News

Staff Report Dr. Talin Suciyan was named the 21st Kazan Visiting Professor in Armenian Studies at California State University, Fresno for the Spring 2025 semester. “We are happy to welcome Dr. Suciyan for the spring semester,” said Prof. Barlow Der Mugrdechian, Berberian Coordinator of the Armenian Studies Program. “Dr. Suciyan will bring a new and active element to the Program.” ...

Ani Sargsyan Staff Writer Fresno State’s Armenian Students Organization has been putting together events for students and community members to come together at least once a month. These social gatherings are important in keeping the student body close-knit while also celebrating and preserving Armenian culture. In the fall semester, ASO had several successes, including a celebration for Armenian Independence day, ...

Staff Report J. Michael Hagopian’s “Strangers in a Promised Land” was recently digitally remastered and was screened at The Vineyards-California Armenian Home. Fresno State Armenian Studies Prof. Barlow Der Mugrdechian was invited to give an introduction for the film and to discuss the film with guests after the screening. Narrated by former California Governor George Deukmejian, “Strangers in a Promised ...

‘Armenia & Byzantium without Borders V: Disruption and Resilience’ – Graduate and Early Career Workshop, Univ of Oxford Dr. David Zakarian reports: In 2018, as a British Academy Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Oxford, I had the opportunity to participate in a transformative academic experience – the “Armenia & Byzantium” without Borders workshop. Organized by Prof. Claudia Rapp and ...

Anahid Valencia Staff Writer  A childhood lost to war, an entire people’s yearning for their homeland, and the vibrancy of the Armenian heritage – three of the many themes told by the short films in the event “Armenians in Film,” held on Friday, October 4, 2024, in the Leon S. Peters and Pete P. Peters Educational Center on the Fresno ...

Natalie Agazarian Editor On Wednesday, November 20, the Armenian Studies Program hosted the United States Ambassador to Armenia, Kristina Kvien, on campus, to discuss U.S.-Armenian relations. The event was attended by the Armenian Studies Program faculty, including Prof. Barlow Der Mugrdechian, Dr. David Zakarian, and Dr. Hagop Ohanessian. Special guests included Fresno State Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, ...

Natalie Agazarian Editor “Colophons of Armenian manuscripts are a separate genre of literature; among many other things, they reveal the inter-relationships between Armenians and other groups,” remarked Dr. David Zakarian during his presentation, “Colophons: Treasures of Armenian Manuscripts,” held on Sunday, November 10, 2024, at St. Paul Armenian Apostolic Church, in collaboration with the Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU) Greater ...

Ani Sargsyan Staff Writer “What happens to heritage in conflict? And how can we find pathways for saving what still survive?,” stated Dr. Simon Maghakyan, who presented a talk on “The Future of the Past: Pathways for Saving Armenian Vestiges in Turkey,” on Friday, November 8, 2024. This was the final presentation in a three-part series by Dr. Maghakyan on ...

Rachel Yepremian Staff Writer Dr. David Zakarian is the new Haig & Isabel Berberian Endowed Professor in Armenian Studies at Fresno State. He is beginning his first semester and is teaching Armenian 1A-Elementary Armenian – speaking, reading, and writing. Students from different backgrounds, majors, and cultures, take Armenian courses at Fresno State for a variety of reasons. “The Armenian language ...

Careen Derkalousdian Staff Writer “[This book] investigates the international and internal security aspects of the Armenian and Macedonian Questions in the late Ottoman period,” said Dr. İlkay Yılmaz. “It analyzes how these two important political topics became issues of security for the Ottoman government.” On Friday, November 1, 2024, Dr. İlkay Yılmaz, a research associate in the department of Modern ...