It can be said that among the forcibly converted Armenians of Western Armenia, the group of hidden Armenians is distinguished by the level and description of their ethnic and national consciousness, which, unlike other groups of Islamized Armenians, strives to keep their ethnic profile intact. 

It is remarkable and, at the same time, important that interesting manifestations of intra-ethnic self-consciousness have been preserved in the family life of this group of Armenians, among which we would like to single out in particular the custom of internal marriages. What does this mean?

 The crypto-Armenians, presenting themselves outwardly as Muslims, not only secretly perpetuate certain national-religious customs, but also seek to marry crypto-Armenians like themselves. Moreover, age, social class and other barriers are pushed to the background in internal marriages. 

In other words, it can be said that crypto-Armenians, with the instinct of ethnic self-preservation, strive to marry an Armenian. The institution of internal marriages also presupposes the presence of a certain network among the crypto-Armenians, which allows them to know each other even from a distance. Sometimes the geography of internal marriages also speaks in favor of this hypothesis, when people from quite distant villages marry. There are facts that allow us to conclude that, especially among self-identified and converted crypto-Armenians, marriages with open Armenians are also uniquely recorded.