The Hamshen Armenians

The Hamshen Armenians (self-name: Hemshil) are a sub-ethnic group of Armenians whose homeland is the Hamshen district of Western Armenia, in the north-east of present-day Turkey. According to tradition, Hamshen was named after Prince Hamam. Many Hamshen Armenians still live there today.

Hamshen Armenians who survived the Great Crime (Mets Yeghern) moved to Russia, Armenia, Georgia and other countries. Today they live mainly in the south of Russia’s Krasnodar Krai and in Abkhazia, speak one of the dialects of Western Armenian and are Christians, while in Turkey most Hamshen people have adopted Islam. They have their own distinctive music and cuisine. The total number of Hamshen Armenians reaches 400,000.

The photograph shows a smiling, light-eyed girl wearing a dark headscarf with large colourful floral patterns. The black scarf framing her face is decorated with small metal discs.