Author: Badalian Vardan

Iran plans to double renewable energy output by March: official
Economic Desk

On Line: 11 January 2015 19:55
In Print: Monday 12 January 2015

TEHRAN- Iran plans to double its renewable energy output, by the end
of current Iranian calendar year (March 20, 2015), according to an
official with Iran’s power sector.

The country’s renewable power output is scheduled to reach 400
megawatts by the yearend; the Fars News Agency quoted Homayoun Haeri,
the managing director of the Iran Power Generation, Transmission and
Distribution Management Company (TAVANIR), as saying on Sunday.

In December 2014, Iranian Deputy Energy Minister Houshang Falahatian
said the country prioritizes generation of electricity from different
sources of energy.

He said 1000 megawatts of electricity should be generated annually
from renewable energies in Iran.

In November 2014, Iranian Energy Minister Hamid Chitchian outlined
plans to develop the national electricity industry, placing the
priority on the expansion of solar and wind power plants.

He said electricity generation, transmission, and distribution are
projected to be increased by 7 to 8 percent annually.

The administration of Hassan Rouhani envisions a bright future for
solar energy and has allocated $60 million for solar energy projects
in the current Iranian calendar year (March 2014-March 2015) compared
to just $12 million in the previous year. It especially wants to
target rural communities largely cut off from government services
across the country.

Iran’s power generation capacity currently stands at 68.38 gigawatts.
The capacity has grown by 7 percent annually over the past 10 years.

Iran currently exports electricity to Turkey, Armenia, Turkmenistan,
Azerbaijan (including the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic), Pakistan,
Afghanistan, Syria, and Iraq.

The Times of Israel
Jan 9 2015

Jews are focus of most hate speech in Turkey, media study finds

Upcoming MEMRI report details growing anti-Semitic language in
Islamist, pro-AKP outlets

By Lazar Berman

ews are the group most targeted by hate speech in the Turkish media,
according to an upcoming report by a US-based watchdog, which found a
rise in anti-Semitic language published in Turkey.

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The study, by the Middle East Media Research Institute’s Turkish Media
Project, found that such attacks are becoming more common, especially
in Islamist media outlets.

Pro-AKP daily Yeni Akit is leading purveyor of hate speech, followed
by another Islamist paper, Milli Gazett, MEMRI said.

The report, obtained by The Times of Israel ahead of its upcoming
release to the public, is based on a study by the Turkish coexistence
NGO Hrant Dink Foundation, which looked at hate speech in the
country’s media.

It found a rise in hate speech against Jews, especially in opinion
columns, with more than half of the instances ‘ 130 out of 246 ‘
targeting Jews. Armenians and Christians were also victims of attacks
in the media, with 60 attacks and 25 instances respectively.

MEMRI’s Director of Turkish Studies, Rachel Sharon-Krespin, told The
Times of Israel that hate speech constitutes `generalizations,
prejudice and animosity against, and targeting and threatening a group
of people or person, due to ethnicity, religion, race or gender.’

`And examples of anti-Semitism can be found almost daily in Turkish
media,’ she added.

Hate speech against the Jews is found mostly in the Islamist, pro-AKP
organs, though Jews, Kurds, Armenians, and Greeks are targeted in
nationalist outlets as well.

`A magnificent speech’

`The most rabid and savage enemies of Islam on Earth are the Jews¦,’
said Imam Mehmet Sait Yaz during a July 2014 sermon in Diyarbakir,
broadcast by OdaTV and cited by MEMRI. `The Jews and the Christians
will never accept you unless you submit to their religion. These Jews
spoil all the agreements on Earth and have murdered 17 of their own
prophets ¦ And I declare here: All Jews who have taken up arms to
murder Muslims must be killed, and Israel must be wiped off the map!
And it will be wiped out with Allah’s help!’

AKP lawmaker Cuma Icten called it a `magnificent speech’ and posted it
on his Facebook page.

Wild conspiracy theories about Jews and Israel also found their way
into pro-AKP newspapers.

