Dr. Vahram Shemmassian, Director of the Armenian Studies Program at California State University, Northridge, will speak about his new book “The Armenians of Musa Dagh: From Obscurity to Genocide Resistance and Fame 1840-1915.” The talk will take place via zoom on Saturday, February 6, at 10 a.m. (Pacific time)/1 p.m. (Eastern time). The presentation is part of the Spring 2021 Lecture Series of the Armenian Studies Program and is co-sponsored by the National Association for Armenian Studies and Research, the Ararat-Eskijian Museum, and the Society for Armenian Studies.

“The Armenians of Musa Dagh: From Obscurity to Genocide Resistance and Fame 1840-1915” is a comprehensive history of the people of Musa Dagh, who rose to prominence with their resistance the Genocide in 1915. The book was published as volume 11 in the Armenian Series of The Press at California State University, Fresno. Fresno State’s Professor Barlow Der Mugrdechian is general editor of the Armenian Series.

In “The Armenians of Musa Dagh” Dr. Shemmassian has presented a thorough analysis of the social, religious, educational, political, and economic history of the six villages which constitute Musa Dagh. In his presentation Dr. Shemmassian will discuss the genesis of the idea to write the book and about his research on the topic. His work focuses on the important period of the mid-to-late nineteenth century, offering the reader a previously unavailable insight into the people whose courage and persistence ultimately led to their successful self-defense.

Dr. Vahram L. Shemmassian is Professor and Director of the Armenian Studies Program at California State University, Northridge. He holds a Ph.D. in History from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). His book, “The Musa Dagh Armenians: A Socioeconomic and Cultural History, 1919-1939,” was published in 2015 by the Haigazian University Press in Beirut. He has also published scholarly articles in peer-reviewed journals, as well as book chapters on the fate of Armenian Genocide survivors in the Middle East between the two World Wars.

“The Armenians of Musa Dagh: From Obscurity to Genocide Resistance and Fame 1840-1915” is available for purchase from Abril Bookstore, NAASR Bookstore, and AMAA Bookstore.

Zoom Registration Link: https://bit.ly/armenianstudiesshemmassian

For information about upcoming Armenian Studies Program presentations, please follow us on our Facebook page, @ArmenianStudiesFresnoState or at the Program website.