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Dersim - Ottoman Era Armenian Schools
Author: Vahé Tachjian
To better understand the history of the last century of Ottoman Armenians and relations between the state and the Armenian community, it is necessary to study the Armenian schools that operated throughout the empire.
These educational institutions were places where Armenian identity lived and developed, and for whose welfare the Armenian community, from the highest communal bodies down to the smallest rural councils, did their utmost to support. Thus, it is sufficient to examine the important periods of relative freedom within the history of the empire - the Tanzimat period, the early years of the reign of Sultan Abdülhamid II, and especially the few years following the 1908 restoration of the Ottoman Constitution - in order to clearly see the sizeable contributions made by various Armenian institutions, organizations and individuals in efforts to improve community schools, to develop educational life, and to spur Armenian learning.
When the state regime followed a policy of anti-Armenian paranoia and when persecutions became widespread, the Armenian school was regarded as a prime font of suspicion and the first target of anti-Armenian sentiment. As we shall see, during the reign of Abdülhamid II it was sufficient for the police to find an Armenian songbook in the belongings of a teacher during a search to imprison that person for years.
The Armenian school played a unique role in the Armenian communities of the Dersim region. In a few decades, especially after the restoration of constitutional government in 1908, Armenian educational centers quickly developed. In addition to urban centers (Chmshgadzak/Çemişgezek, Peri), many Armenian villages in the area had their own schools which, given their quality instruction and improved teaching methods, could occasionally rival urban schools. The close bond between Armenians and their schools occasionally comes to light through small pieces of information. For example, after the 1895 massacres, the Bedretil (present-day Harmanlar) village in the Chmshgadzak region was mostly emptied of its Armenian inhabitants. Only six houses remained, but the inhabitants stubbornly continued to maintain their village school. Another interesting tidbit is the launching of a scout movement in the Armenian school in the town of Chmshgadzak in 1914. Young Armenian scouts, just a year or two away from disappearing from the face of their homeland forever, hiked through its amazing natural countryside.
Educational societies, created by village natives now living in exile communities (Istanbul, Aleppo, the United States, etc.) played a big role in the quick advancement of the Armenian school network back home. They attempted to financially assist these centers of learning whenever possible. Given the lack of state aid, this Armenian communal cooperation and the resulting dynamism served as productive and primary factors in the development of Armenian educational life, the preparation of qualified teachers, and the adoption of education for girls. This rich depiction of Dersim Armenian schools is ample proof of this active educational fervor.
Equally interesting is the existence of numerous original source material regarding Dersim Armenian schools. In the main, they are in the form of post-Genocide memory writings in which an important place was given to the town or village school. They include descriptions of the school building, the names of pupils and teachers, biographical notes and photos, information on educational societies, and school plays. All this is further evidence of the unique role played by these centers of education in the social and cultural life of Dersim Armenians.
Of particular note in this series of memory books is the unpublished work of Hovhannes Adjemian on Chmshgadzak, in which the author not only provides a wealth of information regarding numerous Armenian schools in the area, but also provides sketches of how they looked. Evidently, Adjemian was aware of the importance of the idea of using visual materials to restore a memory – the memory of a now vanished town or village and its daily life. Thus, in his unpublished work, Adjemian adopts this approach in an attempt to resurrect the lost churches and schools of his native Chmshgadzak.
Chmshgadzak (town)
Vartanian Coed School (Lower district; later called Mesrobian School)
This school was located in the courtyard of the St. Asdvadzadzin Church, in the town’s lower district. It was also known as the Kaghaki Tbrots (Town School). The two-story school, built in the 1850s from roughhewn stones, had two rooms per floor. The school and the church shared the same yard divided by a high wall. The upper floor of Vartanian School had large windows and the floor wasn’t wood. One of the upper rooms was used as the diocesan office; the other for the school. Later, when school enrollment increased, other classrooms were opened on the lower floor. [1] Only boys attended the school until 1865. That year, under the initiative of regional primate Archimandrite Arakel Mazlumian, the school accepted girls; a move which irritated local Armenian conservative circles. [2] According to 1870s data, the school operated a kindergarten and an elementary school. [3]
The number of Armenian pupils had multiplied by the start of the 1880s. During the tenure of Senior Archimandrite Partoghimeos Baghdjian (1881-1886), a project was launched to construct a new building for the Vartanian School. The following individuals, members of the district council, are noted as backers – Hagop Shahbazian, Babadjan Eknoian and Krikor Minasian. A sultanate permit for the construction is obtained and a two thousand square meter parcel of land belonging to Tsoyents Ali in the extreme eastern portion of the Kasar neighborhood is purchased. Work on the two-story structure commences and is most likely finished in 1883. The architect is Mikayel Iknadozian (Eknoian). It is also recounted that male and female pupils assisted in the construction by sifting soil and carrying water. Beginning in 1883, the Vartanian School falls under the sponsorship of the United Society (Miatsyal Engeroutyoun) founded in Constantinople in 1880. Mgrdich Sarian and Margos Natanian, educational examiners of the United Society, take turns serving as the institution’s director. [4]
Walled courtyards were located on the southern and northern sides of the new school. The first was allocated for the boys, and the other became a playground for the girls at the end of the 1890s. The lower floor of the building was mostly used as a winter recreation area. It had two huge doors that opened onto the yards and the floor was fashioned of polished stones. Opposing rooms were located on the eastern and western sides of the lower floor. They were used for wood storage and a sewing workshop for girls. The school janitor stayed in another. Going through these rooms there were two stone staircases, opposite each other, that led to the second floor with a large reading hall and four classrooms. The rooms on this floor were well lit due to the high windows. The floor and ceiling were made of wood. The school’s roof was earthen. On the eastern side of the school there was a 1,500 square meter garden with various fruit trees. [5]
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