Introduction
Basra is the third-largest city in Iraq after Baghdad and Mosul, and serves as a major seaport for the country. It was founded after the arrival of Islam in Mesopotamia during the caliphate of Umar ibn al-Khattab, in the year 637 AD.
Basra is located at the confluence of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, in an area known as the Shatt al-Arab. Today, Basra lies about 67 kilometers north of the Arabian Gulf, and 550 kilometers southeast of Baghdad.
Information on the Armenian Presence in Basra
The information we have about the Armenian presence in Basra comes mainly from Arshak Alpoyajian’s book “The Armenians in Iraq” and other well-known sources.
During the Tatar (Mongol) period, when Christianity began to spread among them, it also reached Basra. In the 13th century, clergy referred to Basra in Aramaic as “Brit Mishan”, meaning “City of the Forest” or “City of Wood.”
In the year 1222, the bishop of Basra was Bishop Suleiman, who is believed to have been of Armenian origin. He had settled there as a pastor to the Christian Tatars.
Arshak Alpoyajian notes in his book “History of the Armenian Diaspora” that Christianity flourished under Mongol rule, where Nestorian priests, as well as Armenian, Assyrian, and Greek clergy, served freely at the Mongol court. They preached openly and converted a number of Tatars to Christianity.
In his 1922 book “Historic Mesopotamia”, Vartan Melkonian states that Christianity entered Basra, which became an episcopal city, and that in 1222, its bishop was the Armenian Bishop Suleiman.
The Armenian Soviet Encyclopedia also references an Armenian community in Basra in 1222, where a spiritual diocese was established due to the large Christian population in the city and its surroundings.
Arshak Alpoyajian also notes in “The Armenians in Iraq” that in 1722, when the Afghans invaded the city of Isfahan, the city of Nur Jahan was completely emptied, and some of the displaced people relocated to Basra.
Given these facts and the founding date of the city, it is reasonable to conclude that the Armenian presence in Basra predates what most available sources currently indicate.
Like other Armenian settlements in Iraq, Basra too experienced destruction and near-extinction, only to be revived again after invasions by the Persians, Seljuks, and Mongols.
