Assyrians in Russia
 St. Mary Assyrian Church in Moscow | |
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| 14,000[1] | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Languages | |
| Syriac-Aramaic, Russian | |
| Religion | |
| Assyrian Church of the East |
Assyrians in Russia (Assyrian Neo-Aramaic: ܐܫܘܪ̈ܝܐ; Russian: Ассирийцы) number 14,000 according to the 2002 Russian census.
History
Assyrians came to Russia and the Soviet Union in three main waves:
- The first wave was after the Treaty of Turkmenchay in 1828, that delineated a border between Russia and Persia. Many Assyrians found themselves suddenly under Russian sovereignty and thousands of relatives crossed the border to join them.
- The second wave was a result of the repression and violence during and after World War I.
- The third wave came after World War II, when Moscow unsuccessfully tried to establish a satellite state in Iranian Kurdistan. Soviet troops withdrew in 1946, and left the Assyrians exposed to exactly the same kind of retaliation that they had suffered from the Turks 30 years earlier. Again, many Assyrians found refuge in the Soviet Union, this time mainly in the cities. From 1937 to 1959, the Assyrian population in USSR grew by 587.3%. The Soviets in the thirties oppressed the Assyrians' religion and persecuted religious and other leaders.
In recent years, the Assyrians have tended to assimilate, but their cultural and ethnic identity, strengthened through centuries of hardships, found new expression under Glasnost.
Current situation
According to the 2002 Russian census there were 14,000[1] Assyrians in Russia. 13,300 people (95% of all Assyrians) spoke Syriac as native language.
References
- ^ a b NATIONAL COMPOSITION OF POPULATION FOR REGIONS OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION Archived 2007-02-17 at the Wayback Machine
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Assyrian people
Ethno-linguistic group(s) indigenous to the Middle East with various additional/alternate self-identifications, such as Syriacs, Arameans, or Chaldeans
Christianity
| West Syriac Rite |
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| East Syriac Rite |
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| Homeland Settlements | |
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| Diaspora |
History portal
Christianity portal
Assyrians in Asia | |
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| From Europe |
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| From Asia | |
| From Africa | |
