Only Japanese ship accepted the Armenians
Japan, the country of the rising sun and its people have charmed Armenologist Artsvi Bakhchinyan who has been involved in studying Armenian-Japanese historical-cultural relations for the past couple of years.
In December, Bakhchinyan had a chance to visit Japan.
According to him, for centuries, Japan was considered a closed country, but Armenians were able to develop certain relations with the country starting from the late 18th century. Of course, relations primarily trace back to 1915 when hundreds of Armenians found themselves in Siberia after the genocide and then left for the United States.
A wealthy Armenian by the name of Diana Apcar helped the survivors of the 1915 Armenian Genocide reach the United States from Japan.
Diana Apcar was born in Burma. She was the offspring of a wealthy family from New Julfa and got married to a wealthy Indian Armenian man. "They toured the East and settled in Japan as traders. Her tombstone is located at the cemetery for foreigners in the Japanese city of Yokohama.
Bakhchinyan also attaches importance to the fact that when the Kemalists forced the Christian residents-Greeks and Armenians-to leave the city of Izmir in 1922, the Armenians were approaching the ships on the foreign harbor of Izmir harbor and seeking help. "All the Armenians were denied, but only one Japanese ship accepted the Armenians' request for refuge."
There are nearly 100 Armenians living in Japan. "The small community was mainly established by Armenian women who got married to the Japanese."
Artsvi is charmed and startled by the civilized manners of the Japanese. As for the devastating earthquake that took place in Japan on March 11, Bakhchinyan said he admired how the Japanese get along. "They are very reserved and dignified. I talked to some Japanese and they said they relied on their government."
Touching upon the the case mentioned in the presses according to which an old Japanese had preferred to kill himself than to leave his native village, Backhinyan said: "The Japanese always have a way of getting along with the loss, sorrow and even have the attribute of keeping a smile on their faces."
In the end, the Armenologist expressed support to the Japanese. "They have always been able to get out any difficult situation with honor. I am sure that they will find the right way of getting their country out of the current situation. Armenians have a lot to learn from these people who have reached the peak of civilization."
