Zakarian appointed as Haig and Isabel Berberian Professor of Armenian Studies

Dr. David Zakarian headshot in front of greenery

The Armenian Studies Program at Fresno State announced that Dr. David Zakarian has been appointed the Haig and Isabel Berberian Professor of Armenian Studies for the fall 2024 semester. Dr. Zakarian was previously an associate faculty member of the Faculty of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Oxford.

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2024 Arts in Motion: Meet the Students

Arts in Motion - Celebrating Student Excellence in the College of Arts and Humanities - photos of Dean's Medalist, marching band, mural painter and actors on stage.

Arts in Motion will be held at 4 p.m. Friday, April 19, at the Fresno State Concert Hall. During the event, one undergraduate and one graduate student of distinction will be presented as Dean’s Medalist.

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Powerful ‘Carmina Burana’ performance caps Arts and Humanities Showcase

The weeklong series of events kicks off at 4 p.m. Friday, April 19, with Arts in Motion, a celebration of the College of Arts and Humanities’ top students. The showcase culminates with two live performances of Carl Orff’s “Carmina Burana,” an emotional spectacle of music and might, at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, April 26 and 27.

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Armenian Series adds three new books

Armenian Series book covers stacked on top of each other.

The Armenian Studies Program at Fresno State continues to be a prominent publisher of all things Armenian with installments 18, 19 and 20 of the Armenian Series.

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Students inspire during commencement season

Graduate Dean's Medalist Mialise Carney, Dean Honora Chapman and Undergraduate Dean's Medalist Lucca Lorenzi in full regalia on the Fresno State campus.

We are excited to acknowledge the achievements of our College’s most accomplished students. From the creative artists to the humanists, every scholarship winner and Student of Distinction reflects the experimentation, compassion, and curiosity that Fresno State fosters.

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2023 Arts in Motion recognizes the college’s top students

Arts in Motion - Celebrating Student Excellence. Photos of the 2022 President's Medalist Audia Dixon and Steven Hensley along with a bass drummer in the Rose Parade, a painter working on a mural and actors on stage.

We are excited to acknowledge the achievements of our College’s most accomplished students. From the creative artists to the humanists, every scholarship winner and Student of Distinction reflects the experimentation, compassion, and curiosity that Fresno State fosters.

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The 2023 Arts and Humanities Showcase

Arts and Humanities Showcase

The Arts and Humanities Showcase offers a unique opportunity, through various performances, exhibits, lectures and workshops, to immerse yourself in the creativity and cultural diversity of Fresno State’s talented students.

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Papazian to give talk on Muslim and Alevi Armenians lecture

Dr. Hrag Papazian

The lecture will be devoted to the officially Muslim and hence legally “non-Armenian” citizens of the Republic of Turkey who, drawing on their Armenian ancestors, Islamized or Alevized generations earlier, identify as Armenians today.

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Dr. Suren Manukyan named as 18th Henry S. Khanzadian Kazan Visiting Professor

Dr. Suren Manukyan speaks next to the Armenian flag

Dr. Manukyan is the author of some thirty articles in the field of genocide and oriental studies. In his research interests, Dr. Manukyan explores the history of genocide, which explains the origins of social behaviors that lead up to mass murder, including prejudices, stereotypes, racism, religious and ethnic hatred, and discrimination.

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Featured Supporter: Barlow Der Mugrdechian

Prof. Der Mugrdechian began teaching at Fresno State in 1985. Since 2008 he has been the Berberian Coordinator of the Armenian Studies Program and Director of the Center for Armenian Studies at Fresno State. 

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Video: 2021 Armenian Genocide Commemorative Virtual Event

Armenian Genocide Monument at Fresno State

The Armenian Genocide Commemorative Committee of Fresno has prepared a video, “2021 Armenian Genocide Commemorative Virtual Event,” in place of the annual commemorative event at the Armenian Genocide Monument at Fresno State.