On September 15, 2014, M. Necati Ozfatura wrote in his Turkiye column
that the Mossad trained ISIS leader Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi from the time
he was 11, `then integrated him among the Palestinians, sent him to
Baghdad for studying, and gave him the identity of a dead Arab¦Jewish
capital is behind ISIS. Global Jewish capital is providing the arms
and all the needs of ISIS. Its training is being provided in camps in
Israel. The tactics and strategies employed by ISIS are from the
Mossad and from Israeli military officers. Unfortunately, some
ignorant and unaware Muslims are following this person [Al-Baghdadi]
who is of Jewish origin.’

Ozfatura followed this up in November by asserting that Jews who
pretend to be Christians and Muslims are Israel’s greatest power.

`These [secret Jews] insidiously grab key positions in the finance,
media and governments of the countries in which they live, and steer
and rule these countries so as to serve the goal of Zionism’s global
rule,’ Ozfatura wrote.

`At this time, in America, the converted Jewish clergymen are secretly
running some of the Christian churches and are directing the
unknowing, naïve Christian masses toward this goal,’ he added.

Members of Turkey’s Jewish community pray at Neve Shalom Synagogue in
Istanbul on October 11, 2004, during a ceremony to mark the official
reopening of the synagogue (photo credit: AP/Murad Sezer)

Other wild stories about Jews abounded in Turkey.

In November, more than 6,000 olive trees were cut down in western
Turkey to make way for a new power plant. Islamists circulated flyers
that said Israel was planting olives trees around the world in order
to protect themselves on Judgment Day, because the olive tree will not
tell Muslims that a Jew is hiding behind them.

`Yesterday, Israel tried to prevent the cutting of olive trees in
Soma, by stopping the building of the plant. They even managed to get
the High Administrative Court to rule for a stay. But our government
carried out the felling of the trees, despite the court’s ruling `
and, by doing so, spoiled Israel’s plans,’ a flyer read, according to
the MEMRI report. `It is planned that all the olive trees in Turkey
will be cut down within the next three years. This is a very great
blow to Israel.

`But it is not enough just to cut down all these trees. Our people
must also do their duty; they must stop their consumption of olives,
and refuse to be part of their plot.’

AKP officials themselves made anti-Jewish statements and decisions as
well. In November, the AKP-appointed governor of Edirne Province,
Dursun Sahin, said that Edirne’s Grand Synagogue would not be used for
prayer, though it was planned to reopened for worship.

`When the winds of war blow inside Al-Aqsa [in Jerusalem], and those
bandits are murdering Muslims, we are restoring their synagogues here
[in Turkey],’ he said. `I am saying this with great hatred in my
heart. This synagogue, the restoration of which is almost complete,
will become only a museum, with no exhibits in it.’

Sahin later apologized for the remarks.

Since the AKP came to power in 2002, the ruling party has transformed
the media in Turkey, intimidated liberal outlets while promoting
Islamist papers.

`Many media organs, once mainstream, were attacked ‘ sometimes
confiscated ‘ by the government, and many were forced to sell to
groups that are sympathizers of the AKP,’ said Sharon-Krespin.
`Through pressure and intimidation of media bosses, many mainstream
journalists lost their jobs due to their criticism of the government,
scores of lawsuits were and are being filed against them by now
president Erdogan.’

`On the other hand the editors and columnists of Islamist media organs
‘ such as Yeni Akit, Yeni Safak, Sabah etc. ‘ are government’s
favorites, enjoy permanent place in Erdogan’s private plane on his
trips and even act as advisers. They are the mouthpiece of the AKP
government and target non-Islamist journalists for any criticism of
the government,’ she said.

But there are voices who defend Turkey’s Jewish communities.

After Sahin’s announcement that the Grand Synagogue would be closed to
prayer, Directorate of Foundations head Adnan Ertem vowed that the
site would serve as a house of worship for Jews, and would be open to
the public.

Some center-left media outlets in the country do raise the warning
about racism and anti-Semitism, `but they are in the minority,’ said
Sharon-Krespin.

