Old Hadjin

HADJIN

The flourishing Armenian-populated town of Hadjin (presently, Saimbeyli, Turkey) in Mountainous Cilicia was located on the slope of one of the southern sides of Mount kermes of the Taurus mountain range. Rising at an altitude of 1140m above sea level, the houses in the town were built in the form of an amphitheater and presented a beautiful view surrounded by fertile gardens. Hadjin, with its 84 villages and 35,000 inhabitants, ranked among the most important towns of Kozan sanjak (district) of Adana Province. Hadjin was the northern gate of Cilicia: it connected Cilicia to Cappadocia. According to the legend, the town was named in the Middle Ages: while transferring the relics of Patriarch Saint Jacob of Nisibis (Saint Hakob Mtsbnetsi) to Constantinople, the procession of the Byzantine Emperor John I Tzimiskes (Hovhannes Chmshkik) passed through a marvelous place surrounded by mountains on three sides where the pack mules stopped to kneel as a sign of sacred contentment. A part of the relics was enshrined there, and later, the Monastery of St. Hakob (Jacob) was erected on the spot.

The river Chatakh from the north-west and the river Gerded from the east flowed through the town. The town of Hadjin was divided into neighborhoods: Kelik, Verin Tagh (Upper Neighborhood), Gopush, Ghankle Pazar, Gale Alt, Vari Tagh (Lower Neighborhood), and later: Mankyr, Gyrym, Tylsym, Galenter, Toptchu, and others, which were named in honor of some prominent families living in the town. There were two bazaars in the town – the Main in the Verin Tagh Neighborhood and Yaze in the Vari Tagh Neighborhood. In addition, 100-120 bakeries, 12 mills, a community fabric laundry, a public bath, and about 14 bridges, connecting the town's neighborhoods to each other and the outside world, operated in the town. The southern part of the town hosted the Government Palace- a two-story building with the Police Station and the Telegraph office on the second floor. The Town Hall was located in the Verin Tagh Neighborhood.

The town had six churches: three of them, namely, St. Astvatsatsin (Holy Mother of God, 1425), St. Gevorg, and St. Toros were Armenian Apostolic churches, the two were Protestant churches, and one was a Catholic church. All the churches had male and female gymnasiums. The first educational center of St. Hakob's Monastery (built in 1004 by Bishop Khachatur) was located in the western part of Hadjin and was the favorite venue of pilgrimage for its inhabitants. A national mixed-gender orphanage operated under the Monastery.

In addition, the Armenian enlighteners founded the Central Armenian High School. Under the auspices of the missionaries, the “Hadjin Home” Girls' High School was founded in 1881, followed by the Academy – a male high school – in 1894. In 1898, the Armenian Catholic Immaculate Conception Female College was opened. After the Cilician massacres in 1909, the United Company of Constantinople founded the United Company College, with one preschool and three kindergartens. on the initiative of Bishop Bedros Sarajian, the five-story large building (constructed in 1912-1914) next to the St. Astvatsatsin Church hosted the Sahak-Mesropian Girls' College, and the first mixed-gender kindergarten opened in 1912. The famous figures of the liberation struggle such as Zhirayr (Mardiros Boyadjian), Medzn Mourad (Hampartsoum Boyadjian), leader of the Sasun Rebellion of 1894, and Aghassi (Garabed Toursarkissian), leader of the Zeytoun Rebellion of 1895 had also been born in Hadjin and started their activities there.

The natives of Hadjin were talented artisans: carpentry, hosiery, wool manufacturing, weaving, carpet- making, felting, and dyeing were among the most popular occupations, but there were other traditional crafts as well. Besides, the natives of Hadjin were famous merchants. Both traditional and science-based medicine were quite popular in Hadjin. The natives of Hadjin had their own dialect and national costume. They were pious and prayerful. There were influential families with material wealth and high social standing in the town. The family, household, ceremonial, and other traditions of the natives of Hadjin have become an invaluable asset to the Armenian cultural heritage.