Cat va trai armeanul, va trai si negustoria lui…
Acest site se vrea un instrument prin care vizitatorul sa poata face o scurta incursiune in fascinanta lume a comerciantilor si meseriasilor armeni de la 1800 pana la asa-zisa revolutie din 1989. Informatiile existente aici sunt adunate cu multa truda, intr-o perioada lunga de timp fiind si in momentul de fata un proiect intr-o continua actualizare.
Cele mai multe date se refera la armenii care au trait in Bucuresti dar, exista situatii cand am reusit sa gasesc informatii si despre armeni care au trait in alte orase. Pentru ca e vorba de date foarte vechi, majoritatea persoanelor sunt mentionate doar cu numele, profilul pravaliei sau meseria, adresa si anul in care i-am gasit mentionati. Din pacate, sunt rare cazurile in care am reusit sa intru in posesia unor informatii mai detaliate (poze, reclame vechi, documente etc) cu ajutorul membrilor familiei respective (acolo unde au mai existat) sau altor surse (Monitoare Oficiale, Arhivele Nationale, presa vremii, carti, vechea colectie a ziarului Ararat, povesti de la cei care au trait in acele vremuri etc).
In unele cazuri, am reusit chiar localizarea vechilor pravalii in peisajul bucurestean actual. A fost o munca obositoare de a bate la pas vechile strazi, de a identifica si fotografia cladirile. Pentru unele dintre acestea localizarea a fost imposibila fiind daramate fie la cutremurul din 1977, fie in perioada comunista in actiunea de modernizare a Bucurestiului. Astfel, cartiere intregi de case sau blocuri interbelice au fost distruse total sau in parte iar, pe locul acestora s-au construit cartiere de blocuri sau alte edificii, este cazul cartierului Obor, Uranus, Calea Grivitei, Calea Mosilor, Calea Dudesti, Calea Vacaresti despre care vom vorbi pe larg in alte articole. Tot in perioada comunista s-au modificat numele si numerotatia multor strazi ceea ce a dus la o si mai dificila identificare a locatiilor fostelor pravalii, implicand studierea a zeci de harti ante/interbelice, ghiduri de strazi, anuare etc. Raportat la aceste aspecte, e posibil ca unele imobile prezentate sa nu fi fost identificate/localizate corect.
Parcurgand informatiile existente aici veti descoperi meserii care nu mai exista in prezent, negustori cu har, despre care se mai vorbeste si azi, povesti de viata incarcate de romantism, situatii limita, oameni remarcabili care au disparut si in locul carora parca nu a mai venit nimic. Veti descoperi o lume a negustorilor, a marfurilor coloniale si a cafelei, a marilor comercianti, a celor supranumiti regi ai zaharului si ai cerealelor, a celor care au fost nevoiti sa-si traiasca viata ca pe un joc de carti cu miza pe o singura carte, o viata unde castigurile se faceau greu si se puteau pierde peste noapte, a celor care au chivernisit o viata si au fost jefuiti intr-o clipa de comunisti pierzand averea stransa cu dichis sau mica pravalioara din care isi duceau traiul zilnic.
Multumiri:
redactiei ziarului Ararat pentru facilitarea accesului la colectia interbelica a ziarului si pentru permisiunea de a publica in site articole si fotografii, Arhiepiscopiei Bisericii Armene din Romania pentru facilitarea accesului la vechea arhiva comunitatii, cat si tuturor celor care intr-un fel sau altul au contribuit la crearea acestui site.
P.s. Daca detineti informatii, povestiri, fotografii despre vechii negustori sau meseriasi armeni, indiferent din ce oras, care ar putea fi publicate pe acest site, va rog sa ma contactati folosind rubrica de contact.
Doresc sa subliniez pentru oricine este interesat sa preia informatii de orice fel de pe acest site, ca acest lucru se poate face doar cu acordul meu in calitate de autor (nu percep bani, e doar un acord de principiu deci, costa doar un email justificativ). In caz contrar, va asigur ca dispun de toate resursele necesare escaladarii situatiilor ce contravin conditiilor mentionate !
Paul Bogdan AGOPIAN
English version
This site is intended to be a tool through which the visitor can make a short foray into the fascinating world of Romanian – Armenian merchants and craftsmen from 1800 to the so-called revolution of 1989. The information available here is collected with great effort, over a long period of time being and at the moment a project in continuous updating. Most of the data refer to Armenians who lived in Bucharest, but there are situations when I managed to find information about Armenians who lived in other cities. Because it is about very old data, most of the people are mentioned only with their name, the profile of the shop or the job, the address and the year in which we found them mentioned. Unfortunately, there are rare cases in which I managed to get hold of more detailed information (photos, old advertisements, documents, etc.) with the help of the respective family members (where they existed) or other sources (Official Monitors, National Archives, press of the time, books, the old collection of the Ararat newspaper, stories from those who lived in those times, etc).
In some cases, I even managed to locate the old shops in the current Bucharest landscape. It was a tiring job to walk the old streets, to identify and photograph the buildings. For some of these, the location was impossible, being demolished either over the 1977 earthquake or during the communist period in the modernization process of Bucharest. Thus, entire neighbourhoods of houses or blocks between the wars were totally or partially destroyed and, in their place, blocks or other buildings were built, this is the case of the great area as Obor, Uranus, Calea Grivitei, Calea Mosilor, Calea Dudesti, Calea Vacaresti which we will talk about in detail in other articles. Also during the communist period, the names and numbers of many streets were changed, which led to an even more difficult identification of the locations of former slums, involving the study of dozens of pre/interwar maps, street guides, yearbooks, etc.
Related to these aspects, it is possible that some properties presented have not been identified/located correctly. Going through the existing information here, you will discover trades that no longer exist, tradesmen with grace, who are still talked about today, life stories full of romance, borderline situations, remarkable people who disappeared and in whose place it seems as if no one came nothing. You will discover a world of merchants, of colonial goods and coffee, of great traders, of the so-called kings of sugar and grain, of those who had to live their lives as a game of cards with a single bet card, a life where earnings were hard to come by and could be lost overnight, of those who worked hard for a life and were robbed in an instant by the communists, losing the possessions they had collected with a effort or the small purse they used to live on a daily basis.
Special thanks:
To the editors of the Ararat newspaper for facilitating access to the newspaper’s interwar collection and for permission to publish articles and photos on the website, to the Archbishopric of the Armenian Church in Romania for facilitating access to the community’s old archive, as well as to all those who in one way or another contributed to creation of this site.
P.S. If you have information, stories, photos about the old Armenian merchants or craftsmen, regardless of which city, that could be published on this site, please contact me using the contact.
Paul Agopian