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‘The Press’ at Fresno State releases four Armenian Series books in 2020

The four books over the colors of the Armenian flag

Four new books have been released in the Armenian Series of The Press at California State University, Fresno, in 2020.  The Armenian Series was founded through the Armenian Studies Program with funding established by the M. Victoria Karagozian Kazan and Henry S. Khanzadian Kazan Endowment. The new books represent volumes eight through 11 in the […]

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Ani Cathedral lecture to focus on sculpture and inscriptions

Ani Cathedral in Armenia

Dr. Christina Maranci, Tufts University Department of Art History and Architecture chair and Arthur H. Dadian and Ara Oztemel associate professor, will give a virtual presentation on “Ani Cathedral, its Sculpture, and its Inscriptions Revisited” at 7 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 3 on Zoom.

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David Ohannessian and the Armenian Ceramics of Jerusalem

Feast of Ashes - The Life and Art of David Ohannessian

Along the cobbled streets and golden walls of Jerusalem, brilliantly glazed tiles catch the light and beckon the eye. These colorful wares are iconic features of the Holy City. Silently, these works of ceramic art also represent a riveting story of resilience and survival.

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Sofya Melikyan to perform as part of Young Armenian Talent series

Sofya Melikyan

Educated at the Royal Conservatory of Madrid and the École Normale de Musique Alfred Cortot in Paris, Melikyan has gained international attention while performing in such prestigious venues as Carnegie Hall in New York, Jordan Hall in Boston, Palau de la Música Catalana in Barcelona, and Salle Cortot in Paris.

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Dr. Levon Chookaszian to Speak on ‘Germans and Armenians: Historic and Artistic Relations’

Dr. Levon Chookaszian with Armenia and Germany flags

Dr. Levon Chookaszian, Chair of the Department of Armenian Art History at Yerevan State University will give a talk titled “Germans and Armenians: Historic and Artistic Relations” at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Feb 1, in the University Business Center, Alice Peters Auditorium, at Fresno State. The presentation is part of the Armenian Studies Program Spring 2019 […]

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Armenian Studies Program inspires with a holistic approach to community-oriented events

William Saroyan House Museum opening ceremony

The sense of community that flourished at the Armenian Studies Program’s well-attended events made the Fall 2018 semester exceptional. Between the ceremony for the opening of the William Saroyan House Museum, a jazz piano concert, a CineCulture movie, and a series of riveting lectures, Prof. Barlow Der Mugrdechian, Berberian Coordinator of the Armenian Studies Program […]

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Tigran Hamasyan delights audience with an innovative live performance

Tigran

By Annie Rubio Music is a universal language, with messages and emotions that can be understood regardless of one’s background. Modern artists are always seeking new ways to push the boundaries of their craft, to continuously innovate. Armenian jazz pianist Tigran Hamasyan artfully melds modern and traditional sounds into his music and he also ties in […]

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Dr. Ümit Kurt to speak on ‘The Curious Case of Ahmed Necmeddin Bey: A Look into the Sociopolitical Climate in Aintab on the Eve of 1915’

Dr. Ümit Kurt, Henry S. Khanzadian Kazan Visiting Professor in Armenian Studies at Fresno State for Fall 2018

Kazan Visiting Professor in Armenian Studies Dr. Ümit Kurt will give his third public lecture on “The Curious Case of Ahmed Necmeddin Bey: A Look into the Sociopolitical Climate in Aintab on the Eve of 1915” at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 6 in the University Business Center, Alice Peters Auditorium, Room 191 on the Fresno State campus.

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Visiting Professor in Armenian Studies Dr. Ümit Kurt gives second public lecture, ‘Proactive Local Perpetrators: Mehmet Yasin (Sani Kutluğ) and Ali Cenani’

Dr. Ümit Kurt, Henry S. Khanzadian Kazan Visiting Professor in Armenian Studies at Fresno State for Fall 2018

Armenian Studies Program Coordinator Prof. Barlow Der Mugrdechian announced that Dr. Ümit Kurt has been appointed as the 15th Henry S. Khanzadian Kazan Visiting Professor in Armenian Studies at Fresno State for the Fall 2018 semester. The Kazan Visiting Professorship was established through a generous endowment established by Henry S. Khanzadian Kazan.

