Armenological Issues
P-ISSN: 1829-4030
E-ISSN: 3045-3062
About the Journal
“Armenological Issues” is the bulletin of the Institute for Armenian Studies of YSU. It has been published since 2014, in Yerevan. Various research materials on Armenian studies are published in this bulletin. Many prominent scholars from RA, Armenian Diaspora and abroad collaborate with this bulletin. The bulletin is published thrice a year. It has the following sections: “Articles”, “Publications”, “Book Reviews”, “Academic Life”. The materials are reviewed and edited. Those articles, which do not match the criteria, won’t be published in the bulletin.
Current Issue
Vol. 2 No. 2(30) (2025): 2025-2
Full Issue
Articles
-
Articles
THE GERMAN REICHSTAG, KARL LIEBKNECHT AND THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE DURING WORLD WAR I
AbstractIt is a side effect of all wars that objective reporting on events relevant to the war is prevented by state censorship. Propaganda takes the place of truth - as was the case in Germany during World War I. How was it still possible for the German public to learn about the Armenian Genocide? In German and Armenian historiography, this merit is attributed to Pastor Johannes Lepsius. But a few months before Lepsius published his enlightening book, the Social Democratic member of the Reichstag Karl Liebknecht had already pointed out the mass murders of Armenians in the Reichstag on 11 January 1916. He was the only one of 397 members of parliament to publicise this crime against humanity. The SPD's central organ “Vorwärts” printed the Reichstag debates so that hundreds of thousands of Germans could read them. This courageous action by Karl Liebknecht has not yet been adequately recognized.
References -
Articles
THE DYNAMICS OF FRANCE-TURKEY RELATIONS FROM 2007 TO 2012
AbstractThis paper examines the dynamics of France-Turkey relations during their second historical stage, spanning from 2007 to the end of 2012, a period marked by the simultaneous presidencies of Nicolas Sarkozy in France and Abdullah Gül in Turkey. The relevance of this study lies in understanding how bilateral relations evolved under the strain of diverging strategic priorities, competing geopolitical visions, and the persistent question of Turkey’s accession to the European Union.
The research employs a multidisciplinary methodological framework centered on strategic analysis. This approach is further supported by event analysis, which enables the identification and examination of key turning points and critical developments shaping bilateral relations, as well as content analysis, which systematically evaluates diplomatic communications, policy documents, official statements, and media coverage in order to capture the narratives and discourses structuring Franco–Turkish interactions. Through this methodological design, the study traces the interplay between structural constraints and political agency, with particular emphasis on the security architecture of the European continent, France’s quest to consolidate its role within and beyond Europe, and Turkey’s aspiration to assert greater involvement in European affairs while expanding its influence in other regional contexts.
The findings demonstrate that, despite recurrent difficulties and contradictions-rooted not only in geopolitical and strategic divergences but also in civilizational, ideological, and value-based differences -the period nevertheless witnessed the preservation of a steady trajectory of bilateral engagement. This trajectory was characterized by the coexistence of obstacles and cooperation, ultimately functioning as a driving force for continued dialogue and collaboration.
The paper argues that this dual dynamic of conflict and cooperation constitutes a defining feature of the period, placing it as a distinct and significant stage within the broader historical continuum of Franco-Turkish relations.
References -
Articles
ARMENIAN VOICES IN TURKISH BESTSELLERS: CASE STUDY OF AHMET ÜMİT’S NOVEL “FAREWELL, MY BEAUTIFUL HOMELAND”
AbstractOver the past thirty years, the dissolution of boundaries between high literature and mass‑market fiction has given rise to a unique “middle‑class” prose in Türkiye. Detective writer and journalist Ahmet Ümit is widely regarded as one of the leading figures of this literary trend. This article examines how the Armenian theme is reflected in one of A. Ümit’s most popular detective novels “Farewell, My Beautiful Homeland” (2015). In the novel, author portrays the formation, development, and eventual decline of the Young Turks Movement within the broader context of early 20th‑century Ottoman life, seeking to understand the causes of the Empire’s collapse. Among the many issues A. Ümit addresses are the Armenian Genocide and mass deportations, presented, however, not in his own voice, but through the words of one of the characters of the novel – Arshak Boghossyan.
