The photographers of King Abdullah II bin Al-Hussein Al-Hashimi of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan are of Armenian descent. One of the photographers, Raffi Boyajian is currently in Armenia. He is an assistant to the other photographer, Zohrab Markarian, who has been the king’s personal photographer and continues serving the Royal Court on personal occasions.

Raffi Boyajian told Aravot.am that the king only trusts them to take personal photos of him, as well as photos at weddings and during family ceremonies.

The photographer, who was born in 1971 in Jordan, said he had also obtained an Armenian passport in 2000. At the time, he found out that the Armenian government was issuing passports to Diaspora Armenians, and since there was no Armenian embassy in Jordan, he obtained his passport in Damascus. In the beginning, he was issued a passport for a 10-year period, but later he found out that it was issued for an uncertain period and immediately applied for one.

“It was a great pleasure for me to come to Armenia with an Armenian passport when I visited Yerevan for the first time in 2000. When the Ambassador in Damascus asked me if I had ever been to Armenia as a student or a tourist, I told him I hadn’t, after which he smiled and was happy for the fact that I was applying for an Armenian passport without having been to Armenia. He asked me if I was sure I wanted to obtain an Armenian passport, and I told him that I was certain, without having visited Armenia because I am a Diaspora Armenian, and Armenia is of great significance for us Diaspora Armenians. The homeland is something else, and it always pulls us like a magnet. True, we don’t feel like foreigners in Jordan. We have a great king and a great government who treat the Armenians very well, but we Armenians with a homeland. I was the first to apply and obtain my passport, and I’m very happy that I can now say that I am 100 percent Armenian. I used to feel 50 percent Armenian, but now I am 100 percent Armenian.” The photographer is on his 18^th visit to Armenia.

When asked what the Armenians do in Jordan, Raffi Boyajian said the men are mainly craftsmen, photographers, mechanics and jewelers, while the women, unlike the men, are educated and graduate from universities. Our interlocutor also said Mr. Markarian had been sent to the United States to study at a university and that he has studied in Italy. “Mr. Zohrab Markarian has been serving the King of Jordan for 22 years, and I have been his assistant for about 18 years. Together we serve the Royal Court,” our interlocutor said.

Nune Arevshatyan