News

Staff Report “An Evening with Dr. Dickran Kouymjian” was celebrated on Saturday, April 5, with more than 200 community members, students, faculty, and staff in attendance at the Residence Dining Hall on the Fresno State campus. They had come to be part of the Armenian Studies Program Twentieth Annual Banquet, this year marking Dr. Kouymjian’s thirty-first year as a Professor ...

Jennifer Torosian Staff Writer April 24 marked the 93rd commemoration of the Armenian Genocide, and while Armenians all over the world came together to remember the past, students of Fresno State’s Armenian Students Organization held their own memorial on campus. Both Armenian and non-Armenian students from Fresno State came together in the Free Speech area, not only to remember and ...

Dear Editor: Please find enclosed a small donation to assist you in the publication and mailing of Hye Sharzhoom. I find your articles very interesting and I enjoy reading them. Thank you for sending Hye Sharzhoom to me. Sincerely, Greg Dabanian Belmont, CA

Staff Report Dr. Dickran Kouymjian and the Armenian Studies Program would like to thank the donors, authors, and publishers for the following book, periodicals, videos, and archival gifts either offered personally or to the Program. CDs/DVDs Gevorg Emin, Ergaran [Songbook], songs based on 11 poems by Gevorg Emin (1918-1998), CD (Erevan, 2005). Gift of Artashes Emin. All Time Armenian Favourites, ...

Pateel Mekhitarian Editor Universities in Armenia The education of children in Armenia is an important aspect of life, similar to the United States There are three main universities in Armenia where students may receive a wonderful education in whatever field they desire. American University of Armenia www.aua.am www.aua.am is the official website for the American University of Armenia (AUA). This ...

Barlow Der Mugrdechian Advisor For a scholar from India, coming to Fresno to study was a natural choice, especially when the focus of the research was on the works of William Saroyan. Kolkata, India native Debashis Bandopadhyay arrived at Fresno State in November of 2007 to begin a nine-month stay on a Fulbright Fellowship. He was granted a sabbatical by ...

Staff Report A generous contribution of $40,000 was made to the Armenian Studies Program at Fresno State from the estate of the late John and Lucile Melkonian. The bequest will be in a permanent endowment to benefit the Armenian Studies Program, for scholarships to deserving students and for special programs. John and Lucile Melkonian were life-long residents of Fresno. Mr. ...

Svetlana Bagdasarov Staff Writer On Saturday, February 9, I had the pleasure of dining at Bedrosian’s Armenian Deli in Fresno. I was enrolled in a weekend course on the Armenian Church offered by the Armenian Studies Program at California State University, Fresno. After a morning of lectures and a visit to an Armenian church, Professor Barlow Der Mugrdechian suggested that ...

Staff Report The Armenian Bible: A Symposium Celebrating the 1600th Anniversary of the Discovery of the Armenian Alphabet and the Translation of the Bible into Armenian. Barlow Der Mugrdechian, editor (Burbank, CA: Western Diocese of the Armenian Church of North America, 2007), 130.pp The Armenian Bible has been the topic of much study since it was originally translated into Armenian in ...

Pateel Mehitarian Editor There are many organizations, such as Orran and the Nork Childrens’ Center in Armenia, that seek to help children from unprivileged families. Another group that assists young women in achieving their aspirations is Mer Doon. Mer Doon, meaning “Our Home” in Armenian, takes in young women whom have outgrown their childhood homes in Armenian orphanages. Mer Doon ...