References -
Articles
THE PERPETUATION OF STATE VIOLENCE: THE TURKISH ARMY’S INSTITUTIONAL ROLE IN THE MASSACRES OF ARMENIANS IN KARS AND SHIRAK PROVINCES (1920) AS A MANIFESTATION OF GENOCIDAL CONTINUITY
AbstractThe Ottoman army consistently played a distinct role in the implementation of the Turkish authorities’ premeditated genocidal policy against Armenians. Units of the regular Turkish army participated in the forced deportations of Armenians, the destruction of settlements, and mass killings. The Young Turks’ policy, guided by Pan-Turkist ideology, aimed not only to annihilate the Armenian people within the borders of the Ottoman Empire but also to eliminate any manifestation of Armenian statehood.
This political line was also continued by the Kemalists. The massacres in the Vanand (Kars) and Shirak provinces of the Republic of Armenia in 1920 demonstrate that the violence against Armenians was not limited solely to the years of the Genocide but continued as a perpetuation of the same ideology. Therefore, the actions of the Young Turk and Kemalist authorities against Armenians should be examined not as isolated episodes but within the context of different stages of the same program and ideology. The article demonstrates this connection through the study of archival, field research, and specialized materials. The purpose of the article is to analyze the Turkish authorities’ continuous pattern of involving the army in the process of carrying out massacres against Armenians, exemplified by the provinces of Kars and Shirak
References -
Articles
The genocide of the indigenous Christians of the Ottoman Empire (Armenians, Greeks, Syro-Aramaeans/Assyrians/Chaldeans) A detailed documentation with three modules of nine teaching units each Verlag v. Hase & Koehler 2024
AbstractAccording to Max Weber, “power” represents the condition of being able to assert one's will (also) against the will of others. For its own permanence, power generates knowledge and education. Information always also means the path to information, which brings us to the political character of all education. If we want to exemplify this complex in the context of Armenian culture, the genocide of 1915 comes to mind historically, as well as the current expulsion of the Armenians in Karabakh by Azerbaijan, which is to be regarded as genocide. What does the path to information about the 1915 genocide and Karabakh look like and how is it organized afterwards? Are we in a mosque environment, at a German regulars' table or somewhere else where the topic might be discussed - it seems important to know this. But more important, because it is more comprehensive, is to know who or what paved the educational path and how. The conditions for the respective recipients of information, of education per se, are then derived from this.
The state-organized institution of the school is responsible for education, with decisions on the path to education being made on a case-by-case basis. The state character of education must be emphasized here, as can be seen in the example of Germany, where the historical connection to two genocides (namely 1915 and World War II) has had a significant impact and may lead to interference and confusion in its practical perception. If we introduce the issue of information about the Armenian genocide into the construction of a history textbook, we enter federal territory in Germany: In the so-called textbook affair in the state of Brandenburg in 2005, the then MP Platzeck, under pressure from Turkey, had the word “genocide” in connection with the Armenians removed from school textbooks, so that the issue could not be addressed and took a back seat to the Shoah. A second example: On April 24, 2024, the anniversary of the genocide, German President Steinmeyer visited Atatürk's mausoleum and grave in Turkey. Both actions reflect the Germans' relationship to their own history: Hierarchies that exist in principle but are not explained thematically in history books, instead receding behind them as part of them and unrecognized, narrow the view of one's own history as conveyed in this way to a mere representation of state ideology and its practice. This results in the need for a teaching and learning tool that provides guidance on understanding the information conveyed and the ways to access it. In relation to the topic of genocide, this means that the background factors that lead to genocide, but also to its informal processing, can be identified. This also means that genocides can be compared and differentiated in terms of their comparability.
References
