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|group=Aramaeans (ܐܖ̈ܡܝܐ ') Assyrians (ܐܬܘܖ̈ܝܐ ') Chaldeans (ܟܠܕ̈ܝܐ ''Kaldāyē'') Syriacs (ܣܘܖ̈ܝܝܐ ''Suryāyē'') |image= |poptime= 1.5 million (est) |popplace= Iraq 800,000 (est CIA ) Syria 500,000 (est {Link without Title} ) United States 82,355( 2000 census ) Sweden 35,000 est Germany 23,000 est Australia 18,667 ( 2001 census ) Russia 14,000 ( 2002 ) Iran 10,000 (est) Canada 6,980 ( 2001 Census ) Lebanon 5,000 (est) Turkey 5,000 (est) Netherlands 5,000 est United Kingdom 5,000 est Georgia 3,299 ( 2002 census ) Armenia 3,409 ( 2001 ) Ukraine : 3,143 < 2001 census Greece 2,000 est New Zealand 1,176 ( 2001 ) |langs= Syriac , Assyrian Neo-Aramaic , Chaldean Neo-Aramaic , Turoyo |rels= Christianity ( Various Eastern Denominations ) |related= Other Semites , Armenians , Persians }} Aramaeans/Assyrians/Chaldeans/Syriacs constitute an Ethnic Group found in what is today Iraq , Iran , Turkey , Syria , and Lebanon , who are speakers of various neo- Aramaic languages. They primarily lived in the Middle East , but in the past century about half of its population have migrated to the Caucasus , North America , and Western Europe (see Assyrian Diaspora ). Identity During the First Century AD , Aramaic was spoken throughout much of the Middle East by Christians, Jew s and followers of various Pagan Religions . However, communities separated by religion and geographical distance spoke quite different varieties of Aramaic, and intelligibility between them was in places low. The other main language of the region was Koine Greek , which was spoken in the upper echelons of society and in the major urban centres of the Levant . The establishment of churches in urban centres in the Levant, Asia Minor and Greece led to Greek becoming the dominant language of the early church. However, the Christian faith also spread rapidly among the Aramaic-speaking peoples in the smaller towns and farther east. Early writings employ the name ''Armāyē'' (ܐܖ̈ܡܝܐ). However, Greek texts (including the Jewish Books Of The Maccabees ) referred to the language as ''Syriakos'' (Συριακός), and its speakers as ''Syriakoi'' (Συριακοί, probably based on '' Assyria ''). Relatively early on in the development of the Aramaic-speaking church, the name Armāyē was abandoned in favour of the Aramaicised Greek name, ''Suryāyē'' (ܣܘܖ̈ܝܝܐ). Therefore, originally, the Suryāyē are Christian Armāyē. Because of this distinction, the word ''Armāyā'' came to designate a pagan, even being applied to a person who did not speak Aramaic. From the Greek name, the English designation ''Syriacs'' is often used to refer to the entire community of Aramaic-speaking Christian people. Another account of the history according to Greek and Roman historians such as Herodotus, Strabo, Justinus and others state that the term Syrian means nothing more than Assyrian. During the first century B.C. Strabo wrote: "When those who have written histories about the Syrian empire say that the Medes were overthrown by the Persians and the Syrians by the Medes, they mean by the Syrian no other people than those who built the royal palaces in Babylon and Ninus; and of these Syrians, Ninus was the man who founded Ninus in Aturia..[Assyria . (H.L. Jones Translation of "Geography of Strabo", New York 1916, Vol. VIII p.195) Christian Assyrian writers have attested to this fact. The term Syrian later was applied by the Greeks to the the Assryians of Mesopotamia and the people west of Euphrates, because that region did not have a specific national identity but was part of the Assyrians empire. There is no reason to believe that it meant Aramean, because the inhabitants of the what became Syria during the first century AD were Greeks, Romans, Arameans, Hitites, Assyrians and people of other nationalities, Therefore the term Suraya and Syrian did not mean Christian or Aramean because it had been in used since sixth century B.C to mean Assyrian whom the Old Testament writers considered pagan. In facts the Arameans are praised in the Old Testament because Abraham the father of the Jewish religion and later Christianity was said to have been