Armenians have lived in the current territory of Lebanon (historically known as Phoenicia) since ancient times (1st century BC), but the flow of Armenians to Lebanon increased during the 17th-18th centuries. At the end of the 19th century, the Lebanese-Armenians belonged to the most advanced strata of the Ottoman Empire’s society. 

The current Lebanese-Armenian community was mainly formed after the Hamidian massacres during the Armenian Genocide and in the following years (1915-1939) when thousands of survivors took refuge in the districts of Bourj Hammoud and Hadjin in Beirut, in Jounieh, Zahlé, Jbeil, Tripoli and other cities in Lebanon. In the same area (near the Lebanese-Syrian border) Armenians founded the Armenian rural town of Anjar (Musa Dagh) in the Bekaa Valley, which is still inhabited by Armenians. Initially, Lebanese-Armenians were mainly engaged in trade, crafts, as well as agriculture. 

The Armenian community in Lebanon, as a leading center of the Armenians of the Near and Middle East, has traditionally occupied a pivotal place among the Armenian communities of the region. Our compatriots, who survived the Armenian Genocide and settled in Lebanon, in a very short period of time created a prosperous Armenian community with various and diverse infrastructures, raised Armenian-speaking and patriotic new generations due to their diligence and persistence. Armenians, thanks to the fraternal attitude of the Lebanese authorities and people were able to preserve their rich national culture and values, and being full-fledged citizens, made a significant contribution especially to the development and prosperity of Lebanon in the political, socio-economic and cultural spheres. Today, the principled position of the Lebanese authorities, parliament, and people is also a proof of the sincerity and strength of the friendship between the two nations. Lebanon is the first Middle Eastern country, the legislative body of which has passed two resolutions condemning the Armenian Genocide. The first resolution to declare “April 24 as the memorial day of the massacres perpetrated against the Armenian people” was passed on April 3, 1997, and the second is the resolution of May 11, 2000, that condemns the massacre of 1.5 million Armenians carried out in the Ottoman Empire. 

Until the mid-1970s, the Lebanese-Armenian community had around 250-300 thousand members. According to various sources, about 100-120.000 Armenians reside in Lebanon today, due to the protracted Lebanese Civil War (1975-1990) and the resulting need and lasting economic crisis. As a result of the Syrian war, most Armenians left their second homeland, Syria. Around 15.000 of them settled in Lebanon. 

Lebanon is one of the largest centers of the Armenian Church. Ever since the 19th century, the Lebanese-Armenians have been divided into three religious communities: Armenian Apostles, Armenian Catholics, and Armenian Evangelicals. Here there are:

• The Armenian Catholicosate of the Great House of Cilicia or Holy See of Cilicia (the seat of the primate is the Saint Gregory the Illuminator Cathedral in Antelias) is a nationwide structure, which, being one of the four Hierarchical Sees of the Armenian Apostolic Church, is considered the spiritual center of a significant part of the Apostolic Armenians of the Diaspora. After the Armenian Genocide of 1915, the Armenian Catholicosate of the Great House of Cilicia was directly involved in the formation and organization of the Armenian Diaspora.  
• The Armenian Catholic Patriarchate (the residence is the Patriarchal Congregation of Bzommar, the seat of the primate - the St. Elie and St. Gregory the Illuminator Armenian Catholic Cathedral in Beirut), with the residence of the Patriarch-Catholicos of the Armenian Catholic Church, is a nationwide structure, which is considered the spiritual center of all Catholic Armenians. The Armenian Catholic Patriarchate is directly subordinated to the Vatican, due to which it has wide international connections and provides great support to pan-Armenian programs. The Armenian Catholic community in Lebanon grew in the 30s of the 19th century, as a result of the persecution against Catholics committed in the Turkish provinces. The number of the community increased in the 1920s, due to the influx of refugees from Cilicia. 
• The Union of the Armenian Evangelical Churches in the Near East (Beirut), with the residences of the Chairman of the Council of Churches, includes the Armenian Evangelical communities of the six countries of the region: Turkey, Iran, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, as well as Greece and Australia. The Armenian Evangelical community is small in number and is a part of the Lebanese Evangelical Church, where the Armenian Evangelicals are considered a majority and have considerable importance. 

The Armenian community in Lebanon has the status of a religious-constitutional community. 

Today, although the world party centers are located outside Lebanon, the three traditional Armenian parties, ARF, SDHP, and ADL, are still active.

After the independence of Lebanon, Armenians were represented not only in the spheres of economy and culture but also in politics. In the Lebanese parliaments, convened in different years, the Armenian community was represented by its deputies and in the government – by Armenian ministers. Today, one Armenian female minister is a member of the Lebanese government (Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports), and the Armenian community is represented in the parliament by six deputies. The role and activity of the Lebanese-Armenian community in the Diaspora is still preserved due to the charitable, cultural, and sports organizations operating in the community (AGBU, Hamazkayin, ARS, ARCL, TCA, Homenetmen, AYA, etc.). Various departments of the AGBU have carried out diverse pro-Armenian activities in Lebanon (in 1998, the building of the RA Embassy was built with the support of the AGBU). The branches of the “Hayastan” All-Armenian Fund and the Artsakh Fund are also located here. There are patriotic, student, and other organizations, a number of vocational and trade unions as well. 

The only Armenian higher education institution in the Diaspora, the Haigazian University (1955), where both Armenian and foreign students study, is located in Beirut. Under the auspices of Armenian religious institutions and organizations, there are daily and Sunday schools.

In July of 2015, the Armenian Genocide Orphans' "Aram Bezikian" Museum was opened next to the Birds’ Nest Orphanage (“Trchnots Pouyn”) in the city of Jbeil (Byblos) in Lebanon.

The Armenian press has rich traditions in Lebanon. Numerous magazines, quarterly magazines, weeklies, etc. are published, three of which stand out: “Aztag” (ARF), “Zartonk” (ADL), and “Ararad” (SDHP) newspapers. There are two all-day operating radio stations in Lebanon: “Vana Tsayn” (Voice of Van) and “Radio Sevan” (recently, they have switched only to digital broadcasting).