SOAR - Malaysia Chapter
Malaysia became of the SOAR family in August 2026. Armenian merchants traveled to major trading ports like Malacca (Melaka) as early as the 16th and 17th centuries, trading in textiles, spices, and silk. Around 1800, traders arrived in George Town, Penang, settling along a road officially renamed Armenian Street in 1808. Armenian presence in Malaysia peaked at around 500 people in 1897 before shrinking to a small modern community of roughly 45 individuals today, living in Kuala Lumpur. On May 28, 2011, at the initiative of Emil Petrosyan, an Armenian community was formed and a Sunday school opened. A Divine Liturgy was celebrated for the first time at the St. Michael Holy Mother of God Church in Kuala Lumpur (Russian Orthodox) in 2017.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS:
Vyacheslav Ambarsumov
President
Vyacheslav is an Armenian from Turkmenistan. He recently moved to Malaysia to continue his studies and is a student and AI Engineer. Vyacheslav is happy to start a SOAR Malaysia Program Chapter to connect with and support Armenians living in Malaysia, help build connections within the Armenian community, and represent Armenian culture in Malaysia.
He has experience with public speaking in Russian and is fluent in both Russian and English.
In his spare time, Vyacheslav enjoys football, music, singing, and AI engineering.