11-11-2005, 03:33 PM
The Last Armenians
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->MIGRANTS symbolise some wonderful traits of the human race - they move out from their homes to live elsewhere; labour hard, engage in trade and make a fortune; philanthropy records them in history and with the passage of time they get scattered, leaving behind a few monuments. As far as Chennai is concerned, apart from the English, its annals are enriched by the Jews, Portuguese and the Armenians. Of them, the Jews and the Portuguese are long forgotten. A beautiful church in a street named after them, a city bridge to their credit and few other notable legacies including a present population of three are the remains of the Armenian connection of the city today.
Michael Stephen (28), the caretaker of the Armenian Church located in the Armenian street leads a serene life with his love birds and pet dogs in the church. An ailing Mr Gregory in his eighties, former caretaker of the church, and his Anglo Indian wife are the other remaining people of this ancient clan in the city.
Armenia, a land-locked nation in West Asia was the first country to make Christianity their official religion in 301 AD. The Armenians celebrate Christmas on 6th January and not on 25th December as other Christians do. Information on Armenians in India before 1500 AD. is difficult to find. <b>However, available records trace evidence of their trading in South India in the early part of the sixteenth century. In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, a flourishing colony of Armenians in Madras was well-established in local trade as well as commerce overseas</b>
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<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->MIGRANTS symbolise some wonderful traits of the human race - they move out from their homes to live elsewhere; labour hard, engage in trade and make a fortune; philanthropy records them in history and with the passage of time they get scattered, leaving behind a few monuments. As far as Chennai is concerned, apart from the English, its annals are enriched by the Jews, Portuguese and the Armenians. Of them, the Jews and the Portuguese are long forgotten. A beautiful church in a street named after them, a city bridge to their credit and few other notable legacies including a present population of three are the remains of the Armenian connection of the city today.
Michael Stephen (28), the caretaker of the Armenian Church located in the Armenian street leads a serene life with his love birds and pet dogs in the church. An ailing Mr Gregory in his eighties, former caretaker of the church, and his Anglo Indian wife are the other remaining people of this ancient clan in the city.
Armenia, a land-locked nation in West Asia was the first country to make Christianity their official religion in 301 AD. The Armenians celebrate Christmas on 6th January and not on 25th December as other Christians do. Information on Armenians in India before 1500 AD. is difficult to find. <b>However, available records trace evidence of their trading in South India in the early part of the sixteenth century. In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, a flourishing colony of Armenians in Madras was well-established in local trade as well as commerce overseas</b>
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