Armenian Schools in Turkey Now Admitting Muslim Students

Armenian schools in Turkey are set to begin admitting students according to a new policy in light of the increasing number of children born to couples of mixed Turkish-Armenian and non-Armenian descent, reports the Hürriyet Daily News & Economic Review.

A number of children born to intercultural couples are already attending a variety of the 18 Armenian schools in Istanbul.

Previously, for a child to be allowed to register at an Armenian school both parents had to be members of the Armenian Apostolic Church, however the Education Ministry recently issued a notice stating that only one of the parents had to be a church member.

Principal Karekin Barsamyan of the Private Pangaltı (Mıhitaryan) Armenian High School told the Hürriyet recently that a number of the school’s students were registered as Muslim on their identity cards, while some were registered as Syriac and others were registered as having Turkish-Greek parents.

“Regardless of what their identity cards say, these kids are receiving an Armenian-Christian education and they will decide upon their identities themselves in the future,” Barsamyan said.