Armenian Language Foundation of al-Hasakah is still holding Armenian language courses for people of all ages as one of its ways to revive their mother tongue and preserve their cultural identity. The Armenian Language Foundation also demands that their language be introduced into Syria’s programs.
Two years ago, Armenian Language Foundation launched Armenian language courses for learners of any age from learning the alphabet and then moving on to grammar and conversation. This initiative attempts to revive the mother tongue of the Armenian people and introduce it into the Syrian educational program.
As part of this campaign, teachers and learners who attend the training course have given an interview to ANHA news agency concerning the goals of the program and the activities of the foundation.
Teacher Fairouz Abdo said: “When the Armenian Community Foundation was founded, teaching the Armenian language became one of the main priorities of the foundation. And this was six years ago. Today, the Armenian Language Foundation is restoring the native language of the Armenian people.”
She continued: “Today, we have about 20 students and 9 teachers. Some of the participants study and teach simultaneously. We teach young men and women and, in the future, we want to organize language courses for children during the vacation period. We start with the alphabet and proceed to teach grammar, sentence construction, conversations, and all other elements of the language.”
Abdo said that their goal is to achieve constitutional status of the Armenian language and include it in curricula, at least once a week.
In addition, she noted that although foreign languages like English and French are given importance, the languages spoken by the indigenous people of Syria are generally neglected.
“It will be better to start recognizing the languages of the communities of Syria before moving forward to others,” she reiterated.
On the other hand, Sandra Kasabian, who is both a student and a teacher said: “I am a student and a teacher at the same time. I keep learning even as I teach students who are not as experienced as I am. As Armenians, we wish to be recognized like other communities in Syria, especially our language and culture. We want our next generation to learn their mother tongue so they do not lose their language like we did.”
She continued: “Currently, we are working on a curriculum which will be implemented at educational institutes. It will last for two years, covering only the basics of the Armenian language.”
To conclude, Sandra called for the recognition of the Armenian language as any other in Syria, stating that the life of a nation depends on the life of its language.
The experience of Student Evanoush Kasabian was shared as well:
“My father was very busy with work; therefore, he did not have an opportunity to teach me Armenian. But as I loved my language, I enrolled in the foundation in order to study it. Initially, I thought that it would be very difficult, but in the course of time, I understood that it was not so complicated as I thought it was even easier than I thought.”
She continued: “Our goal is that our language should be in the curricula of schools. We do not want the future generations to lack the knowledge of their native language like we lacked it when we were young. Why should I speak another language when I have my own?”
ANHA
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