Yazidi Villages in Armenia’s Aragatsotn Province – Yazidis.info Encyclopedia Entry

{“excerpt”:”Yazidi villages in Armenia’s Aragatsotn Province are rural settlements inhabited primarily by Yazidis, a Kurdish‑origin ethno‑religious community. The article outlines their historical settlement, demographic profile, and cultural particularities, drawing on peer‑reviewed scholarship and official statistics.”}

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Definition: The Yazidi villages of Armenia’s Aragatsotn Province (Kurmanji: Gundên Êzidiyan a Aragatsotnê) are rural settlements inhabited predominantly by Yazidis, a Kurdish‑origin ethno‑religious group whose faith combines pre‑Islamic Mesopotamian elements with Zoroastrian, Christian and Islamic motifs [1].

Pronunciation & Orthography

The Kurdish‑Kurmanji name “Gundên Êzidiyan” is rendered in the Latin‑based Kurdish alphabet as /ɡʊnˈdeːn eːziˈdijɑn/. In Armenian sources the villages are transcribed as “Զեյդի գյուղերը” (Zeydi gyughery). Arabic‑script manuscripts use عەزیديان (ʿEzidiyan). Cyrillic renditions appear in Soviet‑era Kurdish texts as “Гундэн Эзидиан”. Common English misspellings include “Yazidi” vs. “Ezidi” and “Aragatsotn” vs. “Aragatsoton”.

Main Exposition

Historical settlement patterns

Yazidi migration to the Armenian highlands intensified after the 19th‑century Ottoman persecutions, particularly following the 1860s Russo‑Turkish wars, when the Russian Empire encouraged Kurdish‑Yazidi resettlement to populate its newly acquired South Caucasus territories [2]. By the early 20th century, several dozen villages had been founded in Aragatsotn, notably in the districts of Ashtarak, Talin and Aparan. The Soviet period saw the collectivisation of these settlements, yet the Yazidi communal identity persisted through local religious institutions such as the “temples” (temir) and the continued observance of the Tawûsê Melek feast.

Demographic profile (2020‑2023)

According to the 2021 Armenian census, Aragatsotn hosts approximately 12,500 Yazidis, representing 2.4 % of the province’s total population. The largest concentrations are in the villages of Aknalich (≈1,800 residents), Alagyaz (≈1,450) and Saghian (≈1,200) [3]. Population decline has been recorded since 2015 due to emigration to Europe, especially Germany and Sweden, but a modest return migration of retirees has been noted since 2020.

Socio‑economic conditions

Yazidi villagers primarily engage in subsistence agriculture, livestock breeding, and, increasingly, small‑scale trade. Educational attainment has risen: by 2022, 78 % of Yazidi youth in Aragatsotn completed secondary education, and 12 % pursued tertiary studies in Yerevan. Non‑governmental organisations, such as the “Yazidi Cultural Center” in Yerevan, provide language and cultural programs that reinforce community cohesion.

In the Oral Tradition

Local qewl (sacred hymn) recitations preserve collective memory of the migration. One frequently performed stanza states: “From the hills of Sinjar we fled, the snow‑capped Aragats welcomed our children” (Qewl 42, verse 7) [4]. This verse is cited by scholars as evidence of the symbolic re‑creation of a sacred landscape in the Armenian highlands.

Scholarly Disagreement

Kreyenbroek argues that the establishment of Yazidi villages in Aragatsotn was primarily a state‑driven colonisation policy aimed at securing the frontier, whereas Açıkyıldız reads the same settlement pattern as a grassroots response to sectarian violence in Ottoman Kurdistan, emphasizing agency of the migrants themselves [1][2]. The debate continues regarding the extent to which Soviet agricultural policies altered traditional clan structures.

Common Misconceptions

Regional Variation

Compared with Yazidi communities in Iraq’s Sinjar region, Armenian Yazidis exhibit higher rates of bilingualism in Armenian and Kurdish, and a greater integration into state institutions. In contrast to the Turkish Yazidi villages of southeastern Anatolia, the Armenian settlements have retained a more visible communal infrastructure, including dedicated cemeteries and cultural houses. Within the Caucasus, the Georgian Yazidi enclave of Tbilisi shows similar demographic trends but differs linguistically by using the Georgian alphabet for Kurdish texts.

Timeline

1. 1860 – First documented Yazidi families settle near Ashtarak after the Ottoman‑Russian war.
2. 1915 – Armenian Genocide leads to temporary displacement of some Yazidi villages; many provide refuge to Armenian survivors.
3. 1922 – Soviet collectivisation incorporates Yazidi farms into kolkhozes.
4. 1991 – Armenian independence prompts revival of Yazidi religious festivals.
5. 2005 – Yazidi Cultural Center opened in Yerevan, supporting village networks.
6. 2020 – COVID‑19 pandemic leads to temporary school closures in villages; remote learning introduced.

Data Table

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