Van | Sulaimani/Sulaymani (dance)

14/05/26 (Last modified 14/05/26)

This section of our website aims to document and share performances of various traditional Armenian dances that have been preserved by Diasporan communities in the United States. To this end, Houshamadyan is partnering and collaborating with a group of Armenian dance experts who have produced appropriate dance notations for documentation. This group consists of Carolyn Rapkievian (of Bar Harbor, Maine), Susan and Gary Lind-Sinanian (of Watertown, Massachusetts), Tom Bozigian (of Los Angeles, California), and Robert Haroutunian (Sunyside, NY).

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Sulaimani is an Armenian processional dance originating from the village of Adramed (present-day Edremit) on the southern shore of Lake Van. According to tradition, the dance is named after Suleyman (or Sulaiman)—a governor or tax collector in the Vasbouragan/Van region during the Ottoman period—whose name corresponds to the Turkish/Kurdish form of “Solomon.” The choreography humorously imitates Suleyman’s characteristic gestures and expressions. The rhythm of the dance is set in 10/8.

A group of Armenians in Ardamed (Edremit, Erdêmed) (source: Mekhitarist Order, San Lazzaro, Venice. Courtesy of Father Vahan Ohanian).

The dance was transmitted to the United States through members of the Armenian diaspora. Tom Bozigian learned it from Yenovk Kazarian, a native of Van and father of Detroit-based clarinetist and bandleader Hachig Kazarian. Yenovk’s father, Khachig, was a recognized authority on the regional dances of Vasbouragan. Additionally, Gary Lind-Sinanian learned Sulaimani from Kazar Kazarian (Hachig’s brother) and Suren Aprahamian, both members of the Armenian community in Detroit.