Srpuhi Kalfayan
Srpuhi Mayrabed Nshan Kalfayan (Armenian: Սրբուհի Մայրապետ Նշան Գալֆաեան) (Born February 17, 1822 in Kartal, Istanbul; † July 4, 1889 in Hasköy, Istanbul) was an Armenian nun and founder of the Order of Kalfayan, plus a school and an orphanage for girls in Constantinople.
Biography
Kalfayan vowed to become a nun at the age of 12 when she lost her father,[1] and she achieved it in 1840.
Kalfayan founded both the Order of Kalfayan and, in 1850, a school for girls which still stands today, though it now accepts boys as well.[1] In 1865 she mobilized financial support for the victims of a cholera epidemic and on 1 January 1866 she opened an orphanage for girls in Hasköy, Constantinople.
Death and commemoration
Kalyfan died on 4 July 1889.
Her name is commemorated in the Kalfayan Elementary School.[1]
References
- "Ozel Kalfayan Ermeni Ilkogretim Okulu". Kalfayan Elementary School Website (in Turkish). Retrieved 8 October 2011.