# Who Are Assyrians?

Assyrians are an indigenous ethnic group from Mesopotamia - one of the world's oldest continuous civilizations, with more than 6,700 years of documented history. They are a living people, not an extinct empire.

Assyrians speak dialects of Neo-Aramaic (including Suret and Turoyo), practice various Eastern Christian traditions, and live both in the ancestral homeland and across a global diaspora.

## Common questions

### Are Assyrians the same as Syrians?

**No - They Are Indigenous to Mesopotamia.** While many Assyrians live in Syria today, they are not ethnically Syrian. Assyrians are an indigenous people of Mesopotamia with a documented presence dating back to at least 2600 BC - thousands of years before the modern nation-state of Syria existed. The similarity in names is coincidental; "Syria" and "Assyria" describe different regions and peoples.

### Are Assyrians extinct?

**No - A Living, Continuous People.** The fall of the Assyrian Empire in 609 BC ended Assyrian political power, not the Assyrian people. Modern Assyrians are direct descendants of the ancient Assyrians, having maintained their language, faith, and cultural identity continuously for over 2,600 years since the empire's fall. Today, 3 to 4 million Assyrians live across their ancestral homelands and the global diaspora.

### Are Assyrians Arabs?

**No - A Distinct Semitic People.** Although many Assyrians live in Arab-majority countries, they are a distinct ethnic group with their own language, culture, and Christian heritage that predates the Arab conquest of Mesopotamia by thousands of years. Assyrians speak Assyrian Neo-Aramaic, not Arabic, and their identity traces back over 6,700 years to the earliest civilizations of Mesopotamia.

### Are Chaldeans and Assyrians different peoples?

**No - One Ethnicity, Different Churches.** Chaldeans and Assyrians share the same ethnic origin, ancestral homeland, language, and culture. The distinction is denominational, not ethnic: Chaldeans belong to the Chaldean Catholic Church, while other Assyrians belong to the Assyrian Church of the East, the Syriac Orthodox Church, or other denominations. All trace their heritage to ancient Mesopotamia and speak dialects of Neo-Aramaic.

### Do Assyrians still speak their ancient language?

**Yes - Aramaic Is Still Spoken Today.** Assyrians continue to speak Neo-Aramaic, a direct descendant of the Aramaic language used across the ancient Near East - and the language spoken by Jesus Christ. Major living dialects include Suret (Sureth), Turoyo, and Chaldean Neo-Aramaic. The language remains active in homes, churches, schools, and media across both the homeland and the diaspora.

### Are Assyrians a religion or an ethnicity?

**An Ethnicity - Not a Religious Group.** Assyrians are an ethnic group with a shared language, ancestry, culture, and 6,700-year history rooted in Mesopotamia. While the vast majority of Assyrians are Christian - belonging to denominations such as the Assyrian Church of the East, the Chaldean Catholic Church, and the Syriac Orthodox Church - Assyrian identity is defined by heritage, not by religious affiliation alone.

## Continue

- [Ancient origins](https://www.assyrian.net/about-assyrians/origins.md)
- [Vibrant identity](https://www.assyrian.net/about-assyrians/identity.md)
- [The diaspora](https://www.assyrian.net/about-assyrians/diaspora.md)

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