By
Dr. Arman Kirakossian
Armenian Ambassador to the United States
Washington, DC

Rethinking Armenian Studies: Past, Present, and Future
NAASR International Conference on Armenian Studies
October 5, 2002

I am delighted to welcome the participants of the conference, and I want to thank the National Association for Armenian Studies and Research for the excellent organization of the conference, and for providing me an opportunity to participate and speak before you tonight.

From both official – as the Ambassador of the Republic of Armenia – and personal – as a historian and Armenian studies researcher – perspective, I greatly appreciate the initiative and the purpose of the conference, which is to assess and evaluate the past of Armenian studies, with its successes and challenges, achievements and lost opportunities, as well as to assess its future, work to be done, and to chart ways of cooperation between Armenian Studies experts in Armenia, Diaspora, and among foreign researchers. I hope that the ideas, recommendations, theoretical analysis, and suggestions expressed by you during the conference will be of practical value and be carried out.

Frankly, it is my belief that we the researchers are at least ten years behind the time: we should have began such deliberations immediately after Armenia regained its independence when the Armenian national life received a new meaning and purpose, and new challenges and objectives appeared for the scholars and Armenian study researchers in particular. It is nevertheless never too late to start doing it today, although the shortcomings of the last decade left a mark on the field of Armenian studies and on the quality of the dialogue, contacts and cooperation between the researchers in Armenia and Diaspora. In that regard, I am sure you will agree with me when I say that the initiative of NAASR is of vital importance.

The Association, in my opinion, is one of the foremost organizations devoted to Armenian studies and research, and has made an invaluable and important contribution to this field in the nearly 50 years of its existence. On behalf of the Government of Armenia, the Armenian Embassy, and Armenian studies researchers of Armenia, I would like to thank the Association for its work and dedication to Armenian studies, of which the organization of this conference is the latest example.

It is common knowledge that the disappearance of Armenia’s independence for several centuries, the decentralized and fractionalized existence of the Armenian people during this period, the historical tragedies, and, last but not the least, the ideological divisions and battles of the last decades have deeply affected Armenian studies as much as they have left a complex legacy in the national life of our nation. Regrettably, to this day we refer to the Soviet Armenian, Armenian proper, Armenian American, European Armenian, Middle Eastern Armenian Armenologies, with the unfortunate lack of compatibility and collaboration in the programs, curricula, and research. I am not speaking about ethnic Armenians only, but also about foreign historians who have made and continue to make an important contribution to Armenian studies.

There has been an enormous amount of research and work in Armenian studies conducted outside of Armenia and in the Diaspora in the last 40 to 50 years. The successes of the American Armenologists in such areas of Armenian studies as the historiography, language studies, literature and arts studies are self-evident. Without naming everyone or providing a deep professional scrutiny, I will just say that Armenian studies research conducted in the U.S. were not just a scientific input to the sea of knowledge in this area, but also a powerful tool and method of preserving the Armenian identity and maintaining Armenian culture here in the Diaspora.

I want to stress the special importance of the research and publications by the American-Armenian historians on what I will call Armenian political studies or political Armenology. Their work in the last decades stands out for vast amount of research, independent thinking, skillful use of foreign sources, taking advantage of different foundations, participation in the international conferences. These factors, coupled with the generous support of the Diaspora organizations and individual benefactors have prepared the ground for fundamental political scrutiny of the modern history of the Armenian people, the national liberation movement, the history of the Armenian Question and the Genocide. From my personal experience I can say that the publications by the Armenian-American historians on those subjects in 1960’s through 1980’s, hard to come by as they were, were not just an essential source of materials and information, but also a profound influence in forging a new modus operandi for the Armenian historians who were beginning to recover in the post-Stalinist period. They also contributed to the emergence of the political Armenology in Armenia.

So, it is with deep regret that I read mutual accusations and unhealthy dialogue between the historians and Armenian study researchers in the Diaspora and Armenia that seems to be given extraordinary coverage in the Armenian media. Healthy scientific critique, at conferences or on the pages of scientific journals and magazines, can only benefit the further development of Armenian studies but what we have witnesses degenerated into labeling and name-calling, and the resulting environment is not simply harmful and unpleasant for all of us, but it might have negative consequences for our field of science, and for the Homeland-Diaspora relations.

The development of Armenology or Armenian studies in the Soviet Armenia was uneven. In its seventy years of existence, the government established and funded a vast network of scientific institutions, with dozens of academic centers and university chairs. Armenian studies departments at the National Academy Institutes of History, Oriental Studies, Fine Arts, Philosophy, Archeology and Ethnography, at the Center for Study of History and Culture of the Diaspora, at the Center of Social Sciences Information, as well as at the Yerevan State University, Armenian Pedagogical University, and Foreign Languages University, and the Armenian Encyclopedia created, especially in the post-Stalin years, a solid foundation and school of Armenian studies, with many valuable publications that represent an important input in the establishment, formation, and development of Armenology in the Homeland.

