THE
ARMENIANS
OF CYPRUS
10
Ottoman Era:
During the Ottoman conquest of the
island (1570-1571), about 40.000 Ottoman-Armenian
craftsmen were recruited. Many of those who
survived the conquest settled mainly in Nicosia, where
the Armenian Prelature was recognised as an
Ethnarchy, via the millet institution. However, the
Bishopric in Famagusta was abolished, as the entire
walled city became forbidden for non-Muslims. Gifted
with the acumen of industry, Armenians practised
lucrative professions and in the beginning of the 17th
century Persian-Armenians settled in Cyprus as silk
traders, as did some affluent Ottoman-Armenian
families in the 18th and the 19th centuries.
However, with the new order of things, the number of
Armenians and other Christians dramatically declined
due to the onerous taxation and the harshness of the
Ottoman administration, compelling many Christians to
become Linobambaki (Crypto-Christians) or to embrace
Islam, which explains why former Armenian villages
(Armenokhori, Artemi, Ayios Iakovos, Ayios Khariton,
Kornokipos, Melounda, Platani and Spathariko) were
inhabited by Turkish-Cypriots at the end of the 19th
century. Gradually, after the bloody July 1821 events,
some improvements were observed during the
Tanzimat period (period of fundamental reform of the
Ottoman Empire, 1839-1876), resulting in the parti-
cipation of the Armenian Bishop in the Administrative
Council (Μejlis Ιdare) and the employment of some
Armenians in the civil service. Additionally, the opening
of the Suez Canal in 1869 benefited the Armenian and
other merchants of the island.
British Era:
With the arrival of the British in July 1878
and their progressive administration, the already
prosperous yet small Armenian community of the
island was particularly strengthened. Known for their
linguistic skills, several Armenians arrived in Cyprus
to work as interpreters and public servants at
the consulates and the British administration. The
l
Engraving showing the mansion of interpreter Mikael Assadourian
in Kythrea, which was visited by the first High Commissioner,
Sir Garnet Wolseley (1878).
