BOSTON UNIVERSITY HOSTS INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM ON THE LEGACY OF THE FIRST REPUBLIC OF ARMENIA
armradio.am
15.09.2008 11:11
Boston University will host an international symposium on the
"Legacy of the First Republic of Armenia, 1918-1921" on September 27,
2008. The conference will probe the long-term impact of the Republic
on the Armenian people both in Armenia and the Diaspora.
The conference is sponsored by the Charles K. and Elisabeth M. Kenosian
Chair in Modern Armenian History and Literature at Boston University
and is co-sponsored by BU’s International History Institute, the
Department of History, and the Department of International Relations,
and by the National Association for Armenian Studies and Research in
Belmont, Massachusetts.
Professor Simon Payaslian, Holder of the Kenosian Chair, commented
that this conference is a celebration of the ninetieth anniversary
of the re-emergence of Armenian statehood in 1918 as well as the
Republic’s independence after the disintegration of the Soviet Union
in 1991. This conference brings together some of the best scholars
with different perspectives to share their analyses with the public.
The speakers in the morning session (10:00am-12:00 noon), in addition
to the opening remarks by Professor Payaslian, are Professor Erik
Goldstein, Chair of the Department of International Relations at Boston
University; Professor Ara Sanjian, University of Michigan-Dearborn;
and Dr.20Victoria Rowe, University of Greenwich, United Kingdom.
Professor Erik Goldstein will present a paper, titled "Great Britain
and the Re-Emergence of Armenian Statehood," which discusses the
British fascination with and involvement in the Eastern Christians,
how British engagement in the region became a popular cause. The paper
then focuses on the extent to which the pro-Armenian groups in the
British government influenced foreign policy in the First World War,
and finally why British support for the Republic collapsed.
Professor Ara Sanjian, Director of the Armenian Research Center at the
University of Michigan-Dearborn since 2006, will present a paper titled
"Continuing the All-Russian Revolution of February 1917: The Challenge
of Land Reform." His talk covers the attempts to introduce land reform
in Eastern Armenia from 1917 to 1920, during the periods of rule by the
Provisional Government in Petrograd, the Transcaucasian Federation,
and the Republic of Armenia. The paper sheds light on social and
economic program of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation. It also
examines the approaches of the other political parties active among
the Armenians in Transcaucasia.
Dr. Victoria Rowe (University of Greenwich, United Kingdom) will
present a paper titled "Women as Political Actors in the First
Republic of Armenia and in the Creation of International Networks of
Refugee Relief, 1918-1925." Her paper examines the poli tical status
of Armenian women in the first Republic of Armenia and activism by
women on behalf of the Republic at the League of Nations. She then
discusses the resulting legacy of political participation of women
in the Armenian Diaspora.
Dr. Razmik Panossian will present a paper titled "The Impact of the
First Republic on Armenian Identity in the 20th Century." His paper
explores the extent to which the first Republic shaped subsequent
Armenian political thought both in Soviet Armenia and in the Armenian
Diasporan communities.
Dr. Robert Owen Krikorian will present a paper titled "The Legacy
of the First Independent Republic of Armenia and the Collapse of
Soviet Power."
His study explores the historical paradigm shift which occurred
in Soviet Armenia during the democratic movement and analyzes the
competing historical narratives and their political implications in
Armenia as the Soviet era approached its end.