Aramean. The Aramaic language promoted by the Ancient Assyrians as an international language of communication was spoken by many nations who were not Aramean. Because the Aramaic speakers took pride in the fact that Christ spoke their language indicates that Aramean and Aramaic was not considered as Pagan by the early Christians. Christians who lived in Mesopotamia considered themselves Assyrians after Christianity as they had done before. For referrences to the Assyrians before and afer Christianity see Facts about Assyrians Occasionally, the designation ''Syrians'' is used in the same manner, but this can lead to confusion with the modern nation-state of Syria and its inhabitants, some of whom are Syriacs, but the majority of whom are not. In the Middle Ages , Syriac scholars, particularly West Syriacs, revived the use of the designation ''Armāyē'' with a new vocalisation based on the Hebrew '''', producing ''Ārāmāyē'' (ܐܖ̈ܡܝܐ, pronounced ''Oromoye'' by West Syriacs). This designation is, and was, used often to refer to a far larger group of people, and often including the Maronite Catholics, Melkite Greek Catholics and the Antiochian Orthodox ''. It often pertained to the Aramaic language which they had in common, just as the nations of Europe, who speak Latin related languages, at times have been called Latin. The community has traditionally been divided into western and eastern parts. The exact division is somewhat uncertain, and is variously based on geography, linguistics and church affiliation. In ancient times, the main division was defined by the border between the Roman and Persia n empires. Linguistically, although all groups employ for a Liturgical Language the Middle-Aramaic variety spoken in Edessa — Classical Syriac — many also use different varieties of Modern Aramaic . As far as church affiliation stands, the Syriac Orthodox Church and Syrian Catholic Church generally represent the western group, while the Assyrian Church Of The East and the Chaldean Catholic Church the eastern. As the Greek name ''Syriakoi'' is considered by many to be derived from the word ''Assyria'' (Ασσυρια), so many Aramaic-speaking Christians prefer to use the designation ''Assyrians'' or '''' (ܐܬܘܖ̈ܝܐ, variously pronounced ''Othuroye'', ''Atoraye'' and so forth). It appears that the few instances of the word in early Syriac texts refers simply to the inhabitants of the Mosul region, once dominated by the Assyrian cities of Assur and Nineveh . This designation for the region has continued ever since the days of the Assyrian Empire . However other Syriac references show that Assyria also meant the area of the greater Assyria north of Babylon. This is evident in a letter by The Church Of The East patriarch Timothy I (770-823), to the monks of Mar Marun where he declares; Babylonia, Persia and Assyria, all the countries of ... were under his jurisdiction. (William G. Young, "Patriarch, Shah and Caliph", Christian Study Center, Rawalpindi, Pakistan 1974, p.152) The thirteenth century Gewargis Warda has used the term in the same context. Self-identifications ;Aramaean ''(ܐܖ̈ܡܝܐ Ārāmāyē)'' :Throughout the history of the Syriac Christians, there have been references to their in Lebanon. In Germany , for instance, the name ''Aramäer'' has come into use quite extensively to refer to Syriacs primarily from the West Syrian tradition. ]] ;Assyrian ''(ܐܬܘܖ̈ܝܐ )'' :Assyrian is what is used today by members of the Nestorian church, whose church has been officially called the Assyrian Church Of The East since 1886 . Assyrian is also used by some Chaldean Catholics as well in Iran and Iraq. The Assyrian name is still today what is primarily used by ethnic Assyrians in the Middle East. ;Assyro-Chaldean or Chaldo-Assyrian ''(ܟܠܕܘܐܫܘܖ̈ܝܐ Kaldu-Āšurāyē)'' :Assyro-Chaldean was the term used in the beginning of the 20th Century when both groups were weak and were allegedly being subjected to massacres by the Ottomans. It was used to unite the Assyrians of the Eastern Church and the Catholic Church. As the present-day Iraqi Assyro-Chaldeans belong mostly to the Chaldean Church of Babylon, the term Chaldo-Assyrians is also