Reference Type: Book Section
Author: Polyák, Mariann
Year: 2007
Title: Az Armenia folyóirat jelentősége erdélyben
Translated Title: [Significance of 'armenia' in transylvania]
Editor: Őze, Sándor - Kovács, Bálint
Book Title: Örmény diaszpora a Kárpát-medencében II. kötet
City: Piliscsaba
Publisher: Pázmány Péter Katolikus Egyetem Bölcsészettudományi Kar
Volume: II
Number of Volumes: 2
Language: Hungarian
Keywords: Armenian minority, history, culture, language, language use, assimilation, integration, ethnic identity, modernization, elites, politics, self-perception, interethnic relationships, discrimination, minority organizations
Abstract: (En) The assimilation of Hungarian-Armenian peoplw hit large scale at the end of the 19th century: they did not use there original language, Armenian was only used as the language of their ceremony. According to contemporary resources, their number was below ten thousand.
They did not have their own ecclesiastical leadership so their separate Armenian rite also was unstable. That is why Armcnians in Transylvania tried to renew their bishopric founded two hundred years carlier. One of their instruments was to acquaint Hungarian public their specific culture.
The main city: Armenopolis (Szamosújvár, Gherla) was the cradle of a review, its title was Armenia. Its language was Hungarian though the review wanted to strengthen the Armenian identity. The first Armenia was published in 1887 and appeared in every month through 20 years. The articles were about the Armenian and Hungarian-Armenian history and their present, some-times in series and a lot of poets could publish their poems in this newspaper.
There were a lot of articles about the Armenian bishopric, they tried to find the sources of the foundation of it and to fight for their right to have their own bishop again. The leader of this political fight was Gyula Merza armenologist. He argued feverishly for their own bishop, his arguments were: they did not want to educate their theologians abroad, they wanted to preserve their Armenian character and rite. The Greek catholic church wanted to found their bishopric at that time in Szamosújvár, so Armenian catholic people felt they had more rights to have an ecclesiastical seat than Greek catholic Romanians.
Endre Todoran's local press (Aurora) published the review, they had Armenian letters as well besides the royal press and the mechitarist fathers' press in the empire. The review had two editors who were the owners as well, Gergely Govrik, mechitarista father and Kristóf Szongott, the teacher of the local Armenian catholic secondary school. Szongott worked a lot on collecting all kind of sources in connection with Armenians and their history. Other newspapers recommended Armenia to their leadership.
Armenia could showe up the most important Armenian artists, scholars of the end of the 19th century. During the revicw's 20 years Hungarian-Annenians could get a big publicity.
URL: http://www.sulinet.hu/oroksegtar/data/magyarorszagi_nemzetisegek/ormenyek/ormeny_diaszpora_a_karpat_medenceben_II/pages/magyar/011_polyak_mariann.htm