Updated,
07 March 2009
Brief
History
A
few decades ago, Armenians,
mostly single men, came to the
United Arab Emirates (UAE) to
work for a few years and return
to their homeland with some
financial security. But, thanks
to the hospitable environment,
the newcomers stayed, got
established and the community
started growing.
In 1979, a young clergyman,
Father Oshagan Choloyan,
from the Catholicosate of
Cilicia, in Antelias, Lebanon,
visited the area to evaluate the
Armenian communities living
there. What he found was very
encouraging. There was a church
and a school in Kuwait, which
kept the community lively and
active. The Armenian Community
in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), on
the other hand, was just getting
itself organized. So, by 1980,
Father Oshagan was established
in Kuwait as a Catholicosal
Vicar for the area including Kuwait
and the Gulf countries.
Since then, UAE Armenians (living
mainly in
Sharjah, Dubai and Abu Dhabi)
formed well-organized
communities with Community
Councils, various
sub-committees, a Church (Saint Gregory the Illuminator, since
1998), Community Center in
Sharjah and weekly schools in
Sharjah and Abu Dhabi, where Armenian
children come together to learn
the Armenian language. The
community has grown and
prospered thanks to the
hospitality of the late
president of the United Arab
Emirates Sheikh Zayed
bin Sultan al Nahyan
and his successor, current
President
Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al
Nahyan.
The Armenian Prelacy of Kuwait
and the Arabian Gulf Countries
is based in Salmiyeh
neighborhood in
Kuwait City. His
Eminence Archbishop Goriun
Babian is the
Catholicosal Vicar to the
region. A National
Representative Assembly (also
known as Legislative Council / Temagan)
is elected once every four years
and meets once a year to review and
evaluate the overall status of
the communities in Kuwait,
Abu Dhabi and the Northern
Emirates (Dubai, Sharjah, etc.). The
parish pastor of the United Arab
Emirates is Rev. Fr. Aram
Deyirmenjian, who takes
care of the spiritual life of
the Armenians living in the
UAE and neighboring Qatar.
Several social and cultural
activities are organized in the
United Arab Emirates, with the
presence of Armenians and their
non-Armenian friends.
In May 2000, an Armenian Embassy
was established in Abu Dhabi
through the efforts and
financial undertaking of the
Armenians living in all Gulf
countries. In 2007 the new
premises of the Embassy were
inaugurated in the Diplomatic
Quarter of the capital Abu
Dhabi. Armavia flies four times weekly from Dubai to Yerevan,
the capital of Armenia.
The
estimated number of
Armenians in the UAE is 5000 out
of which
1000 are
citizens of Armenia.
The Diasporan Armenians living in the Gulf
have many nationalities, mainly
they are from Lebanon, Syria,
Iran, Iraq, Egypt, Jordan,
Turkey, US, Canada,
Australia, and several European
countries.
The main executive body in
each of the three cities Kuwait,
Sharjah and Abu Dhabi is the
National Council
(also known as Executive Council
/ Azkayin Varchoutyoun), which
is appointed directly by the
Legislative Council and supervises the functions of
the different sub-committees
(women, youth, cultural,
information, church bodies and
associations, etc.). It
commemorates the important
events on the Armenian calendar,
tries to help the needy
individuals, welcomes visitors
from other Armenian Communities,
etc. In recent years the
sub-committees have suffered
from inactivity. Both
Legislative and Executive
Councils are strictly controlled
by the ARF. The Prelacy based in
Kuwait publishes "Aztarar"
weekly, which covers UAE news in
a very limited way.
Other entities in
UAE:
Since 2003 Azad-Hye
website operates in the UAE with
2000+ daily visitors. Besides
the English language website it
has a special website in Arabic
language and another one for
Armenian businesses. Azad-Hye
organizes also social monthly
meetings and other seasonal
events. See Azad-Hye community
services page
here.
In 2007 with the
advent of Facebook social
networking website, several UAE
Armenian groups were introduced
such as Hye Lounge, Hayer, Tebi
Hayrenik, UAE Armenian Events,
etc.
In March 2009 the
Armenian General Benevolent
Union opened a chapter in the
United Arab Emirates.
