News

Staff Report The Republic of Artsakh was attacked on September 27 by regular forces of the Republic of Azerbaijan. The self-defense forces of Artsakh repelled the Azeri forces in a series of clashes which lasted from September 27-October 9. Armenians from throughout the world have assisted in the self-defense of the country. Many consider the Azeri aggression as a continuation ...

Staff Report Dr. Ohannes Kılıçdağı has been named as the 17th Kazan Visiting Professor in Armenian Studies for the Fall 2020 semester at Fresno State. Dr. Kılıçdağı is a 2014 graduate of Boğaziçi University in Istanbul, where he completed a Ph.D. titled “Socio-Political Reflections and Expectations of the Ottoman Armenians after the 1908 Revolution: Between Hope and Despair.” Dr. Kılıçdağı ...

Staff Report The Armenian Series of The Press at California State University, Fresno announces the publication of The First Republic of Armenia (1918-1920) on its Centenary: Politics, Gender, and Diplomacy, edited by Dr. Bedross Der Matossian and with a preface by Dr. Richard G. Hovannisian. The book is the second in the newly launched Society for Armenian Studies (SAS) Publication ...

Staff Report The Greater Fresno Chapter of the Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU) has donated $25,000 to Fresno State to establish an endowed scholarship fund in the Armenian Studies Program. The scholarship will benefit students who enroll in Armenian and Armenian Studies courses at Fresno State. The Chapter Executive Committee members are: Zaroohi Der Mugrdechian, Charles Jamgotchian, Sylva Guluzian, Karoun ...

CSU Public Affairs Department and News Sources The California State University (CSU) Board of Trustees has appointed Joseph I. Castro, Ph.D., to serve as the eight Chancellor of the California State University system. Castro has served as the eighth president of California State University, Fresno since 2013. He is the first California native and first Mexican American to be appointed ...

  Ara Sarafian Special to Hye Sharzhoom On 12 September 2013, a “Monument to Common Conscience” was erected in Diyarbakir. An unassuming structure made of wood, breezeblocks, marble, and plastic, it contained a simple message in six languages (one of which was Armenian): “Let us share each other’s pains so that they are not repeated again.” The ambiguous simplicity of ...

Carina Tokatian Staff Writer “You don’t necessarily think of traditional Armenian music in the United States as having such complex roots because we are so familiar with it—but it does. It is interesting to put a spotlight on these aspects of life that we are familiar with but may take for granted,” stated Malina Zakian, archivist for the Armenian Studies ...

Marina Chardukian Liberal Studies Minor in Armenian Studies   What encouraged you to take an Armenian Studies course? I wanted to really develop and connect with my Armenian heritage. Listening to all the stories from my grandparents made me want to learn more about the history of the Armenians that came before me. What was your favorite Armenian Studies class, ...

  Carina Tokatian Staff Writer On Thursday, March 5, Dr. Ari Şekeryan spoke on the topic of “The Survivors: Armenian Orphans and Refugees After the First World War (1918-1923),” the second lecture of a three-part series on “Armenians in Istanbul during the Post Armistice Period.” Dr. Şekeryan is the Kazan Visiting Professor in Armenian Studies for the Spring semester. A ...

Arshak Abelyan Staff Writer For many Armenians in the Ottoman Empire during the mid-1880s, migration to the United States presented opportunities of political and economic prosperity and security. This was the case for one Armenian by the name of Ohannes Topalian, who like many Armenian men, immigrated to the United States in the early 1890s. He worked for several years ...