‘URARTU AND ITS NEIGHBORS’ INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE OPENS IN YEREVAN
/PanARMENIAN.Net/
22.09.2009 12:39 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ ‘Urartu and Its Neighbors’ international conference
dedicated to 90th birthday of professor Nikolay Harutyunyan, prominent
researcher into the Urartu Kingdom, opened in Tekeyan Center, Yerevan,
on September 22.
The event participants were welcomed by director of RA NAS Institute
of Oriental Studies, professor Ruben Safrastyan, academician Vladimir
Barkhudaryan and Armenian Education Minister Armen Ashotyan, who
handed a gold medal of the Ministry to professor Harutyunyan.
"It’s an honor for me to receive the supreme award of the Armenian
Ministry of Education. With the government’s assistance, my works
are accessible to scholars," professor said.
The conference brought together numerous foreign scholars, including
Stephan Kroll (Germany), Michael Roaf (Germany), Gernot Wilhelm
(Germany), John Greppin , Mirjo Salvini (Italy), David Stronach
(U.S.), Rocio da Riva (Spain) and others.
Nikolay Harutyunyan was born in Gyanja, Azeri SSR, in 1920. He
graduated from YSU philology department in 1942. Presently, he
chairs the department of Ancient East at RA NAS. Over 20 his works
were published.