A lawmaker from Turkey’s main opposition party CHP, Aykan Erdemir,
called the governor’s remarks `hate speech,’ and said that `if Ã…?ahin
does not resign, to preserve the dignity of his post and Turkey’s
honor, he should be removed immediately.’

He also lamented that `hatred and antisemitism have seized the state.’

In December, 2014, a Jewish writer named Mois Gabay wrote a column
called, `Are Turkish Jews leaving?’ in Salom, the country’s only
Jewish newspaper. In the piece, he warned that statements by
government officials were spreading anti-Semitism to the general
public.

Some writers quoted Gabay’s article and warned that they could be on
their way to a Turkey without Jews, but Islamist paper Yeni Akit
called the prospect `good news.’

Livres
Le Sang des Arméniens

Un livre de référence vient d’être publié par le Seuil. Préfacé par le
géostratège Gérard Chaliand, >
est signé par les historiens Yves Ternon et Raymond Kévorkian.

Livre de référence organisé chronologiquement, le “Mémorial” a pour
ambition de refléter la totalité des connaissances actuelles sur le
génocide des Arméniens. Accompagné de photos, de cartes et de
tableaux, il rassemble des centaines de textes de l’époque, officiels
ou privés, accompagnés des commentaires et analyses des auteurs.

Dans le Figaro Magazine, Jean Sévilla commente l’ouvrage des
historiens, en revenant sur les heures noires qui ont présidé à
l’extermination des Arméniens en 1915

Cliquer sur le document pour agrandir

En 1970, le chancelier allemand Willy Brandt s’agenouillait devant le
mémorial du ghetto juif de Varsovie.

En 1986, les États-Unis ont fait des excuses aux citoyens américains
d’origine japonaise internés collectivement après l’attaque sur Pearl
Harbor (1941).

En 1990, l’URSS reconnaissait que les massacres de Katyn (1940)
perpétrés contre des milliers d’officiers polonais avaient été commis
par le régime stalinien.

En 1993, par la déclaration de Kono, le Japon présentait des excuses à
la Corée pour l’usage forcé durant la Seconde Guerre mondiale de
plusieurs centaines de milliers de >.

En 2010, le Premier ministre britannique, David Cameron, s’excusait en
Irlande parce que lors du Bloody Sunday (1972), les forces de l’ordre
britanniques avaient tiré sur une manifestation pacifique de
catholiques.

Tous ces États admettent leur responsabilité. Seule la Turquie, qui
s’est fondée sur un crime de masse, présente un siècle après les faits
ses condoléances aux > des victimes en omettant de
mentionner que l’anéantissement de la population arménienne a été
organisé par le gouvernement jeune-turc.

Livre de référence organisé chronologiquement, le Mémorial a pour
ambition de refléter la totalité des connaissances actuelles sur le
génocide des Arméniens. Accompagné de photos, de cartes et de
tableaux, il rassemble des centaines de textes de l’époque, officiels
ou privés, accompagnés des commentaires et analyses des auteurs.

Préface de Gérard Chaliand

Traduit par Héléna Dermidjian et Alexis Tautou

512 pages – 30.00 EURO

dimanche 11 janvier 2015,
Jean Eckian (c)armenews.com

AYF’s 100 Days of Action to Count Down to Genocide Centennial

Friday, January 9th, 2015

AYF’s 100 Days of Action

GLENDALE, Calif–The Armenian Youth Federation – Western United States
has announced the 100 Days of Action, a campaign to mark the
centennial of the Armenian Genocide. The 100 days will begin on Jan.
14, the anniversary of the founding of the AYF, and will conclude on
April 24, the day marked as the start of the Armenian Genocide.

The AYF will host daily actions throughout the 100 days, including
weekly social media campaigns, boycotts and divestment, political
lobbying, tactical demonstrations, cultural displays, and educational
forums. The 100 Days of Action will culminate with a march leading to
the Turkish Consulate in Los Angeles on April 24.

“The 100 Days of Action are meant to involve the local community in
actions that facilitate the advancement of the Armenian Cause,” said
Arpa Hatzbanian, chairperson of the AYF Central Executive. “We urge
the community to participate in the actions and support our efforts.”

