THE “CORRESPONDENCE” OF NICOGHAYOS ADONTS

The letters of famous people are national and universal-sounding events. This is a reality from antic times, the manifestations of which are also present in the ancient, medieval, as well as new and modern Armenian literature. We have in our possession 135 letters of the internationally renowned byzantinist, armenologist, philologist and historian Nicoghayos Adonts, written from 1893 to 1940. The 135 letters of Nicoghayos Adonts, with corresponding notes, were prepared to publication by historian Petros Hovhanissian, who devoted his whole life to the study and publication of Adont’s scientific heritage. The 7th volume of the works of the famous scientist is dedicated to these letters. Adonts’ “Correspondence” contains numerous letters addressed to N. Marr, N. Akinian, G. Hovsepian, T. Gushakian, K. Zarian and others, the theses in which are basic and can still be used by linguists, critics, politicians, historians and people involved in science in general.

Ghevond Alishan's Literary Activity Through the Light of Russian

The history of Russian-Armenian literary relationships is one of the brightest and most significant events of the time. It undoubtedly enhanced the mutual cultural heritage and left a profound mark on the worldview, moral and aesthetic values of Armenian and Russian writers, translators, and literary critics. Since the beginning of the 20th-century Armenian culture, mainly Armenian literature, aroused great interest among such outstanding classics, as M. Gorky, V. Bryusov, A. Blok, O. Mandelstam, A. Bely, A. Akhmatova and others who not only appreciated its aesthetic and stylistic texture but also embarked on the laborious work of translating its best achievements into Russian. In this sense, the anthology "The Poetry of Armenia from Ancient Times to the Present" in 1916 can be considered a significant cultural event. It was edited by Valery Bryusov, who also wrote the introductory part of the work. The publication was carried out with M. Gorky's direct assistance and support. It should be noted that many Russian translations done by V. Bryusov and A. Blok are still brilliant samples of the artistic heritage of translation. The present work focuses on the evaluations and interpretations of Russian critics (V. Bryusov, Y. Veselovsky) of the creative heritage of Gh. Alishan, his poetic individuality and the influence on the development of the literary process of that time. It also reveals the role of Russian poets, translators and literary critics in promoting the publication and popularization of Bryusov's anthology as a significant cultural event of the time. The section of the anthology "Poetry of Western Armenians" includes the most famous poems of Gh. Alishan, M. Peshiktashlyan, P. Duryan, Sipil, L. Shant, and others are parallelly illustrated by the excellent translations of V. Bryusov, S. Shervinsky, V. Khodasevich, K. Balmont, S. Bobrov and others. The scientific research has shown that among Russian poets and translators, Bryusov was one of the first interested in Gh. Alishan's literary works and his bright poetic individuality. It can be explained by the fact that Alishan was a well-known representative of Western Armenian poetry and a comprehensive creator of his time, a man with encyclopedic knowledge. In addition, he was a historian, philosopher, translator, philosopher, geographer who devoted his whole life to science and enlightenment. Bryusov was also a gifted man. He had a poetic talent; he contributed to improving the Russian dialect, elevating it to a new, higher level. Consequently, there are many common features between Bryusov and Alishan. These are the breadth of the intellectual range, brilliant knowledge of languages and world literature, devotion to scientific activities, profound love for their Motherland, its cultural values and the highest level of humanism. Undoubtedly, they were outstanding figures of their era who made a significant contribution to the development of culture, science and literature. This article is an attempt at a comprehensive study of the principles of the Russian translation theory used in the translation of Armenian literature, with particular reference to the poem "Hrazdan", an extract from Gh. Alishan's patriotic lyrics. The proficiency of Russian translators and the revelation of Armenian linguistic and national characteristics helped them interpret the linguo-stylistic peculiarities of the original and recreate their equivalent counterparts.

Եղիա Տեմիրճիպաշյան. Բազմավաստակ գրողն ու մտավորականը

Writer, publicist, philosopher, pedagogue, editor Yeghia Temirchipashyan (1851–1908) occupies a special place in the history of Armenian literature and, in particular, in the national-social, educational and cultural development of the last quarter of the 19th century. He was destined to live and create for our people, truly, in a crucial historical time, when not only national and public life, but also scientific and meaningful creative thought was undergoing rapid reforms. In the oppressive atmosphere of the Sultan’s Turkey, even the creative spirit of Armenians tried to find a way out of the developments taking place in the world, the sources of progress and the latest ways. In the system of communication and internal transfers, Y. Temirchipashyan gave priority to the present time. Soberly assessing the current requirements of life, he felt and realized that time has changed, the human being has changed. That is why, considering the Mashtots Grabar adored, he advocated the use of a manifests when assessing the complex phenomena of the transition time experienced by him from the point of view of the life and progress of the nation and society as a whole. In his famous articles entitled “The Evolution of the Beauty” “The Element of the Philosophy of History”, “A Hassle over Bringing up Girls or a Speech of Broom”, encouraging the influx of European literary, scientific and philosophical thought into the Armenian reality, he was against the intention to accept with open arms all the shepherds and currents coming from the West. At the same time, having mastered new aesthetic and philosophical trends, he also encouraged reading “nutritious, strengthening, awaking books”, and did not stop believing in the optimistic prospects of the nation and the Motherland.

