Secret Nation: The Hidden Armenians of Turkey

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It has long been assumed that no Armenian presence remained in eastern Turkey after the 1915 massacres. As a result of what has come to be called the Armenian Genocide, those who survived in Anatolia were assimilated as Muslims, with most losing all traces of their Christian identity.
In fact, some did survive and together with their children managed during the last century to conceal their origins. Many of these survivors were orphans, adopted by Turks, only discovering their `true' identity late into their adult lives. Outwardly, they are Turks or Kurds and while some are practising Muslims, others continue to uphold Christian and Armenian traditions behind closed doors.
In recent years, a growing number of `secret Armenians' have begun to emerge from the shadows. Spurred by the bold voices of journalists like Hrant Dink, the Armenian newspaper editor murdered in Istanbul in 2007, the pull towards freedom of speech and soul-searching are taking hold across the region. Avedis Hadjian has travelled to the towns and villages once densely populated by Armenians, recording stories of survival and discovery from those who remain in a region that is deemed unsafe for the people who once lived there.
This book takes the reader to the heart of these hidden communities for the first time, unearthing their unique heritage and identity. Revealing the lives of a peoples that have been trapped in a history of denial for more than a century, Secret Nation is essential reading for anyone with an interest in the aftermath of the Armenian Genocide in the very places where the events occurred.

Reviews

"Hadjian has no final conclusions for his readers in this book, save for the observation that the survivors - including the frightened young Armenian girl on Mount Maruta - are not alone. I'm not sure what that means. Survival keeps history alive, but I'm not sure it guarantees life in the future."

"Hadjian's sympathetic portraits of people who, unlike him, have been compelled to shed their Armenian identity is deeply moving."

Author Bio

Avedis Hadjian is a freelance journalist. He has appeared on CNN and his writing has appeared in Los Angeles Times, Bloomberg News and Le Monde Diplomatique, amongst many other major international news outlets, and he has written books and articles on the Caucasus in both English and Spanish. His work as a correspondent has taken him to Eastern Europe, the former Soviet Union, China, the Caucasus, Turkey and Latin America.