Information about each day’s action will be available on ayfwest.org
and across social media outlets (@ayfwest). Those who wish to
participate can contact the AYF at 818-507-1933 or [email protected].

Founded in 1933, the Armenian Youth Federation is the largest and most
influential Armenian American youth organization in the world, working
to advance the social, political, educational and cultural awareness
of Armenian youth.

ARMENIE-CHRETIENETE
La diaspora désire ériger en Arménie la plus grande croix du monde

> dit Hranouche Hagopian, la
ministre de la Diaspora. Cette dernière répondait aux représentants
des communautés arméniennes de France et du Liban qui auraient émis le
voeu de construire en Arménie la plus grande croix du monde. >précisa la ministre de la Diaspora qui est favorable à ce
projet.

Krikor Amirzayan

samedi 10 janvier 2015,
Krikor Amirzayan (c)armenews.com

CHARLIE HEBDO
La catholicos Karékine II apporte son soutien à François Hollande

Le 9 janvier, le Catholicos Karékine II d’Etchmiadzine a envoyé au
président François Hollande une lettre de condoléances pour
l’assassinat des caricaturistes à la rédaction de >
par les terroristes islamistes.

Kupelian Releases Special Early Edition of ‘Warrior Saints’

Friday, January 9th, 2015

Various covers for the newest installment in the East of Byzantium
series, ‘Warrior Saints’

LOS ANGELES–Roger Kupelian, Hollywood Visual Effects Veteran and
creator of the East of Byzantium Franchise, is inviting 100 fans to
own one of each of the 100 Special Covers for his next installment in
the Graphic Novel series, “Warrior Saints.” This will fund 1000
regular editions of the Graphic Novel for wider release.

The first volume, “War Gods,” was based on the real events of
Armenia’s conversion to Christianity in 301 AD. “War Gods” has been
presented in Chicago, Toronto, Boston, New York, and Los Angeles.
Kupelian even did a signing at San Diego’s Comic Con.

“Warrior Saints” is the next installment of the epic saga. Over a
century has passed since the events of 301. Vartan Mamikonean and his
followers face incredible odds to defend their country and their
freedom. Where the men fall in battle, the women pick up the fight.

The East of Byzantium franchise has fans around the world. There was
even a fan who took a photo with a copy at the South Pole. “War Gods”
was released over a year ago, and both books have been licensed as the
foundation for an upcoming docu-tainment series. There were even
discussions with major Hollywood icons for a feature version.

The first one hundred copies of “Warrior Saints” will be completely
unique in that each cover will be specially made for that edition.
Once the 100 covers are sponsored, the fans will vote on the winning
cover to go onto the standard edition print. The winner will get a
special mention as well as a full refund of the purchase price of the
book. All 100 sponsors will be listed in the standard printed version.

A page from ‘Warrior Saints’

Kupelian remarked, “It will be a lot of work for me to raise funds
this way, but the project is worth it. I want to sell my labor of love
directly to those that want to share in the journey. The First 100
will always be a special group.”

“Warrior Saints” was lavishly illustrated by Roger Kupelian, and was
co-written with Razmig Tchaglasian, with Mark Irwin as editor in
chief. The first batch of orders for the unique issues have already
been fulfilled.

To reserve a special edition, visit the Fugitive Studios website. All
proceeds will go towards the printing of the standard edition of
“Warrior Saints.”

The Problem of Controllable Fragmentation of Russia and Turkey

Igor Muradyan, Political Analyst
Comments – 07 January 2015, 00:48

NATO is facing complicated issues, and it is not clear yet how they
are going to be resolved. Controversies inside NATO persist.
Afghanistan has shattered the political will of the member states of
the alliance, NATO has not carried out a single military action since
Afghanistan. There are actions by separate states, and most members of
the alliance do not support them. It turns out that a group of NATO
member states or the alliance is capable of military actions with
limited scope.

