Hidden Armenians or crypto-Armenians is an umbrella term to describe people in Turkey " of full or partial ethnic Armenian origin who generally conceal their Armenian identity from wider Turkish society . " They are descendants of Armenians in Turkey who were Islamized and Turkified under the threat of either death , displacement , loss of property or a combination of those during the Armenian Genocide . Ways in which they were converted included orphans being taken in by Muslim families , Armenian women being taken as wives by soldiers , and entire families converting by joining communities that accepted them . Many Cryptos are totally unaware of their Armenian ethnicity , living as Turks or Kurds , while many know they are Armenian but hide it out of fear of discrimination
Armenian Genocide
Armenian Genocide
Armenians in Turkey