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Armenian studies facilitates an international conference on The Committee of Union and Progress

Kevorkian and Kieser

The Armenian Studies Program will hold an international conference on “The Committee of Union and Progress: Founders, Ideology, and Structure” on Friday, October 12, and Saturday, October 13, 2018. The conference will be held in the University Business Center (5245 N. Backer Ave.), A. Peters Auditorium, Room 191 on the Fresno State campus. All sessions […]

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Speaker urges ‘educational vaccine’ during genocides exhibit at Henry Madden Library

Visitors explore the Genocides of the 20th Century exhibit at the Henry Madden Library on Sept. 6.

~ This story was republished from The Collegian By Seth Casey Fresno State hosted guest speaker Dr. Clint Curle, senior advisor to the president at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, for the opening reception of the Genocides of the 20th Century exhibit on Sept. 6. Following a reception of appetizers, refreshments and conversation, the […]

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Writer William Saroyan’s longtime Fresno home to open as museum

Author William Saroyan

~ By Barlow Der Mugrdechian, reprinted from FresnoStateNews.com The Fresno house where famed writer William Saroyan spent the last two decades of his life will open as a museum on Aug. 31, the 110th anniversary of his birth, with a private reception. Beginning in September, the William Saroyan House-Museum will be open for tours by […]

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Fresno State to mark anniversary of Armenian Genocide

Students at the Armenian Genocide Monument at Fresno State

The Armenian Genocide Commemorative Committee of Fresno will hold a commemorative event on April 24, marking the 103rd anniversary of the Armenian Genocide at the Armenian Genocide Monument at the Maple Mall (south of the Satellite Student Union).

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Join us as the University Press celebrates its authors

University Press Author Reception

The Press at California State University, Fresno, will celebrate several of its recently published authors at a reception from 4:30-6:30 p.m. on Thursday, April 19, in the Smittcamp Alumni House. Featured authors and publications will include: Armen Bacon, author of “My Name is Armen (Volume II), Outside the Lines.” This book is a follow-up to Bacon’s […]

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2018 Kazan Visiting Professor impacts Fresno’s Armenian community

From left, Barlow Der Mugrdechian, Yektan Türkyilmaz and Richard Hagopian.

The Henry S. Khanzadian Kazan Visiting Professorship in Armenian Studies is an opportunity that happens only once each academic year, for a semester. This year the Armenian Studies Program hosts Dr. Yektan Türkyilmaz as the Kazan Visiting Professor during the spring semester. Türkyilmaz’ final lecture will take place at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 17, in the University Business Center in the Alice Peters Auditorium at Fresno State.

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Armenian Studies presents Dr. Ümit Kurt on ‘A Farewell to Arms’

Lecture by Dr. Ümit Kurt

Dr. Ümit Kurt will give a presentation on “A Farewell to Arms: Broken Hopes and Total Departure from the Homeland, in The Heroic Battle of Aintab” at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, April 6, in the University Business Center, Alice Peters Auditorium, Room 191 on the Fresno State campus. The presentation is part of the Spring […]

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Dr. Hayk Demoyan on ‘Multiple Identities and Memories of the Armenian World’

Dr. Hayk Demoyan to give lecture

U.S. Fulbright Scholar Dr. Hayk Demoyan will give a lecture, “Multiple Identities and Memories of the Armenian World,” at 7:30 p.m. Monday, March 19, in the University Business Center, Alice Peters Auditorium, Room 191 on the Fresno State campus. The presentation is part of the Spring Lecture Series of the Armenian Studies Program and is funded through the Leon S. Peters Foundation.

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Armenian Studies Program to hold 30th annual banquet

Armenian Studies banquet

The Armenian Studies Program of Fresno State will hold its 30th annual banquet on Sunday, March 18, at the Fort Washington Country Club in Fresno. This year’s banquet will feature Fresno State President Dr. Joseph I. Castro as one of the main speakers. Dr. Castro was appointed the eighth president of Fresno State in 2013.

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Dr. Yektan Türkyılmaz: Lecture on ‘Armenians on Records’

Dr. Dr. Yektan Türkyılmaz will give the next Armenian Studies lecture on March 7.

