Odar: The Omission of Identity
The word odar is roughly translated as “stranger”, “non-Armenian” or “other”, similar to the use of the word goy or goyim, a word of Yiddish and Hebrew origin which is used to describe non-Jews. Both these words border ethnocentricity sit on the edge of insulting and ethnocentric or are a culturally endearing word taken [...]
Food for Thought: Eating Our Way to Peace
For Armenians, eating isn’t just about satisfying hunger pains.
It is so much more.
Where it’s at weddings, funerals or even just a Friday night dinner, to Armenians, food is an essence of their being, of their culture and a big majority of what life is all about: to share a mouth watering smörgåsbord of dishes that [...]
Armenian Youth and Violence: A New Cycle of Genocide
On a typical Wednesday evening in November, Mike Yepremyan, 19, did what thousands of other teenagers were doing across Los Angeles and the world: he sent a text message to his girlfriend, annoyed that she was choosing to hang out with a new friend instead of him.
Unlike other stories however, his ended three hours later, [...]
Appreciating Odds and Ends in Armenian Culture
There long has been a phenomenon that not just myself, but countless other Armenians have taken note of, those ubiquitous floral patterned dresses that older Armenian women seem to wear. Whether they are at the store, at a church bazaar, a kef or anywhere else, they wear these things all the time! I [...]
Reflections as an Armenian Woman on International Women’s Day
I often think about what my life would have been like if my parents had decided to weather the Iranian Revolution and stay put in Tehran. At least on a superficial level I would look different, forced to wear a chador if and when I decided to step out of the house, but would my [...]
Resolutions, Evolution and Armenian Genocide Recognition
By now, Armenians, Turks and those who care about foreign affairs in general have come to find out that on Thursday, the House Foreign Affairs Committee voted to recognize the mass killings of Armenians in the early 20th century as genocide.
The vote, a very narrow and nerve racking 23 to 22 was broadcast on Armenian [...]
The Faces and Facets of Armenian Identity
“Well, you don’t look Armenian.” It’s one of those phrases that you might hear occasionally but for some Armenians, they’re told they don’t “look Armenian” all the time. The issue of looking Armenian opens up certain facets of Armenian identity, one of them being the subject of race. The night before Armenian Christmas, [...]
Then, Now and Later: The Legacy of Hrant Dink
Three years ago today, Hrant Dink was brutally gunned down near the headquarters of his Turkish Armenian newspaper Agos by a 17-year-old Turkish nationalist. As any Diasporan can attest to, it’s very easy to be so unaware of what is going on outside the bubble of your adopted homeland, thousands of miles away from where [...]
Meghker: The Anatomy of an Armenian Word
“Meghker! Meghker!” If you are Armenian you have probably heard this phrase uttered before, by your mother, or your father, aunts, uncles, many times your grandparents. I remember when I first heard it said by my mother, I didn’t understand what she was saying, and I asked her what it meant. She [...]
The Language Lament: Embrace Multiculturalism
The fact that Armenian as a language, has survived under the rule of multiple empires over the centuries is a testament to the power and importance that language has in the hearts of Armenians. I was reading some articles on ArmenianWeekly.com and came across an article by Henry Astarjian, Astarjian: ‘Bazaar’ and ‘Kef’: Is [...]