On Thursday, August 18, 2011, the third in a series of conferences on Ärmenian education, titled “Challenges and Prospects for Western Armenian," opened at St. Mary’s Monastery in Bikfaya. The conference was organized by the Catholicosate of Cilicia under the sponsorship of His Holiness Aram I. Armenian language specialists from Armenia, Europe, Lebanon, North and South America, Syria, Turkey and other countries of the Middle East were invited to the conference.
Mr. Jirair Tanielian welcomed the participants on behalf of the organizing committee. He then invited His Holiness Aram I to make the keynote speech. After his opening prayer, Catholicos Aram stated that the purpose of the meeting was to identify oreign expressions that are commonly used in Western Armenian and propose plans to safeguard the language. He went on to say, “We need to prepare linguists and teachers of the Armenian language who will study the foreign words, analyze their usage and propose solutions. We should preserve our language because it is our lifeline. Without the Armenian language our diaspora communities would disappear.”The second speaker, Mr. Levon Ananian, President of the Writers Association of Armenia, said that the conference was also significant for Armenia because modifications in Western Armenian would also impact Eastern Armenian.
The conference then continued with presentations from participants. During the first day they discussed four themes: “Use of Different Armenian Grammar Books to Teach Armenian Language,” “Need to Prepare a Special Curriculum to Teach Armenian in the Diaspora,” “Preparation of New Textbooks and Dictionaries for Western Armenian” and “Training Teachers for Studies in Armenology.”
A lively discussion followed each presentation. Divergences surfaced because of different contexts in Diaspora and Armenia. A group of listeners was entitled with the task of recording the discussions and presenting the conclusions and recommendations of the conference.
On Friday, August 19, 2011, conference participants sought to identify challenges and highlight future prospects for Western Armenian. They considered four topics: impact of foreign languages and cultures on Western Armenian; influence of Eastern Armenian language on Western Armenian thought and writings; influence of non-Armenian literature on current Western Armenian literature, and revival of Western Armenian.
During the plenary discussion, the participants determined that they could not arrive at a consensus because of the contextual differences of their various communities.
After hearing the arguments, His Holiness Aram I summarized the day as follows: “We should be pragmatic. It will not be easy to find a common response to meet the challenges posed to Western Armenian today. We should continue working. Safeguarding western Armenian concerns the diaspora; therefore, I urge our linguists, educators, writers, editors, and all people in the media living in the Diaspora to join efforts and propose a multi-faceted plan to render Western Armenian relevant to our people in the Diaspora.”
On the third day of the conference, participants discussed two topics: how the Church, family and community organizations may preserve Western Armenian language, and how computer technology can be used in teaching Western Armenian.
After the plenary discussion, the "listeners" presented the draft report with recommendations for general discussion. Before closing the conference, His Holiness Aram I announced the creation of a council of linguists to revitalize the western Armenian language. The council’s mission will be to standardize the use of Western Armenian in publications. He then thanked Dr. Zaven Yegavian, Director of the Armenian Section of Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, for his contribution to the organization of the conference. The Catholicos also thanked the participants for their valuable contributions.
The final report and recommendations will be made available to the media soon.
During the plenary discussion, the participants determined that they could not arrive at a consensus because of the contextual differences of their various communities.
After hearing the arguments, His Holiness Aram I summarized the day as follows: “We should be pragmatic. It will not be easy to find a common response to meet the challenges posed to Western Armenian today. We should continue working. Safeguarding western Armenian concerns the diaspora; therefore, I urge our linguists, educators, writers, editors, and all people in the media living in the Diaspora to join efforts and propose a multi-faceted plan to render Western Armenian relevant to our people in the Diaspora.”
On the third day of the conference, participants discussed two topics: how the Church, family and community organizations may preserve Western Armenian language, and how computer technology can be used in teaching Western Armenian.
After the plenary discussion, the "listeners" presented the draft report with recommendations for general discussion. Before closing the conference, His Holiness Aram I announced the creation of a council of linguists to revitalize the western Armenian language. The council’s mission will be to standardize the use of Western Armenian in publications. He then thanked Dr. Zaven Yegavian, Director of the Armenian Section of Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, for his contribution to the organization of the conference. The Catholicos also thanked the participants for their valuable contributions.
The final report and recommendations will be made available to the media soon.
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