Their descendants are known as Hidden Armenians and are present throughout Western Armenia , but particularly in Dersim ( Tunceli ) . Through the 20th century , an unknown number of Armenians living in the mountainous region of Dersim converted to Alevism . During the Armenian Genocide , many of the Armenians in the region were saved by their Kurdish neighbors . According to Mihran Prgiç Gültekin , the head of the Union of Dersim Armenians , around 75 % of the population of Dersim are " converted Armenians . " He reported in 2012 that over 200 families in Tunceli have declared their Armenian descent , but others are afraid to do so . In April 2013 , Aram Ateşyan , the acting Armenian Patriarch of Constantinople , stated that 90 % of Tunceli 's population is of Armenian origin
Armenian Genocide
Armenian Genocide
Armenians in Turkey