THE BIGGEST CONCERN OF THE ARMENIAN COMMUNITY IN ITALY TO REMAIN ARMENIAN
By Nana Petrosian

AZG Armenian Daily
02/05/2007

Two thousand Armenians live in Italy. Three hundred of them live
in Milan. They are peaceful and united round the same idea –
to remain Armenian. According to Kekel Khachatrian, who lives
in Milan, their community has no problems with the parties, as
it is very small. The only concern is to remain Armenian, and the
rest is not important. Several Armenian organizations act in Milan:
‘Armenian Union of Italy’, ‘Armenian Apostolic Church’, ‘Homenetmen’,
‘Armenian House’, etc. There is no Armenian school in Milan, because
children and youth are few here. Only private courses of Armenian are
conducted on Saturdays in the Armenian House, sponsored by Armenian
Apostolic Church. But the private courses cannot replace the school.

Learning Armenian is very important for the Armenians of Italy. The
interest in learning Armenian is bigger among the third generation
of Armenians here. During the last 15 years the interest in Armenia
and everything connected with Armenians has become bigger among the
Armenians of Italy. The children of mixed marriages also want to
learn Armenian. The percentage of mixed marriages is very big here:
only one from ten is not mixed. In spite of the above-mentioned the
community is very unanimous. Though only about half of the Armenians,
living in Milan, are active, all of them are ready to unite and act
when it concerns to the big problems, i.e. in 1965 the Armenians of
Milan could organize a commemoration ceremony devoted to the victims
of the Armenian Genocide in the General Church of Milan.

In 2005 they organized an Apostolic Service in the Church of
St. Ambrogio. It became a tradition to have ceremonies here on April
24, every year. In this year’s ceremony took part the representatives
of all sister-churches and they all blamed Turkey for the committed
Genocide. If the same happened in Lebanon, it would not be so
interesting, but we are a very small community and it is a big victory
for us, declared Kekel Khachatrian. Another victory of the Armenians
of Milan is the building of the Apostolic Church here. The Catholic
Church didn’t allow building an Apostolic Church side-by-side with
St. Ambrogio Church. At last in 1958 the Armenian Apostolic Church
was built in a new place.