Influential Middle Eastern Intellectual Simon Simonian's Legacy Described in New Volume

Aram Arkun

 

Simon Simonian was a prolific author, editor, publisher and teacher who played an influential role in Armenian diasporan life. An initial attempt at presenting his legacy in English has been made by Levon Sharoyan of Aleppo, in Simon Simonian: The Last Scion of the Mountaineers (On the Occasion of the 30^th Anniversary of His Death). First published in serialized form in the Armenian-language periodicals Kantzasar, Aztag and Harach, and then as a volume in Armenia, this short work was translated into English by Dr. Vahe H. Apelian and published in 2017 by Hratch Kalsahakian with the sponsorship of the Simon Simonian Fund.

From Constantinople to LA: Three Centuries of Western Armenian Theater

Aram Kouyoumdjian

This past fall, at a conference on “Armenian Art and Culture in the Ottoman Empire Before 1915,” I presented a paper entitled “Arrested Development: Western Armenian Theater in the Nineteenth Century.” The paper examined the emergence of Western Armenian theater in Constantinople – or “Bolis” – amidst a period of national awakening known as “Zartonk” and of linguistic transition from classical to vernacular Armenian.

As I delved into my research, I could not help contemplating that in all of Los Angeles there had been two – just two – productions in Western Armenian the whole year, and that both of them had direct links to 19th-century Constantinople: the Krikor Satamian Theater Company’s rendition of “Shoghokort” (The Flatterer) by Hagop Baronian was written in that time and place, while my own revival of “Hin Asdvadzner” (Ancient Gods) adapted an iconic work by Levon Shant, who was born in Bolis and spent formative years there prior to the Genocide.

Remembering Simon Simonian

Vahe H. Apelian

 

Simon Simonian was one of the towering intellects and literary figures of the Armenian Diaspora's post-Genocide century. He was an educator, publisher, editor, author, and an activist.

This year marks the 100th anniversary of his birth. Simonian was born on March 24, 1914 in Aintab. His Sassoun-born father's name was Ove (Օվէ). His mother's name was Menoush (Մենուշ). She hailed from Aintab. Sassoun was once an exclusively Armenian-inhabited highland while Aintab (now Gaziantep) had a large Armenian population. Simonian was their eldest child.

German-Armenian Historian Warns That Important Genocide Archival Material Is Being Destroyed in Aleppo

Sako Arian

 

German historian Elke Hartmann’s mother is Armenian. Elke has studied history and Middle Eastern/Islamic Studies in Berlin specializing in modern Ottoman history. Her MA thesis examined the German military mission to the Ottoman Empire during the reign of Abdulhamid II, while her PhD. dissertation analyzes conscription in the late Ottoman Empire in the context of modern state and nation building. In 2010, with her husband, historian Vahé Tachjian, she established the Houshamadyan website.

From April to July, she will be a visiting professor at the Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg, Germany teaching the subject of “Christian Minorities in the Ottoman Empire.”

Haigazian Armenological Review: launching of 31st volume

On June 22, 2011 the Haigazian University of Beirut launched the 31^st volume of the Haigazian Armenological Review. The Review was started in 1970 and has since provided an invaluable service as an annual forum for Armenologists from around the world. It is a bridge between Armenologists in Armenia and abroad. Its aim includes the promotion of original and unpublished research and scientific work in linguistics, literature, bibliography, history, culture, arts, medieval studies, social sciences, Christianity and international relations. Its international contributors hail from France, the UK, North and South America, Armenia and the Middle East, and have included many prestigious names in the academic field. The Review is a multilingual, yearly publication which accepts contributions in one of four languages: Armenian, English, French and Arabic. The current 31st volume is 764 pages.