The developments of Libya demonstrated that the European states are
not capable of actions of significant scope without the U.S.
assistance.

NATO is not ready and is not prone to military intervention in likely
developments in the South Caucasus. Russia continues to play a
deciding role in the security system of the South Caucasus, and the
behavior of other countries, including the states of the region and
major states, depends on it.

France is rather pessimistic about NATO expansion towards Eastern
Europe and is hardly interested in boosting NATO responsibility in the
South Caucasus and other regions. France sees Russia as a key economic
and political partner and does not want to irritate Russia.

France is ready to help Armenia with cooperation with NATO, including
supply of weapons, though upon certain conditions and is reluctant to
cause escalation in the region. Germany has a similar stance.

Russia will use a tactics in respect of NATO-Armenia and EU-Armenia
cooperation that will differ from that of Georgia. Aside from the
states of the West Russia also learned lessons on the processes and
situation in Georgia.

Russia will try to enhance its control over Armenia, first of all
through military presence, and Armenia will be definitely interested
in this. Besides defense, Russia will make efforts to increase its
influence in the spheres of economy and culture. For example, Russia
is jealous about Russia’s positions in the post-Soviet states.

Now it is fully understood that Russia sees Armenia as small change in
its games with Turkey and Azerbaijan. Moscow does not see Armenia as a
sovereign state which conducts its own foreign policy, and Russia
considers the foreign minister as its agent. Karabakh does not exist
in Russia’s plans as a permanent subject. It is seen as something
interim which has run out of its role and time.

The present and future elites of Armenia are not capable of
understanding this and are marionettes in the hands of Russians.

It is necessary to discuss soberly whether Armenia has a resource
outside government which will allow it being a mini-actor in the
international setting. There is such resource otherwise a lot of other
states would not exist.

NATO is going through a long stage of reforms and understanding of its
own role and mission. NATO is facing the issue of creating new
geopolitics because the former schemes are not working. The Black Sea
and the South Caucasus which are presently seen as defense factors of
geopolitics will soon be seen as hotbeds, or rather an arena for
military and political presence of NATO.

Plans in Eastern Europe, Central Asia and partly in the Near East
become meaningless without the factor of the Black Sea and the South
Caucasus. Soon the North Caucasus will get out of Russia’s control.
Therefore, Russia must be replaced by other forces in that region.

Similar processes are underway in Turkey which will be further
fragmented. At present the issue of isolation of Turkey and Russia is
replaced by the issue of controllable fragmentation of these
countries.

Russia is deeply interested in such a phenomenon as the Islamic State
of Iraq and Levant which is often called the Caliphate. It interests
Russia for two reasons: as a likely enemy in the southern direction
and as a means of scaring the countries of the South.

No doubt Russia does not spare effort to figure out the current
situation. The Russian intelligence is playing its game, finding out
what can scare the political government of the country. The Caliphate
could be a key instrument for Russia for large-scale blackmail in the
Caucasus and Central Asia.

Supplying weapons to Syria, Russia has appeared in a dual situation
because the initial concept that Caliphate is the scenario and project
of the United States has failed and is rather ambiguous. Now the U.S.
interests have become consumers of Russian weapon which is used
against the Caliphate, about which some Armenian experts are speaking
so meaninglessly.

The problem is that the Caliphate will soon be destroyed just like the
U.S. former and present partners which, being in the role of designers
and stakeholders, have realized that the project will sooner or later
start working against them, Turkey and Saudi Arabia. This knot will
soon be destroyed or rather undone, and people will return to their
former places.

The Russians are trying to demonstrate to Armenia that new threat has
occurred, namely the Caliphate, but Armenia has responded and sent a
small contingent to Lebanon. One should not forget that unlike Armenia
Caliphate has become a state though it is just a movement, even though
it is transnational. Meanwhile, Armenians are scaring each other.

The key threat is not the Caliphate but the Russian military base in
Gyumri, and this is not something unlikely.

During many years NATO has avoided military actions in the Near East,
which has become a tradition in the alliance. Now NATO is fully
participating in the process against the Caliphate which emerged
against the Shia communities of the east coast of the Mediterranean
Sea, Iran and Iraq, not the Western community.