used there, whereas in Iran the non-Catholic Assyro-Chaldeans are more numerous than their Catholic cousins, and the term Assyrians is generally favoured. The tendency to identify Assyrians by various identities is because they have not had a sovereign state after the fall of their empire which would have given them international recognition. They however have continued to live in their historic homeland which they have identified As Assyria regardless of names the conquerors of their land have imposed on it. Western writers often prefer to define Assyrians by their religious denomination rather than national identity. Members of the Syrian Orthodox Church have also identified themselves as Assyrians for as long as history can remember. The Syrian Orthodox Patriarch Michael the great (1126-99) wrote: In the first half of the 9th century "the Greeks were offending the Jacobites by saying: 'Your Syrian sect has no importance neither honor, and you did never have a kingdom, neither an honorable king'. the Jacobites answered them by Saying that even if their name is "Syrian", but they are originally "Assyrians" and they have had many honorable kings... from Assyria, Babylon and Urhay." However the Syrian Orthodox Church patriarch Aphrem Barsoum who in 1920 represented his people as Assyrians in the 'League of Nations’ peace conference', for religious and political reasons, in 1952, ordered his people to be known as Arameans . While a segment of his followers abided by such decree the rest continued to identify themselves as Assyrians. See; Aphrem barsoum ;Chaldean ''(ܟܠܕ̈ܝܐ Kaldāyē)'' :Catholic missionaries succeeded during the 12th , 13th , and 14th centuries in converting Assyrians to Catholicism (from the Church of the East). In 1445 , the then-Nestorian Church in Cyprus requested to unite with Rome . Pope Eugenius IV accepted and Rome extended the term of the Chaldean Church of Cyprus to cover all those new Catholic converts in northern Mesopotamia proper. : Up until the 20th century, all Chaldeans referred to themselves as Assyrian. Today, the Archbishop of the Chaldeans goes by the official name of "The Patriarch of Babylon over the Chaldeans" and the name of the church is Chaldean Church of Babylon. The Chaldean name is what is primarily used by diaspora Catholic Assyrians (specifically the 50,000-strong community in the Detroit area) The original Aramaic for ''Chaldeans'' is ''Kasdāyē'' (ܟܣܕܝ̈ܐ), but this was replaced at an early period with the Aramaic derivative of the Akkadian term ''Kaldu''. ;Syriac ''(ܣܘܪ̈ܝܝܐ Suryoye/Suryāyē)'' :Syriac is a term often used to describe all Semitic and ethnically non- Arab Christians of the Middle East (excluding Armenians of the Middle East and Egyptian Christians ). :There is also the Syriac Orthodox Church . The term is not that often used in Lebanon, but is used by some diaspora Maronites , who do not wish to be called Arabs (see example. ) In Turkey, none of these churches is recognized as a religious minority (see Treaty Of Lausanne and Demographics Of Turkey ) and both use of minority languages or non-Turkish ethnic identities have always been repressed by the governments. ''Süryani'', ''Keldani'', and ''Nasturi'' are used in Turkish for Syriacs, Chaldeans, and "Nestorians", respectively. In all the countries of emigration where ethnic censuses have been held, i.e. Armenia , Australia , Canada , Georgia, New Zealand , Russia (and the former Soviet Union ) and the United States , the census ethnic category used is Assyrians. Iran and Syria do not conduct ethnic census. Iraq announced in 2005 that they will use the term Chaldo-Assyrian during their future census. In Sweden , there is a dividing line between:
