Assyrian Nationalism
Assyrians are a population with a long and complicated history.
Traditionally associated with Christianity, the term “Assyrian” is an ethnic
national term that includes people from various Syriac churches (not to be
confused with the Syrians of modern-day). They have historically been located
in Northern Syria, Eastern Iran, and Southern Turkey: essentially the center of
the Ottoman Empire as we know it in this committee.
As early as the 5th century, there was already a division among
the Syriac churches, between the “East Syrians,” which included primarily
the Nestorians, but also the Uniate Brethren and the Chaldeans, and the “West
Syrians” composed of members of the Jacobites Syrian Orthodox Church of Antich
and Syrian Catholics. Despite these divisions, the two sides continued to
interact on an intellectual basis throughout the centuries.
Nationalism, or at least the concept of representing a “nation,”
first prominent in the Nestorian community in the 1890s. Until that period, the
term “Assyrian” had only been used to refer to ancient Assyria (the region of
upper Mesopotamia dating back to the 25th century BCE) and the people referred
to themselves only as Syriacs or Syrians. The rise of nationalism came with the
reclaiming of the identifier “Assyrian.”
Much like the Kurds, and other ethnic populations of the time, the
intellectual Assyrians were inspired by Western political ideologies. They felt
that they could unite and empower their people through nationalism, and indeed
in 1906-1907, Assyrians from villages and cities gathered to form a council in
the region of Urmia. Unfortunately, religious disagreements between the various
factions mentioned above quickly led the council to dissolution. Nonetheless,
this marked the beginning of a sense of unity.
The Jacobites and Chaldeans had closer ties to the Ottoman Empire
than the Nestorians. They were integrated with surrounding societies, and
sometimes possessed seats of power, and consequently, Nationalism did not catch
on as early. It was only after World War 1 that they began to develop
an interest in joining the Nestorians in pursuit of an Assyrian Nation.
World War I had a particularly great impact on the sense of
nationalism for the Assyrians. All Christian ethnic groups in the area, especially
the Nestorians experienced a major loss of lives. By 1918, most Nestorians had
been forced out of their homeland and were either in Russia or in “tent cities”
in British controlled Iraq. In addition, they felt betrayed by Western
countries that had failed to follow through with promised aid. The trauma that
the Assyrians experienced during the war drew them to a renewed sense of
solidarity and overall, they emerged from the war prepared to unite and secure
their own nation.
If you’d like to do any more research, this podcast has an episode relating to this topic (and many other topics related to committee!!), and more reading can be found here.
The Assyrians should be allowed to exercise their right to self-determination following the fall of the Ottoman Empire. With numerous groups in the region, of different culture and/or ethnicity, it is impossible for successful unification. As seen in the Ottoman Empire, and Empire's before, minority groups often have their rights infringed upon when unified under a larger government. An example of this is the Armenian Genocide, where over a million Armenians, along with other minorities, were killed due to disloyalty. This perceived disloyalty comes from a sense of nationalism among groups, including the Assyrians, as they desire their own state. Therefore, unless granted the ability to exercise their right to self-determination, the Assyrians and other minorities will continue to have their rights infringed upon. Therefore, it is necessary to allow these groups to create new political entities with homogeneous populations to conflict within countries.
ReplyDelete- Woodrow Wilson (President of the United States)