I got this off Wikipedia so take it with a grain of salt... although I know our ancestors were famously known for cultivating silkworms and trading silk (Yes, we started that shit!!!)

Martin the Armenian was one of the settlers in the Jamestown Colony in Virginia. He is the first known individual of Armenian ancestry to have come to North America. Martin the Armenian was invited to the colony to raise silk worms. Other Armenians were also brought to the colony but they returned to Europe. Armenians were among the first Europeans to come to America.

A man called `Martin ye Armenian' ('ye' corresponds to the modern word 'the' as the glyph 'Y' formerly represented the 'th' sound) was among those who lived in the British colony at Jamestown (founded in 1607), arriving either 1618 or 1619. Later, to help with the raising of silkworms, two more Armenians were invited to the colony. One of them, `George ye Armenian', according to the records, was offered an inducement of 4,000 pounds of tobacco to persuade him to remain and continue his work.

Tags: Armenian History

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