This is a new world, and it is being implemented without Russia, and
nobody is interested in any form of participation of Russia which is
given an opportunity to provide intelligence data, in other words,
Russia’s only resource in the existing situation.

Caliphate is a fully comprehensible threat for the region, and NATO is
the only force which can have key importance in destroying this
phenomenon in the Near East.

Azerbaijan pursues short-term goals by provoking tension

12:04 * 09.01.15

By provoking tensions along its state border with Armenia and the Line
of Contact surrounding Nagorno-Karabakh, Azerbaijan is actually
pursuing short-term goals intended for the domestic audience,
according Armenian analysts.

Commenting on the border skirmishes which have intensified since
August, Ruben Mehrabyan, an expert at the Armenian Center for National
International Studies, and Karen Vrtanesyan, a coordinator of the
military news website Razminfo, said they believe that the country is
thus reiterating its old propaganda thesis in an attempt to urge
Armenia to cede the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic.

It comes after Azerbaijan’s Defense Minister Zakir Hasanov said in his
New Year address that the country would not leave Armenia in peace in
201.

Karen Vrtanesyan said he knows that Azerbaijan’s top leadership
repeatedly voices statements of the kind to demand the handover of
Karabakh as a precondition of peace. “This message is often heard in
the statements by [Azerbaijani President Ilham] Aliyev and the Foreign
Ministry,” the Razminfo coordinator noted.

He described Azerbaijan’s blatantly belligerent rhetoric as an attempt
to keep Armenia under psychological pressure. The analyst said further
he doesn’t think such violations of international law are something
new for the country. “What’s even more, the experience showed that the
Ilham Aliyev regime can give a slap even to the United States in the
face of public by detaining a journalist of an US radio station’s
(Radio FreeEurope/Radio Liberty) branch and ultimately closing down
its office in Baku. And the US authorities, which are under the
influence of those lobbyist groups, will calmly digest those slaps,”
Vrtanesyan said.

As for the US authorities’ somewhat passive stance, he said it is a
good signal for Armenia to rely only on its own potentials in trying
to settle affairs with Azerbaijan.

Asked what position the Armenian authorities and Armed Forces should
have in the current circumstances, Vrtanesyan replied, “This is
probably the most complicated question … Symmetric punitive measures –
even if taken at a 1:3 ‘exchange rate’ – offer practically no solution
to the problem given that Azerbaijan almost ceased publishing reports
about its losses after the August events. Hence, the Azerbaijani
public is largely in the dark about its losses, while any loss by the
Armenian side is excessively drummed by the Azerbaijani media,” he
said.

Vrtanesyan said he finds that the Armenian side has to take a
symmetric reaction in the current situation, changing its policies to
a certain degree. But he personally did not point out to a specific
direction.

Ruben Mehrabyan also admitted that Azerbaijan in this way keeps
maintaining tension along the border in an attempt to solve domestic
problems. According to him, the Aliyev regime is thus trying to direct
the pointer to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict to mitigate the existing
social tensions in the country.

“No need to look for any causes here; the cycle of incidents is going
on as it always has. Hence Azerbaijan continues its policies. But
through border tensions, the authorities are resolving just current
problems, and the Karabakh issues creates quite a convenient
background for that,” he added.

Mehrabyan said he sees that the Azerbaijani authorities are laying the
blame on Armenia in an effort ease the wave of public anger caused by
falling oil prices (which deteriorates the economic situation).

“All that is being done to maintain the regime’s unwaveringness,” he
said, pointing out to Azerbaijan’s policies of blackmail.

“When the West tells Azerbaijan that human rights are violated in the
country, the raise the question of territories. Let us not forget that
Azerbaijan itself refuses to withdraw snipers, and it itself prevents
confidence building efforts across the border,” Mehrabyan added.

