Nash Didan — Aramaic for our people — is a community heritage website dedicated to preserving and sharing the story of the Jewish communities of Urmia, Salmas, Bashkale, and the surrounding towns and villages in the region between Lake Urmia and Lake Van.
The site grew out of a simple idea that has become more urgent with time: to gather what can still be found, record what can still be remembered, and preserve a disappearing world for future generations.
Our Heritage
The story of Nash Didan lives in far more than history books. It lives in family memories, old photographs, Aramaic words and expressions, traditional foods, customs, immigration stories, letters, documents, and memories passed down from parents and grandparents.
Much of this heritage was never formally documented. For decades, it survived mainly through the memories of those who were born in Urmia and the surrounding region, and through the stories they shared with their children and grandchildren.
This website was created to give those stories and materials a home.
Here, we bring together the history of the community and the places where it lived, family stories and folklore, photographs and documents, historical articles and sources, recipes and traditions, genealogical material, and, above all, Lishan Didan — the Neo-Aramaic language once spoken in the everyday life of the community.
Keeping the Language Alive
Language is at the heart of this project.
Lishan Didan is more than a subject of linguistic study. It was the language of home — the language in which people told stories, exchanged blessings, argued, laughed, and lived their daily lives.
Every word that is preserved carries with it a memory of people, families, and places.
For that reason, the site collects words, expressions, proverbs, translations, recordings, and other language materials. Our hope is that even those who no longer speak Lishan Didan will be able to hear it, recognize it, learn from it, and perhaps bring some of its words back into everyday family life.
A Living Community Archive
Nash Didan is not meant to be only a website to read. It is intended to become a living, growing community archive.
Some of the most valuable pieces of our shared history are still tucked away in private photo albums, drawers, family papers, old recordings, and personal memories.
A photograph with a village name written on the back, an old letter, a grandmother’s recipe, a recording in Aramaic, or a story about the journey to Israel may preserve something that exists nowhere else.
That is why we invite members of the Nash Didan community and their families, in Israel and around the world, to take part — by sharing photographs, identifying people and places, recording family stories, correcting information, adding words and expressions, and contributing historical and family materials.
The goal is not only to preserve the past, but to strengthen the connection between today’s generations and the world their families came from.
People, Families, and Places
History is ultimately made up of people.
One of the goals of the site is to connect the larger story of the community with the personal stories behind it: a family that moved from a village to a city, a grandfather who set out for the Land of Israel, a woman who preserved a family tradition, a letter sent from Urmia, or an old family photograph whose story has almost been forgotten.
By documenting people, families, and places, we hope to gradually build a richer picture of the community and its journey from Urmia, Salmas, Bashkale, and the surrounding region to Jerusalem, other parts of Israel, and communities around the world.
About the Site
The website in its current form is edited and developed by Michael Demirel, as part of an ongoing effort to document the history, families, language, and cultural heritage of Nash Didan.
The site’s domain and hosting are provided courtesy of the Demirel family.
Over the years, materials have been gathered from community members, family collections, archives, books, historical newspapers, academic research, and online sources.
Wherever possible, we aim to document the source of each item and to give proper credit to the people, families, researchers, photographers, writers, and institutions that have helped preserve and share these materials.
The archive continues to grow as new information, stories, photographs, and documents are discovered and contributed.
Why This Matters
Because heritage that is not recorded can disappear.
Because within a single generation, a family photograph can become a picture of people no one can identify.
Because a language that is no longer spoken or passed on can slowly fade away.
And because the story of a community is not only about the past. It is also part of the identity of the generations that come after it.
Nash Didan is an effort to keep that story alive — our people, our language, the places we came from, and the memories that connect us.
You Are Part of the Story
If you have photographs, documents, recordings, family stories, information about people or places, words in Lishan Didan, recipes, or any other material connected to the Nash Didan community, we would be glad to hear from you.
Even a small detail may turn out to be the missing piece in another family’s story.
Together, we can preserve the heritage of our people and pass it on to future generations.