Krzysztof Stopka: Armenians Played Important Role in Polish History and Culture
The Armenian community of Poland has had an important contribution in the life of Poland through history, says Dr. Krzysztof Stopka, Professor of History and Armenian studies at Jagiellonian University in Krakow (Poland) in the interview to Scholarm.com. See the complete video interview here.
“The Armenians played from the 14th century a very important role in the history of Poland. They played an important role in the diplomatic relations between the Polish state and the Ottoman Empire… as well as with Persia since the 17th century. The Armenians also contributed to the orientalization of the Polish culture [as well as] played a role in the Polish high culture”, – says Dr. Stopka in the interview.
Dr. Stopka also speaks about his books on Armenian issues, particularly the book Armenian Warsaw (Ormiańska Warszawa) which presents a large collection of facts about the contribution of the Armenians in cultural, economic, political and other spheres of life in Warsaw through history.
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“The Armenians were a small group in the capital, but they were very important for the economy and the government of the whole city. It was surprising for us to find this out… They imported oriental goods to Warsaw, but also they founded the manufactures of the oriental textiles. Near Warsaw they founded a factory of Polish belts (very typical for Polish national style) and during the 18th century this manufacture was very popular… In the 19th century the Armenians played a very important role in the Polish struggle for independence. They took part in the Polish revolution against Russia in the 18th century and they supported the Polish case (for the Polish people the Russians were oppressors)… The Armenians also took part in the Polish military during the World War II fighting against [Nazi] Germany. This is a reason for pride for the descendents of Armenians”, – says Dr. Stopka.
Dr. Stopka says the history of the Armenian community in Poland should be interesting for Armenians today because, among other reasons, this small but rich and influential community had a political influence on the Armenian question in the 17-18th centuries. Also, he says the language that they spoke (both Armenian and Kipchak) is an interesting phenomenon for the linguists to study – he himself has written a book on this.
Other publications by Dr. Stopka on the Armenian issues include Lehahayer – Journal of History of Polish Armenians and Armenia Christiana – a book on the history of the Armenian Church between Constantinople and Rome.
Dr. Stopka plans to write a new book about the Armenian Apostolic Church in Poland – from the beginning up until the union with Rome. He has already collected a lot of new and interesting materials on this topic from the archives of Ukraine.
Another book titled Armenian Krakow is now being prepared by Dr. Stopka’s colleague Dr. Andrzej Zięba, who is also a professor at the Jagiellonian University.
Dr. Krzysztof Stopka started studying Armenian history and culture about 30 years ago when he wrote his Master’s thesis on the history of the Armenian colonies in Old Poland. Since then he has authored many books on the Armenian history, and he says that this subject has never stopped being interesting for him.
See the complete interview at Scholarm.com
By Nvard Chalikyan
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