Ethnic Groups in Armenia

The Ethnic groups in Armenia is about the ethnic groups features of the population of Armenia.

It is worth noting the demographic trends in modern Armenia during its history. While Armenians formed a consistent majority, Azerbaijanis were historically the second largest population in the republic under Soviet rule (forming about 2.5% in 1989). However, due to hostilities with neighboring Azerbaijan over the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh virtually all Azeris emigrated from Armenia. Conversely, Armenia received a large influx of Armenian refugees from Azerbaijan, thus giving Armenia a more homogeneous character. This forceful population exchange also had an impact on the Christian Udi people of Azerbaijan, many of whom were perceived as Armenians due to close cultural ties between both peoples. The number of Udis residing in Armenia has increased from 19 in 1989 to about 200 by 2006.

Additionally since independence, several other ethnic groups have emigrated especially Russians (who decreased from 51,555 persons in 1989 to 14,660 in 2001), Ukrainians (8,341 in 1989 to 1,633 in 2001), Greeks (4,650 in 1989 to 1,176 in 2001), and Belarusians (1,061 in 1989 to 160 in 2001). The numbers of Yazidis, Kurds, and Assyrians have remained consistent for the most part (though approximately 2,000 Assyrians have left Armenia between 1989 and 2001). Georgians have also historically been counted among the largest ethnic groups in modern Armenia, though it is likely that their numbers have dropped substantially since the 1989 Soviet census when they numbered 1,364 persons.