The Armenian non-political studies, in particular, developed especially well for a number of reasons, such as the national self-consciousness of and the willingness to preserve national identity, culture, and science among the common people, academic community, and some government officials. Also important in this regard was the relatively “soft” attitude of the Soviet censorship towards Armenian studies, research, and publications that did not carry an overt political orientation. At the same time, it would be fair to say that some of the many thousands of publications of the Soviet period, and especially those published during the Stalin era, are less than valuable. Nevertheless, it is impossible to ignore the substantial amount of research and academic work. On the balance, it is now the time to evaluate the academic work conducted in those years, to give proper credit and publish new editions of the many valuable publications, preferably in foreign languages. I think your participation, as the Armenian American scholars, would be of great assistance in this regard.

The Armenian political studies have had a much more uneven progress, and is relatively young as a separate area of studies in the Homeland. Immediately after the Sovietization of Armenia and during the Stalin era, there took place a deliberate revisionism of the whole chapters in the history of the Armenian people, especially in the modern history. In the publications and textbooks of that period, the history of the Armenian people was presented through the prism of the Communist ideology, as an integral part of the history of other peoples of the Soviet Union. Certain chapters in our history, such as the national liberation movements, development of national ideology, massacres and Genocide, the Armenian Question, and the First Republic were either avoided altogether or ignored. The field of political Armenology emerged and made its first steps during the thaw of Khruschev-Zarobian period, in mid 1960’s, when the first publications appeared covering such subjects as the Armenian national movements, Genocide, the policy of great powers on the Armenian Question, the history and culture of the Diaspora, etc. These subjects, of course, had already become foremost areas of research for Armenian studies specialists in the Diaspora.

Once again drawing from my personal experience, even in 1970’s and 1980’s it was not easy to devote academic work and research to the Armenian political studies in Armenia. The national-minded government officials and Armenian studies historians who dared to present an unbiased depiction of the Armenian history and to instill a national spirit in the new generation had to endure many privations and make sacrifices in their fight against the existing ideological standards, the Communist censorship, the faceless party machine and bureaucrats. So, in reading and evaluating the works published in Armenia in 1960’s through 1980’s, one should keep in mind the context of that reality and the fact that that research and those publications fostered strong public attitudes and positively affected the people, including the intellectuals, helped develop a new mindset among the new generation, and contributed to the formation of a new national ideology.

The re-establishment of Armenian independence, the reawakening of the Armenian national life and philosophy in Armenia, the fundamental changes and reforms that have been taking place in the Armenian economy and society, and the enormous political and economic challenges facing the Republic of Armenia today understandably reflect on the Armenian science in general, including the field of Armenian studies. On the one hand, the social sciences were rid of the limitations and constraints imposed by the Communist ideology and the Cold-War thinking, although the development of a new mindset and framework of reference will require more time; these developments were highly positive for Armenian studies and research. On the other hand, Armenian studies centers and historians were deprived of steady government funding, and, consequently, the number of scholars and research projects in the Academic research centers and University departments had to be downsized. Despite the challenges and problems with support from the government, academic establishment, and Armenian Diaspora organizations and individual benefactors, Armenian studies centers in Armenia successfully persisted and produced new works of great value to their field. The Armenian science needs to undergo fundamental structural reforms to adapt to the new economic conditions.

We cannot afford to be satisfied with what we have and not to think about the future of Armenian studies in Armenia and in the Diaspora. Armenian studies should have no geographic or ideological boundaries and be free of constraints and self-imposed limitations. This does not mean we Armenian studies specialists cannot coordinate or organize our efforts as to work in the same direction or cannot have a common scientific position. At the same time, all of us should bear in mind that Armenia’s geopolitical situation is still fragile, precarious and complex. So, Armenian studies researchers, especially those among us who specialize in the political studies should approach the political issues responsibly, scrupulously, and seriously as the result of our activities will also affect the objectives of the Armenian foreign policy.

Let me now make a few suggestions on the ways the Armenologists in the Diaspora and Homeland can cooperate with the view to implement joint projects in the area of Armenian studies and to boost its future development. In my opinion, the future course of Armenia-Diaspora relations greatly depends on the cooperation between professional associations and unions in various areas. Establishment and development of such professional links will strengthen the Republic of Armenia, contribute to the prosperity of Armenians in the Homeland, help the Diaspora preserve its national identity and further increase its profile and participation in the Homeland. There are already precedents and success stories, such as the jewelers association, medical and other professional groups. We should consider establishing an international Association or network for Armenian Studies, open to participation by the research institutions, centers, university chairs, as well as by individual researchers. The next step would be establishment of more specialized professional groups, for the historians, political science researchers, linguists, arts historians, ethnographers, and so on.

Establishment of a common scientific foundation can become another factor benefiting the further development of Armenian studies. Also helpful in this regard are joint research projects and publications, collaboration in translations, organization of general and specialized conferences and seminars in Armenia and abroad, student and faculty exchanges, exchange of information and publications between Armenian studies Departments and libraries. This approach and implementation of joint projects will not only benefit the progress of Armenian studies, but will also help to dissipate the unhealthy climate of mutual accusations and recriminations, and will bring together Armenologists of different mentalities, and cultural and philosophical background.

As the Ambassador of the Republic of Armenia to the United States, as an Armenian historian, I am prepared to assist – in any way I can – the efforts to strengthen the cooperation and collaboration between the scholars in Armenia and the U.S. and to resolve issues relating to the future of Armenian studies in general.

In conclusion, I would like to once again thank the National Association for Armenian Studies and Research and the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations at Harvard University for organizing and sponsoring the conference.

Thank you.