Parrot’s Journey to Mount Ararat: Some Observations

In the year 1829 Friedrich Parrot (1792-1841), professor of physics at the University of Dorpat (modern Tartu), first climbed Mount Ararat. With him were the Armenian deacon Khachatur Abovian (the ‘father of modern Armenian literature’), two Russian soldiers and two local Armenian peasants. His account of the Journey to Ararat, published in German in the year 1834, is considered a classic of travel literature. The present papers analyses its debt both to the literary genre and to ancient sources, especially to the Geography of the ancient Greek historian and geographer Strabo (ca. 63 BCE-ca. 23 CE).

ИНТЕРЬЕРНОЕ И ЭКСТЕРЬЕРНОЕ ПРОСТРАНСТВО ЕРЕВАНСКОГО ГОСУДАРСТВЕННОГО УНИВЕРСИТЕТА: ОПЫТ СЕМИОТИЧЕСКОГО ОПИСАНИЯ

В статье проводится семиотически-типологический анализ университетского пространства Ереванского государственного университета (ЕГУ). Данное исследование является продолжением дискурса «Университетское пространство». Культурные артефакты ЕГУ описываются не с точки зрения культурно-исторического подхода, а с использованием семиотического метода. Детально описывается пространственное «начало» университетского экстерьера, выявляются семантические и парадигматические особенности центральной скульптуры, а также интерьерный барельеф библиотеки ЕГУ и средневековые маркеры университетского пространства. Центральное пространство Ереванского государственного университета семиотизировано различными скульптурами, памятниками, барельефами, являющимися знаками социальной и культурной памяти, отсылающей к разным культурным пластам: от Средневековья до советской эпохи. «Начало» университетского пространства маркируется ключевыми фигурами армянской письменности, ставшими культурными константами интерьерного и экстерьерного пространства ЕГУ. В визуализации истории превалируют образы видных деятелей армянской средневековой университетской традиции. Изображённые фигуры Месропа Маштоца и Саака Партева отсылают к прошлому, на прагматическом уровне указывая на древность армянского алфавита и глубокие корни армянской схоластической университетской истории. Кроме средневековых деятелей культуры, в университетском пространстве представлены также видные деятели новой и новейшей армянской литературы (Абовян, Налбандян, Туманян, Чаренц), сыгравшие важную роль в становлении общественной и литературной жизни, приведшие к европеизации армянской литературы, а также к парадигматическим культурным переходам. Анализ эмпирического материла показал, что диапазон исторических артефактов вбирает в себя также и советскую эпоху (соцреализм). Подробный анализ барельефа соцреализма показал, что он является стереотипным артефактом советской эпохи, пропагандистской визуализацией советской тоталитарной идеологии.The article is semiotic-typological analysis of Yerevan State University (YSU) interior space and external grounds. It is a part of Yerevan City discourse, which depicts separate part of Yerevan downtown, and fragments of the interior and exterior space of YSU. Moreover, this article is a continuation of the discourse “University Space”. YSU cultural artifacts are described both by culturalhistorical as well as by a semiotic method. Russian reviews have described the semiotically labeled spaces of the university mainly by a cultural-historical approach. The cultural environment has become the meta-language concept of this approach. The cultural-historical methodology does not imply a semiotic metalanguage and analysis. This reveals psychological and cultural values, different historical eras and signs of identity, etc. The article is a detailed description of the starting point of the university exterior grounds represented by the central sculpture, interior works of art and bas-relief of the YSU Library. The central space of Yerevan State University is semiotized by various sculptures, monuments, and bas-reliefs. These are signs of social and cultural memory, referring to different cultural eras: from the Middle Ages to the Soviet Empire. The principal sculpture of the university garden represents the founder of Armenian alphabet Mesrop Mashtots and other prominent representatives of the Armenian medieval university traditions. The figures depicting Mesrop Mashtots and Sahak Partev refer to the past, pointing to the antiquity of the Armenian alphabet and the deep roots of the Armenian scholastic university tradition. Among medieval cultural figures, we see other renowned poets and writers of New and Contemporary Armenian Literature such as Abovyan, Nalbandyan, Tumanyan, and Charents. They played an important role in the formation of public and literary life, leading to the Europeanization of Armenian literature, as well as to paradigmatic cultural transitions. The analysis of empirical material demonstrated that the range of historical artifacts also incorporates the Soviet era (socialist realism). Detailed study of the basrelief of socialist realism showed that it is a stereotypical artifact of the Soviet era, a visual propaganda of Soviet totalitarian ideology.

VALERY BRUSOV AND KAREN MIKAELYAN (ON THE DRAFTING PROCESS OF «THE POETRY OF ARMENIA»)

The paper focuses no Karen Mikaelyan personality, considering him a key figure in initiating «The Poetry of Armenia». The quoted passages from K. Mikaelyan’s letters reveal that it was he who initiated the publication of collections of Armenian literature not only in Armenian but also in Russian. K. Mikaelyan also emphasized the importance of strengthening ties with the Russian literary beau monde. Notably, K. Mikaelyan was V. Brusov’s Armenian language instructor.

INNER LOGIC OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF REVOLUTIONARY FUTURIST POETRY

The goal of this paper is to trace the dynamics and inner logic of the development of revolutionary futurism in Armenian literature and particularly in Yeghishe Charents’s poetry. Since it was closely connected with Russian futurism, its affinities, relations and influences are studied in the context of the Russian experience.