One Nation, How Many Aspects of Culture? Armenian Diversity

13:38, January 9, 2015

By Nareg Seferian

Not too long ago, I had an “e-mail fight” with someone I don’t know.
To call it a “fight” would be an exaggeration. Rather, we had a heated
discussion back and forth via e-mail, having found each other through
a mutual acquaintance who wisely slipped out of the conversation.

The issue was Eastern Armenian and Western Armenian – specifically,
whether or not there are two separate Armenian languages, or whether
they are both versions of one language. There are other possibilities,
and it could be the case that one may characterise Eastern and Western
Armenian in more than one way at the same time. My correspondent was
very confident toinsist that there is only one Armenian language. My
own position is to refer to the two as “sister languages”.

Now, historically, politically, philosophically, ideologically, one
may indeed claim a single, unique linguistic heritage that binds the
Armenian people. There are good, reasonable arguments to be made in
that regard. In practical terms, however, one could easily point out
that Eastern Armenian and Western Armenian differ in terms of
pronunciation (I have even made a short video explaining the
differences in English, in Eastern Armenian, and in Western Armenian),
in terms of vocabulary and grammar, and also in terms of orthography:
the Armenian language in the Soviet Union was made to change the way
it was written in 1922 and then once again in 1940. The Armenian used
in Iran continues to be Eastern Armenian, but written in the classical
way, which isthe same orthography still employed by Western Armenian,
as it has always been in Classical Armenian.

This has all turned out to be quite academic, yes, maybe a little
boring.But it is important to bear in mind, for example, when it comes
time to teach and learn the language. If I sign up for an Armenian
course, then I’m afraid I have to make a choice, or two or three
separate choices. Moreover, if I decide to teach the Armenian language
as a course, then I doubly have to make sure to pick one of the sister
languages. Or perhaps I could teach both, along with Classical
Armenian, if there is time. This is simply a practical reality.

It’s the sort of practical reality that many Armenians from outside
Armenia face in Armenia almost every day. I remember a Diasporan, who
has been living in Yerevan for a long time, once mention that what she
missed from Los Angeles was the diversity. I agree. It’s a dream come
true to have an Armenian homeland, but – to put it in a banal way –
good, authentic Korean food is hard to come by here. Less banal, more
to the point:the ethnic, religious, and linguistic homogeneity of
society in Armenia extends not just to people staring at blacks on the
street, but also to a lack of appreciation of Armenian diversity.

Yes, Armenian diversity. It sounds like a funny phrase, but I claim
that the very designation of the Armenians as a nation is by virtue of
the fact that there is a great deal of diversity within those
individuals who identify as Armenian. Otherwise, the Armenians might
as well have been simply a community or just a tribe.

There is linguistic diversity among Armenians, as mentioned above.
Each of our unwritten dialects is precious – so many of them having
fallen victim to the Armenian Genocide, by the way. Besides the
dialects, Eastern Armenian and Western Armenian each bear a rich
literary heritage, to say nothing of the literature ofMiddle Armenian
or the Classical Armenian that was the standard for a millennium and a
half. It is a real pity that the Armenians of Armenia are exclusively
acquainted with Eastern Armenian written in the Soviet orthography.
Why can’t our schools at least have introductory classes about Western
Armenian, Classical Armenian, or at the very least classical
orthography?

There is religious diversity among Armenians. It is rare to find
Armenians who are not at least nominally Christian – although there
are plenty of atheist Armenians, alongside so many stories of Muslim
or Islamised Armenians coming out of Turkey in recent years. But even
Armenian Christianity has a great wealth that many in Armenia do not
know about. Etchmiadzin is surely the centre of the faith, but the
significance and the role of the Catholicos of Sis, now in Antelias in
Lebanon, and of the patriarchs in Constantinople (Istanbul) and
Jerusalem are seldomdiscussed in Armenia.

What is more, there is a centuries-old Armenian Catholic tradition,
most pointedly visible through the Mekhitarist Congregation in Venice
and in Vienna and the incredible publishing and education work done by
them through the 18th, 19th, and 20th centuries, up to today. Do most
people in Armenia know that there is a Mekhitarist school in Yerevan?
Do they know about the Armenian Catholic Sisters who do such wonderful
work with young people in Gyumri?

