Armenian rojak, S’pore style

Electric New Paper, Singapore
Aug 17 2005

WHEN former Mrs Singapore Brigitte Ow married her Chinese husband,
she wanted to impress her father-in-law.

She tried addressing him with ‘lou yeh’, the Cantonese word for
‘father’.

However, because of the wrong intonations, she ended up calling him
‘old thing’.

Mrs Ow is Armenian and like many Armenian Singaporeans, she married
outside the community.

Identities are changing for this minority group, one of the smallest
in Singapore.

While Mrs Ow’s grandfather is pure Armenian, her mother, Madam Loretta
Tan, is half Armenian.

Mrs Ow, whose maiden name is Aroozoo, and her sister, Mrs Debra
Pasaribu, are quarter Armenian and call themselves Singaporeans
first. Although never numbering more than 100, Armenians played a key
role in Singapore’s early history. They are responsible for four of
Singapore’s most recognisable icons.

The Sarkis brothers who founded the Raffles Hotel were Armenian.

Another Armenian, Mr Catchick Moses, founded The Straits Times.

Vanda Miss Joaquim, the national flower, was so named after its
founder Agnes Joaquim, an Armenian horticulturalist.

NATIONAL MONUMENT

The Armenians’ place of worship, the Armenian Apostolic Church of St
Gregory the Illuminator, is a national monument.

Located at Hill Street, it is the oldest Christian place of worship
in Singapore.

‘Armenians came to Singapore for very different reasons,’ said Mr
Gregory Basmadjian, one of the trustees of the Armenian Church.

‘They did not come just to trade. They were also fleeing persecution
at home.’ (See other report.)

Today, three million live in Armenia proper. Four million live in
the diaspora. Tennis star Andre Agassi and Hollywood actress Cher
are among the diaspora.

The Armenian Singaporean community numbers about 20 and the group is
finding it hard to keep traditions alive.

A major reason is the high number of mixed marriages.

‘When people asked me why I did not marry an Armenian, I told them
all the Armenian men I knew were in their 70s!’ Mrs Ow said, half
in jest. Her children identify themselves as Cantonese after their
father and they speak Mandarin, but not Armenian.

‘By the time it gets down to our children, the Armenian blood is very
watered down,’ Mrs Ow said.

But Mrs Ow tries hard to make sure they don’t lose the Armenian part.

The 44-year-old corporate trainer explains to them that they are
special because they have the best of both east and west.

Mr Basmadjian, a 54-year-old retired bank manager, explained how
difficult it is to maintain the Armenian tradition.

The church here is the centre of the Armenian community, but since
the end of World War II, it does not have a priest.

There are only services four or five times a year when foreign priests
visit. Christmas also falls on 6 Jan, not 25 Dec.

In 1948, they were removed from the national census and placed in the
‘Others’ category.

But balancing one’s identity is not always a struggle. Embracing
different cultures can also be a great way to live.

Mr Paul Johannes is the grand-nephew of Ms Agnes Joaquim. The
41-year-old Singaporean Armenian works in Dubai. He was here for a
short holiday. And he was dying for satay.

The senior manager with Qatar Airways also has Javanese, Dutch and
German blood.

But his friends tell him he is more Singaporean than them.

‘I may be Armenian, but Singapore is the only place where I have
roots,’ he said.

Many left after WWII

ARMENIANS are of a very old race and their origins are still disputed.

Their homeland Armenia lies in the Caucasus, sandwiched between Turkey,
Georgia, Azerbaijan and Iran.

Today, it is a small republic of 3.5 million people.

Armenian merchants started arriving here after Singapore was opened
up for free trade by the British in 1819.

CRUCIAL ROLE

Although only 12 families settled here, the small community began to
play a crucial role here.

Half of the Armenian community left after World War II when businesses
were destroyed by the war.

The Raffles Hotel was sold. The Sarkis brothers did not have money
to repair the hotel. In any case, tourism was dead.

The Armenians also began to feel alienated in a Singapore slowly
acquiring a new cultural and political identity.

Photo: Madam Loretta Tan (third from left) with her daughters Debra
(far left), Brigitte (fourth from left) and her grandchildren.
–KELVIN CHNG

Photo: Part of the local Armenian community with a bishop in front
of the Armenian church in 1956.

for photoes:
,4136,93143,00.html