#14 - The Story of Assyria: The Modern Assyrian Identity and Its Internal Debates (Part 1)

In Class 14 of The Story of Assyria, Rabi Robert DeKelaita examines the modern debates surrounding Assyrian identity, including the rise of Chaldean, Syriac, and Aramean designations in the Middle East and diaspora. The lecture explores historical frameworks, nationalism theories, linguistic evidence, church politics, and the fragmentation that emerged in the 20th century. Sarah and Pierre join to discuss how shared language, culture, and homeland unify the people despite differing identity narratives. The session traces Assyrianism, Arameanism, and Chaldean identity formation from ancient sources through modern political pressures.

00:00 Intro – Modern Assyrian Identity
00:18 Conflicts vs. Debates
00:49 Sarah’s Question: Assyrian & Chaldean Identity
01:51 Origins of Terms (Assyrian, Chaldean)
03:09 Church Affiliation & Identity
05:05 Imagined Histories & Oneness
06:04 Pierre’s Question: Syriac vs. Assyrian
08:05 Identity Shifts & Historical Trauma
10:09 Patriarch Afram’s Shift (Politics & Survival)
12:01 Assimilation Pressures & Identity Fragmentation
18:55 Framework: Modern Assyrian Identity
20:02 Terminology (Assyrian, Syriac, Chaldean, Aramean)
21:01 East vs. West Syriacs
22:39 Theories of Nationhood (Hobsbawm)
25:29 Primordial Identity Traits
27:26 Subjective Identity & Imagined Community
29:03 Ethnes & Myth of Common Ancestry
30:48 Modernism vs. Constructivism
32:49 Beginning of Aramean Movement
33:40 Rise of Arameanism in Diaspora
35:14 Syriac Church & Aramean Identity Conflict
41:38 Arameanism as a National Project
43:34 Language, Identity & Unity
47:00 Aramaic History Arguments
50:29 Aramean Transnational Identity
52:22 Beginning of Chaldean Identity History
53:07 Keldu / Chaldean Origins in Assyrian Texts
55:05 Biblical & Classical Use of “Chaldean”
56:03 St. Jerome & Chaldean-As-Syriac
58:04 Split in Church of the East (1552)
1:01:06 Decline of Church of the East
1:02:14 Cotanos & Use of “Chaldean Patriarch”
1:03:50 Interchangeability of Suraya / Kaldaya
1:04:22 Tradition: Easterners Descend from Assyrians
1:06:20 Sarhad Jammo’s Role & Identity Shifts
1:09:05 Modern Chaldean Assertions of Separation
1:10:20 Archbishop Faraj Rahho & Christian (Suraya) Identity
1:12:03 Father Michael Bezi – Love of Homeland Poem
1:13:00 Closing