The Protestant Armenians are a relatively new phenomenon, arriving
with American missionaries to the Ottoman Empire in the 19th century.
What is now the Armenian Evangelical movement spearheaded modern
education and science among the Armenian population at the time. That
was an important source of enlightenment especially for the
Ottoman-Armenian provinces, the interior regions.

I know that many people reading this will be upset to hear about
Armenian Protestants and Armenian Catholics side-by-side with the
Armenian Church.But if the authorities of the Ottoman Empire did not
bother to distinguish among them when massacring our ancestors a
hundred years ago, then I do not care to draw any lines when
celebrating the diversity of our heritage today.

Another aspect of Armenian diversity is that of cuisine. The Armenians
of Iran have specific dishes in their tradition, whilethe Armenians of
Ottoman descent – in the Arab world, in Turkey, in Bulgaria, in Greece
and Cyprus (and their descendants elsewhere) – have their own
favourites. For Armenia, however, the Russian Empire was probably not
as conducive to developing a specific culinary tradition; certainly
the Soviet Union was not, at least not until the immigration waves of
the 1940s on. It is nice to see restaurants opening up in Yerevan
since independence and in particular since the recent influx from
Syria of what could be called “Ottoman-Armenian cuisine”. But it still
seems strange for many Diasporan Armenians to hear, for
example,wrapped grape leaves being called “dolma”, rather than
“sarma”. The latter means “wrapped” in Turkish, whereas the former
means “stuffed”. So for Armenians whose ancestors come from the
Ottoman Empire, only stuffed vegetables can be called “dolma”. This
is, of course, a small, rather insignificant thing, but it reflects
the general lack of awareness about the wider Armenian nation in the
Armenian republic.

The main reason why that awareness is lacking is simple: there are
very few people who speak Western Armenian in Armenia, very few
Armenian Catholics and Protestants, almost no public writing or
signage written in classical orthography. But I fear there is a
general lack of openness among many in Armenia to things that are
different, that are new, that are strange. This is characteristic of
all small, closed societies. The Republic of Armenia is a relatively
small society, yes, but it is a part of a relatively large nation.
There should be an openness towards the various cultural expressions
of the nation in the republic. Surely the widespread rejection of
homosexuality in Armenia, for example, is understandable as a reaction
to Western diversity, Western cosmopolitanism. But shouldn’t the
Republic of Armenia accommodate Armenian diversity, Armenian
cosmopolitanism? We are a global people, I’m afraid. The secret to
Armenian survival for centuries has been that very cosmopolitanism,
whether or not some Armenians may like or appreciate it.

The only geographical area on our planet that reflects Armenian
diversity well is Southern California, where Armenians from all over
the world have moved over the past many decades. Funny things have
happened as a result, such as a story a friend of mine told me. She
got new Armenian neighbours, and,herself being an Eastern Armenian
speaker, she introduced them to others as her “harevan”. They were
Western Armenian speakers, however, and the more common word for
“neighbour” in the sister language is “tratsi”. They got upset,
because they thought they were being called “hayvan”. Ironically, this
is a word not in Armenian, but in Arabic, Persian, Turkish, meaning
“animal”, taken to be an insult. Our roots call out to us from the
Middle East, it seems, no matter how far we go.

Perhaps the fate of the Armenian language is questionable in America,
but the Armenian identity is going strong there. I would argue that
the Armenianidentity is itself not in danger, even though what that
identity will involve in different places in different times will be
different. The reason why the Armenian identity is not in danger is at
least partly because of the existence of the Republic of Armenia as a
central, rallying point for the entire nation.

It would be very encouraging to have better conditions in the country
for the expression of all elements of Armenian diversity, and the
development of new ones. We must acknowledge, accept, and appreciate
our diversity as the legacy of a truly rich, ancient national
heritage, and as a source for our future development in many different
directions.

Nareg Seferian received his education in India, Armenia, the United
States, and Austria. His writings can be read at naregseferian.com.