropic Academy (est. 1821) better known as the Armenian College, in Kolkata, funded by endowments and donations. The management of the college was handed over to the Armenian Holy See of Echmiadzin of the Armenian Apostolic Church some years ago by a group of alumni led by Heros Avetoom. There are presently around 125 children studying there from Armenia, Iran and Iraq and the local Armenian population. There is also the Armenian Sports Club (est. 1890) which is still active.

Religion

thumb|right|The Armenian Church [[Baharampur|Berhampore]]

thumb|right|The [[Armenian Church of St. John the Baptist]]

Most Armenians in Armenia are Apostolic Orthodox and adhere to the Armenian Apostolic Church and are under the jurisdiction of the Holy See of Echmiadzin. In February 2007, Karekin II, Catholicos of All Armenians visited India. In Delhi he met with the President of India. He also visited Chennai, Mumbai and Kolkata. There are many Armenian Apostolic Orthodox churches in India:

Kolkata
Armenian Church of Holy Nazareth, Kolkata
Armenian Church of St.John the Baptist, Kolkata
Armenian College and Philanthropic Academy, Kolkata
Armenian St. Gregory's Church, Kolkata
The Holy Trinity Chapel (Church of Tangra), Kolkata
Other places
Armenian Church, Chennai
St. Peter's Armenian Apostolic Church, Mumbai
St. Mary Armenian Church in Saidabad, Murshidabad

Armenia–India relations

right|thumb|Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day, Kolkata

President Levon Ter-Petrossian visited India in December 1995 and signed a Treaty of Friendship and Co-operation. Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian traveled to India in December 2000. India's Minister of State for External Affairs Mr. Digvijay Singh visited Armenia in July 2003. President Robert Kocharian, accompanied by several Ministers and a strong business delegation, visited India in October–November 2003.

The Armenia-India Friendship Society (within the Armenian Society for Friendship and Cultural Relations with Foreign Countries) regularly marks India's Republic and Independence Days.

Prominent people

Abdul Hai was the Chief Justice of Mughal Empire during the time of Akbar.
Khwaja Israel Sarhad was an eminent Judeo-Persian merchant of Armenian origin in Bengal during the late 17th & 18th centuries. He was from New Julfa (Isfahan, Iran), nephew of the renowned Khwaja Fanous Kalantar—in 1688, the latter had affirmed an agreement with the English East India Company in London on behalf of the Armenian nation. He obtained permission from the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb in 1698 that allowed the English to financially acquire from the existing holders the right to rent the three villages of Calcutta, Sutanati, and Govindpore for the grand sum of sixteen thousand rupees.
Eliza Kewark or Kevork whose father was Armenian was the wife of Theodore Forbes, making her the fourth great-grandmother of Lady Diana.
Gauhar Jaan (born Angelina Yeoward) was an Indian singer and dancer (or tawaif) of Armenian origin from Calcutta.
Juliana, believed to be a sister of one of Akbar's Armenian wives, was a doctor in the royal harem of Akbar. Lady Juliana built the first Church in Agra. She was later married to Jean Philippe de Bourbon of Navarre, a royal descendant of France.
Mariam Zamani Begum, one of the wives of Akbar, was believed to be an Armenian. Marium Zamani Begum's palace still stands in Fatehpur Sikri, Uttar Pradesh, India. But now most historians agree that Mariam Zamani was the First Hindu Wife of Akbar and the princess of Amber.
Mariam Begum Saheba, also known as Vilayati Begum (literal meaning English Queen) was married to a king of Oudh, when the British conferred on him the title of King in 1814.
Mirza Zul Quarnain, adopted son of Akbar and his Armenian wife, was an Armenian. He was well versed in several languages, particularly Portuguese. Upon the death of his father in 1613, he succeeded as a collector of tax levied on salt produced in Sambhar (Rajputana). His rise was fast and he held positions in turn as the Governor of Sambhar, Mogor, Babraich (Oudh), Lahore and Bengal. Emperor Jahangir conferred on him the title of Amir. He also maintained very cordial relations with Jesuits in India of his time. Mirza was also a poet, singer and playwright, and he composed verses in Urdu and Persian.
Sarmad Kashani (a Persian word for "eternal"), an Armenian of Aurangjeb's (1658–1707) time was a scholar and a mystic saint and his grave is near the Jama Masjid. His poetic talents are often compared with gifted poets like Firdausi, Sayadi, Hafez and Khayam. He was allegedly executed by Aurangzeb in 1671.

Medical professionals

Arthur Zorab, an eye specialist, perfected an operating style for glaucoma, which was named after him as the "Zorab operation".
Frederick Joseph Satur (Indian), Army Medical Corps M.B., B.S, DV. Graduated From Madras Medical College 1938. Saw active service in North Africa WW2 Indo-China war of 1962 UN Peace Keeping force Hospital Congo 1960. Retired fro service in 1969.
Joseph Marcus Joseph, M.D., an Armenian joined the Indian Medical Service in 1852 and rose to the level of Deputy Surgeon General by 1880. The Indian Army, under the British, had several Armenians Lieutenant Colonels, Surgeon Captains, and Surgeon Majors.
Marie Catchatoor, an Armenian lady, was the first woman of India to be appointed as Presidency Surgeon of West Bengal. She retired in the early 1980s as the superintendent of Lady Dufferin Hospital, Calcutta.
Catchick Paul Chater (8 September 1846 – 27 May 1926) was a Hong Kong based business man, who was born and raised in Kolkata

Sports

Mac Joachim (1925–2013), boxer from Calcutta who competed in the 1948 Summer Olympics.