The Sarkies Brothers

[ninetoyadome]

The Sarkies Brothers were a group of four Armenian brothers, best known for founding a chain of luxury hotels throughout Southeast Asia. The brothers were:

-Martin Sarkies (1852-1912)
-Tigran Sarkies (1861-1912)
-Aviet Sarkies (1862-1923)
-Arshak Sarkies (1868-1931)

In chronological order, the hotels founded by the brothers were:
1884: Eastern Hotel, George Town, Penang, Malaysia
1885: Oriental Hotel, George Town, Penang, Malaysia
1889: Eastern and Oriental merged into Eastern & Oriental Hotel
1887: Raffles Hotel, Singapore (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raffles_Hotel)
1891: Kartika Wijaya, Batu, Java, Indonesia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kartika_Wijaya)
1901: Strand Hotel, Rangoon (Yangon), Burma (Myanmar) (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strand_Hotel)
1910: Hotel Majapahit (as Hotel Oranje), Surabaya, Indonesia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hotel_Majapahit)

i thought it was interesting how Singapore was founded in 1819 and Armenians made there way there and set up businesses, and began adding to its economic, social and physical landscape.

[MrHyeSev]

Re: The Sarkies Brothers

I don't think a lot of people have heard about them.
Nice find

Interesting Link.

[ninetoyadome]

Re: The Sarkies Brothers

I don't think a lot of people have heard about them.
Nice find

Interesting Link.

I found out about them from this article

Armenians keen on success


YEREVAN (Armenia): SHORTLY after Sir Stamford Raffles founded Singapore in 1819, Armenian merchants made their way to its shores, seeing business opportunities at South-east Asia's newest port.

They went on eventually to make significant contributions to the young city, setting up businesses, including the iconic Raffles Hotel, and adding to its economic, social and physical landscape.
Fast-forward to the present, the people of Armenia are once again seeing opportunities in Singapore, but of a different sort: They want to learn how it achieved its economic success, and how to apply it in their country.

Their interest was reflected in the range of questions directed at Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew on Friday.

The first Singapore leader to visit Armenia, MM Lee arrived in the capital Yerevan this week on the second leg of a three-country visit. He started off in Britain on Sept 13, flew here on Sept 17, and leaves for Russia on Saturday.

The Armenian media have credited the Minister Mentor for Singapore's economic miracle. At Friday's meetings with the country's leaders and businessmen, the question of how Singapore had achieved its strong economic growth came up repeatedly.

'What are the key economic, political and social fundamentals, as well as cultural driving forces, that Armenia needs to achieve similar success to that which East Asia has experienced?' asked one businessman. 'What is the role of the government in achieving progress? Should it just be setting policies, or taking an active role?' asked another.

They likely saw similarities between the two countries. Armenia, a landlocked country in Caucasus, has a small population of about three million.

MM Lee posed a question in reply. 'Where is your wider hinterland? Is it your neighbours? Is it the CIS states of the former Soviet Union? Or is it... Europe, America and other developed countries?'

'I would believe that your best growth prospects would come from leapfrogging the region... make your connections with Western Europe, America and I would say East Asia, because that is the growth region for the 21st century.'

http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking%2BNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_431974.html

also on that page there is a picture of a flower with this description

http://www.straitstimes.com/STI/STIM...919/A12-2m.jpg

THE woman who bred and lent her name to Singapore's national flower, the Vanda Miss Joaquim, was Armenian.

So were the founders of Raffles Hotel, the three Sarkies brothers. As was one of the men who started The Straits Times, Catchick Moses.

Together with about 100 or so other Armenians who lived in Singapore in the 1800s, they made contributions to the city that were disproportionately large, considering the size of their community.

By 1821, just two years after Stamford Raffles founded Singapore, Armenian trading firms had already established themselves here.

In 1835, the Armenian community built Singapore's first church, the Armenian Apostolic Church of St Gregory the Illuminator, which still stands today.

At its peak, the community numbered more than 150, but numbers fell as many emigrated after World War II. Today, fewer than 50 Armenians remain, a mix of expatriates and locals.

A landlocked mountainous country in Caucasus, Armenia has a population of just over three million, far outnumbered by the estimated eight to 10 million who live abroad.

Squeezed between Iran, Azerbaijan, Turkey and Georgia, the country is about 40 times the size of Singapore and has had a turbulent past.

From the 15th century to the 1900s, it was ruled by the Ottoman Empire. The Soviet Union took over in 1922, and when that broke up in 1991, Armenia reclaimed its independence. Since then, it has moved to liberalise its economy, the key drivers of which include agriculture (18per cent) and construction (27per cent). It is looking at building up new growth areas in IT, communications and tourism.

Armenia trades mainly with Europe, the Middle East and the former Soviet states. Russia is its biggest trading partner.

LESLIE KOH