Matthew Karanian’s new book, Historic Armenia, After 100 Years, was presented in Canada during a book tour organized under the auspices of the Armenian Embassy in Ottawa. The premiere launch in Canada was in Montrealat the Armenian Cultural Center of Tekeyan on Friday, September 11th, 2015. Over 150 people attended the event, and his tour continued with further stops in Ottawa and Toronto.
This article summarizes the launching event in Montreal.
Matthew is a 2nd generation Armenian born in the United States, who’s both grandmothers survived the Armenian genocide & escaped to the US shortly after 1915. He also worked several years in Armenia as the Associate Dean of the law program at the American University of Armenia, as well as the Director of its legal resource center. Today he practices law in Pasadena California.
On to his new bookHistoric Armenia, After 100 Years: After many years of trips, research, & the inevitable obstacles of gathering historical data, this book is crafted for those who would like to explore these sites in person, as well as take a journey on the same lands where their Armenian ancestors have lived for millennia. This book can be used as a travel companion when visiting Western Armenia, covering many historic cities such as Ani, Van, Kars &others. Further, for those who wish to discover all this from the comfort of their own homes, the book is a collection of photos taken a century ago, as well as many other photos taken by Matthew Karanian during his travels.
After Matthew’s introduction, the night continued with a presentation about his journeys of putting this book together. A summary of a few stories told are:
How his grandmothers escaped during the genocide, one of which met his grandfather afterwards in the United States, got married, and gave birth to Matthew’s mother;
The anecdotes about visiting the 4 islands of lake Van, and each of their still standing churches built in the 10th century, as well as performing a prayer in Armenian in the Sourp Khatch (Holy Cross) church on the island of Akhtamar;
During his visit to many of these old sites, how most church foundations & cities were excavated in search for hidden gold during & after the genocide, which led to many millennium old churches & cathedrals to collapse; he also did photo comparisons (between 1915 & today) showing the before & after changes of many of these sites;
How certain churches & buildings have been standing since the 900s, only to fall apart due to the digging for gold, artillery testing in the 1950s, and local villagers taking etched stones off ancient fort walls &Khatchkars (beautiful carved stones with cross designs) to build their homes instead of preserving this history;
About meeting the last Armenian of the city of Chunkush when, during the genocide, a village of 10 000 people were driven out of their homes. They were told to march 2 hours to the Dudan Gorge, where they were forced by batons & bayonets into its depths to their deaths. Miraculously, a little 10 year old Armenian girl caught the attention of a Turkish soldier, who was one of the herders, and he grabbed her hand, saving her life; 5 years later, they married, and had a daughter. That girl’s name is Asiya, and she was 95 years old when Matthew met her in 2014.She is the last Armenian alive todayfrom this village.
While visiting some of the cities, he met some Armenians who have been living in secretand who have survived since 1915; they did so in order to survive in Turkey until today;
When he visited some Kurd villages in today’s Eastern Turkey (Historic Western Armenia), the locals were excited to show Matthew about his Armenian culture & lands, by grabbing his hand & telling him “Come, I’ll show you!”
Many more stories from his journeys & encounters were told as well, all of which can be found in his new book in great detail with matching photographs.
After Matthew’s wonderful presentation and warm welcome from the crowd, the night proceeded by a Q&A period, followed by a book signing.
One of Matthew’s intentions behind the creation of this book is in orderto preserve the remainder of these sites; Armenians should visit Historic Armenia, take pictures & videos, and most importantly share them with everyone. It’s very important to let the world know that Armenians still remember their ancestral lands & culture, and have not abandoned them.
As Matthew told me: “Happy Trails in Armenia!”
*View sample pages from the book, and purchase a copy, at www.HistoricArmeniaBook.com
By Hike Fest
