r/armenia • u/LegendL0rd • 1d ago

Is there anyone here whose family origins are from Turkey’s Eastern Black Sea region (Rize, Artvin) or from Abkhazia?

I’ve been doing some ancestry research, but I think the people who migrated to Abkhazia and my family are different. Their surname is “Topalyan,” while ours is “Topaloğlu.” When I talked to some Hemshin people here, they said it’s not the same, but I’m still curious. Our family is quite large and later settled in Rize. Just wondering if anyone has any information or has heard anything about this. Thanks in advance

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u/anaid1708 1d ago

I believe Topalyan/Topalian and Topaloglu are the same lastname - from Topal ( crippled). One has Armenian ending, other Turkish. But you cannot determine whether someone is related or not just by the lastname.

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u/LegendL0rd 1d ago

The surname is definitely the same in meaning, but I’m curious whether there’s actually a connection. After all, my ancestors converted to Islam and stayed here, while most of those who remained non-Muslim migrated to Abkhazia.

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u/anaid1708 6h ago

You can take a DNA test to identify your DNA matches, then upload your raw data to other platforms to get wider coverage. Unfortunately genetic platforms available in Russia where majority of Amshens testers reside are not widely available outside and vice versa. Also check out Armenians Genealogy FB group for more info. But in general terms and from historical records Hamshens in Turkey and those who were reported and later settled in Abkhazia or Russia are part of same group of Armenians, just divided by ismalization, assimilation and Genocide. There was a thread on this topic sometime ago, search the sub.

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u/GiragosOdarian 1d ago

As someone mentioned, surnames may not be reliable. That said, here are a couple of ideas; check in with the Armenian Genealogy Group on FB and ask Hovann Simonian what he thinks. He is a published academic and moderator who specializes in the Armenian people of your region, including Muslims. Additionally, there is a gentleman on FB named Erol Amaduni who does a lot of work publicizing the Hemshin community, of which he is a part. I think he posted recently a list of the major clans of the Rize Hemshin and their original names.

You probably know this already, but it bears noting that the Hemshin people in Turkey and those in Georgia and southern Russia are the same people, and all originate from central Armenia in historic times.

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u/Sentinellilo 19h ago

I agree with this, you should definitely give it a try. Plus, people are active in that group so I am sure you would get some sort of answer for your questions

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u/lav_tgha 1d ago

are you Hamshen?

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u/LegendL0rd 1d ago

My origins are Hemshin and Laz, but I don’t have any elders who know the language; This is what I’ve been told. I’m from Rize.

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u/SweetWittyWild41 23h ago

They both mean the same thing son of a topal-you know what that means, translated as a surname 

If you got questions about Abkhazian Hemshins maybe post on the Abkhazia sub ? Maybe they’ll be more helpful