Languages The various groups and religious communities included under the Assyrians umbrella-ethnonym usually speak various Neo-Aramaic languages, including , many speak also Arabic, Turkish, Persian and/or Kurdish , or the language(s) used in the countries where they live. Beside local Neo-Aramaic vernacular forms, there is a literary language, based primarily on the dialect used in the Urmia district of northwestern Iran. It uses the Syriac Alphabet in its Eastern variety, revived by Europe ean missionaries in the first half of the 19th century. It is in this Alphabet and language, Eastern Neo-Aramaic, that the first newspaper in all of Iran was printed ( 1849 – 1918 ). When American missionaries first arrived in Urmia, among 125,000 Aramaic-speaking inhabitants, only 40 men and one woman (sister of the Patriarch) could read and write. By the 1890s , the Assyrians had made such progress in education that most of the dozens of villages in the Urmia area had primary schools, and some had secondary schools as well. Although attempts to create a literary form for Eastern Aramaic probably date back to the 17th Century (with the priests of the school of Alqosh ), the Americans and their local advisors in Urmia can fairly be credited for laying the foundations of what is now called Neo-Aramaic Koine or Dachsprache . Neo-Assyrian revival belief in the future of their nation, based on the following passage from the Bible : ''In that day there shall be a way from Egypt to the Assyrians, and the Assyrian shall enter into Egypt, and the Egyptian to the Assyrians, and the Egyptians shall serve the Assyrian. In that day shall Israel be the third to the Egyptian and the Assyrian: a blessing in the midst of the land, Which the Lord of hosts hath blessed, saying: "Blessed be my people of Egypt, and the work of my hands to the Assyrian: but Israel is my inheritance."'' ('' With the dire prospect of survival for Aramaic-speaking, Christian communities in Iraq being recognized, there is a slow process to bring together the various church groups. A political awakening is taking place, both in the large diaspora and in the Middle East. Enhanced communication, especially through the Internet and by E-mail is breaking down the barriers that 20th century nationalism in Iraq, Syria, and Turkey in particular, had fostered. While there still are many quarrels, the multilingualism of Assyrians and the rise in communications in English , is breaking down some of the antagonisms. To some extent, the quarrels are fed inadvertently by Western scholarship combined with a lack of cultural and historical knowledge among Assyrians themselves. Many continue to link language use with ethnic name: since all Assyrians speak one of two living forms of Aramaic (Eastern and Western), the assumption is often made that this must also become the ethnic name of the group. Others who want to revive classical Syriac, the revered liturgical language of the community, insist on some term having to do with the word "Syriac" and call themselves ''Syriacs''. Because the indigenous word in both dialects for the people themselves and for the language is "Suryoyo" or "Suryaye", some take the facile route of equating these terms with Syriac or Syrian without realizing that the terms Assyrian and Syrian are the same in origin which has been attested to by writers of various nationalities during centuries before and after Christianity. Similar disagreements over language and unity exist among many minorities in the Middle East that have had no state structure. Assyrians have managed to preserve Aramaic for more than two thousand years without any state backing. The cultural heritage and the language may help to preserve the community. Religious denominations
People who consider themselves as Assyrians are usually followers of one of the aforementioned churches, but not all members of them consider themselves as Assyrians, ethnic and national identities being intertwined with religious ones, a heritage of the Millet System . There are no (known) Assyrian Kurdish clan), Tagritoye, Taye (the Tay tribal confederation), and Shammor (the Shammar tribal confederation).http://ornina.org/assa/verk97/verk97.htm Assyriska sällskapet förstudenter och akademiker (ASSA), VERKSAMHETSBERÄTTELSE 1997 Denho Özmen, ''Shaikh fathullah. The Assyrian "modern" identity'', Hujådå, autumn 1997 In some memoranda of Assyrian-Chaldean delegations at the post-WWI peace conferences, Sabeans- Mandeans were also included as potentially Assyro-Chaldeans. See also
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