>From the Archives: Saroyan Congratulates Weekly
Armenian Weekly
January 7, 2010
Editor’s note: It is an often-repeated fact that William Saroyan began
his writing career with the Hairenik Weekly (later renamed the
Armenian Weekly). Even back in 1936, the Weekly had acknowledged him
as `our most distinguished literary alumnus.’ Below is a Letter to the
Editor he wrote as the Hairenik Weekly began its third year of
publication. It appeared on the front page of the Feb. 28, 1936 issue
of the Weekly.
To the editor of the Hairenik:
William Saroyan
Of course I am enthusiastic about the progress of Hairenik Weekly. I
sincerely wish the paper a long life, and a good one.
I feel there is one important work to be done, and done soon, and that
is this: to translate, in an orderly way, and publish in English in
Hairenik Weekly the works of all Armenian writers. Especially prose;
poetry should be translated literally, without regard for the rhyme,
which is difficult to achieve in translation. The first works to be
translated should be short stories and short essays. It is time the
writers of Armenia were introduced to readers of English everywhere:
after translated stories have been published in Hairenik Weekly I feel
certain American publishers will be interested in bringing out an
anthology of Armenian writers. I understand there are plenty of
Armenian scholars in America who could do this work. I believe this is
the time to begin doing so.
Sincerely,
William Saroyan