Hrant Dink's Alma Mater

On days when Kamp Armen [*] is in discussion here is a re-posting of an old blog. Hrant Dink's Alma Mater[**].

[*] Demolition that began at Tuzla Children’s Camp, also known as Kamp Armen in Istanbul, Turkey, was stopped due to the intervention of activists, members of the public and politicians who gathered at the site.The camp had become a home for impoverished Armenian children who in the aftermath of 1915 events. The school was once home to around 1500 children including Hrant Dink, Rakel Dink and Member of Parliament Erol Dora. 

[**] Alma mater (Latin alma "nourishing/kind", mater "mother"; pl. [rarely used] almae matres) is a term that was used in ancient Rome as a title for various mother goddesses, especially Ceres or Cybele,and later in Catholicism for the Virgin Mary. In many modern languages, it is principally heard as a term of academia. It may also refer to the school, college or university which an individual attended or from which he or she graduated, and is usually the one from which one received a bachelor’s degree or associate’s degree. The term may also refer to a song or hymn associated with a school. 


 Mavi Boncuk | Hrant Dink's last Agos Newspaper article was on Surp Haç [*] Armenian Church of Ahtamar Island in Van, which was restored last year but remained unopened. There is some sad irony in it. Hrant Dink's Alma Mater was Üsküdar Surp Haç Private High School[1] where he also worked as a class tutor with Armanek Bakırcıyan who joined TİKKO. 

At the time Hrant was a Türkiye Komünist Partisi/Marksist Leninist /Turkish Communist Party Marxist Leninist (TKP/ML) sympathiser [2]. They change their names as Hrant(Fırat) Stefan(Murat) Armanek(Orhan Bakir) respectively. Using code name Ali Ağa, Orhan joined country side guerilla activities "kir gerillasi" in Tunceli, made contacts with Armenians and was killed in 1987 during a military operation. 

Hrant took a different tact and was instrumental in bringing Kurdish speaking Armenians from Eastern Turkey to Surp Haç. He married Silopi born Rakel Yağbasan of Armenian Varto tribe[3]. The tribe head Yaghbasan was the first one to set an example for the tribe members and send his nine-year old daughter Rakel to Istanbul. This example was followed by the other members of the tribe, and for about 25 Kurdish speaking children were sent to the Armenian orphanage of Tuzla (Kamp Armen). The daughter of the tribe head Siyament Yaghbasan, who went to Istanbul to learn her native language and return to her roots, later on became the wife of Hrant Dink – Rakel Dink.

NOTES
[1] He was thrown out of school in his senior year because of suspected leftist activities, and he was compelled to complete his secondary education in the Şişli public high school.

[2] Hrant Dink's TKP/ML record was possibly the reason why he was not made a sergeant after scoring perfect marks during his basic military training in Denizli, not because he was of Armenian heritage as he claimed in an interview.

[3] The Armenians assimilated themselves in the Kurdish branches of such localities as Varto, Çatak, Siirt, Simak, Tunceli, Eruh etc... Varto tribe wintered near Silopi. However by 1950'ies they almost merged and assimilated with Teyyan tribe and was speking Kurdish. Many Nestorians of the area was also Kurdified "kurdisiert" during the same period.The Hewerkan and a large number of Yakubi and Asuris of Tur Abdin also mixed among themselves. One of the powerful local leaders in the Sirnak region descended from the group, called "Geraçî" or "Çingene" (Roma). According to VAN BRUINESSEN these assimilated groups of the Armenians, Nestorians and Yakubis remembered their ethnic origins and their rebellions coincided with the Kurds.

See more : SURVIVED ARMENIANS: ERMENI VARTO ASHIRET by Ruben Melkonyan

Mavi Boncuk |(click on images to enlarge)Hirant Dink with students | 1973 yearbook/21 pages) | 29 April 1942 receipt for money paid to Mr Agop Yazici[*] There is also Surp Hac Armenian Church | Kozanoglu Sokak No:3 Altunizade / Uskudar (Architect Serveryan ?) probably built after Eremya Çelebi Kömürcüyan (1637-1695)'s book "Isdambolo Badmutyun (#)". Paşayan dates the first construction (1687) to Apraham Balatliyan as a wooden church. Patriarch Hovhannes the 9th of Bitlis rebuilt it in 1727. Hagop Nalyan the Second of Zimara built two public fountains with source waters from Cakaldağı ve Camlıca. Last repaired extensively in 1962.

(#)"Istanbul Tarihi, XVII/ asırda İstanbul", Eremya Çelebi Komürcüyan, (1952 Hrand Der Andreasyan translation to Turkish, 1988 Kevork Pamukçuyan translation 2nd. Edition published by Eren Yayıncılık ve Kitapçılık Ltd. Şti., Istanbul