Dr. Yektan Türkyılmaz, Kazan Visiting Professor of Armenian Studies at Fresno State, will give a lecture, “Armenians on Records: Music Production from Homeland to Diasporas,” at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, March 7, in the University Business Center, Alice Peters Auditorium, Room 191 on the Fresno State campus.

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Keyboard Concert Series presents the Chilingirian-Bagratuni-Hakobyan Trio

Keyboard Concert Series presents the Chilingirian-Bagratuni-Hakobyan Trio

The Philip Lorenz Memorial Keyboard Concert Series presents the Chilingirian-Bagratuni-Hakobyan Trio at 8 p.m. Friday, March 2, in the Concert Hall at Fresno State. This is the second of three special events this year, in conjunction with the International Chamber Music Series. This concert brings together three of today’s most prominent Armenian musicians Levon Chilingirian on […]

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‘Van 1915: The Great Events of Vasbouragan’

Ara Sarafian will speak on "Van 1915: The Great Events of Vasbouragan"

Ara Sarafian, director of the London-based Gomidas Institute, will present a lecture entitled “Van 1915: The Great Events of Vasbouragan” at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 23, in the University Business Center, Alice Peters Auditorium, Room 191. The presentation is part of the Spring Lecture Series of the Armenian Studies Program.

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Violin and Viola Festival culminates in two concerts

The Fresno State Music Department will present the sixth annual Violin and Viola Festival, an intensive weekend of master classes and performances for violinists and violists with three or more years of experience. Dr. Limor Toren-Immerman is the music director for the festival.

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‘Van Vaspurakan Armenians: From Renaissance to Resistance and Genocide’

Armenian Studies lecture: Dr. Yektan Türkyılmaz on “Van Vaspurakan Armenians: From Renaissance to Resistance and Genocide”

Dr. Yektan Türkyılmaz will give a presentation on “Van Vaspurakan Armenians: From Renaissance to Resistance and Genocide” at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 6, in the University Business Center, Alice Peters Auditorium, Room 191 on the Fresno State campus. The presentation is part of the Spring Lecture Series of the Armenian Studies Program.

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Dr. Sergio La Porta and Dr. Alison Vacca to present on ‘An Armenian Narrative on Early Islam: Ghevond’s History’

Armenian Studies Lecture: Dr. Sergio La Porta and Dr. Alison Vacca on "An Armenian Narrative on Early Islam: Ghevond's History"

Dr. Sergio La Porta and Dr. Alison Vacca will present a lecture entitled “An Armenian Narrative on Early Islam: Ghevond’s History” at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 26, in the University Business Center, Alice Peters Auditorium, Room 191. The presentation is the second in the Spring Lecture Series of the Armenian Studies Program. The Leon S. Peters Foundation is a co-sponsor of the event.

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Top 10 stories of 2017

Top 10 articles of 2017

Here’s a look back at our Top 10 Arts and Humanities stories for all of 2017: No. 10: New Faces: Dr. Gina Sandí-Díaz, Theatre Arts No. 9: New Faces: Art and Design welcomes two new professors No. 8: Three from College of Arts and Humanities named 2017 Fulbright recipients No. 7: New Faces: Four new […]

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National Chamber Choir of Armenia in concert Oct. 29

National Chamber Choir of Armenia

The Armenian Studies Program and Hamazkayin Taniel Varoujan Chapter of Fresno are co-sponsoring a special event — a concert by the National Chamber Choir of Armenia, under the direction of Robert Mlkeyan, featuring Robert Amirkhanian.

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Armenian Studies Lecture: The AGBU Nubar Library in Paris

Dr. Boris Adjemian will give an Armenian Studies lecture

Dr. Boris Adjemian, director of the AGBU Nubar Library, will present a lecture entitled “The AGBU Nubar Library in Paris: Safeguarding Western Armenian Heritage through Documentation, Research, and Publication” and “The Armenians of Ethiopia” at 7:30 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 9, in the University Business Center, Alice Peters Auditorium, Room 191. The presentation is part of the Fall Lecture Series of the Armenian Studies Program.

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