Young Armenians in 1930s America speak: Language, identity and the first stirrings of the Armenian Weekly

Special Issue: 90 — Informing, Connecting, Inspiring The Armenian Weekly, October 2024 In June 1932, 19-year-old Hayastan Seferian of Toledo, Ohio opened up her parents’ copy of the Hairenik. Among the articles in Armenian, a language she could not read, she spotted something unusual: a series of questions in English addressed to the Armenian youth of America (see below). At the time, it was rare to see English-language articles in the Hairenik and even rarer for Armenian-language newspapers to take an interest in the experiences and opinions of young Armenian Americans. Are you conscious in your daily life that you are an Armenian? a. How is that consciousness expressed? b. Do you find your Armenian origin as a handicap in your career? c. Do you feel any obligation towards the American-Armenian colony or the Armenian people in general? Are you interested in the Armenian life generally and in the American-Armenian community particularly? a. Do you read Armenian books, magazines or newspapers? Have you read many books in English about the Armenians, and what kind of books do you like to read? b. Do you see the necessity of publishing an English paper, weekly or monthly, for our young generation? c. Do you take any part in the activities of your local Armenian community? What is your attitude towards the old generation and its organizations? a. Do you find them satisfactory? What expectations do you have from them? b. What conflicts of interests do you find in the relations of the old and the young generations? c. What do you propose to eliminate these conflicts and promote a better understanding between the two generations? As Hayastan read, she learned that the editors had published these questions with a specific goal in mind: to better understand “the needs, the points of view, the ideals and the ambitions” of the younger generation in hopes of strengthening their ties to their immigrant parents and to their Armenian heritage. The editors encouraged them to reflect on the questions and write in with their responses. Jumping at this chance, Hayastan jotted down her thoughts and dashed them off to the editors. Across the United States and southern Ontario, hundreds of young men and women were doing the same. The enthusiasm for the questionnaire was astounding. The quantity, detail and candor of the responses likely far exceeded the editors’ expectations. Over three months, letters poured in from urban centers like New York and Detroit, agricultural hubs like Fresno and a startling array of industrial towns — from Lynn, Massachusetts to Hamilton, Ontario and Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Between June and September, 59 of these letters were published in the pages of the Hairenik, each one offering us a remarkable glimpse into what it was like to be a young Armenian in the United States and Canada in 1932 (listed below). This trove of letters raises issues that both underscore the particularity of the historical moment in which they were written and mirror concerns that endure among Armenian Americans to this day. For example, many of our young letter-writers described a struggle essentially non-existent today to find Armenian activities suited to their age group. They alluded to the fierceness of Armenian political and religious animosity, a hallmark of the era, and their disillusionment with the divisions that this animosity created. They also wrote frankly about the challenges that came with being raised by parents who grew up in the Ottoman Empire and who held ideals that clashed with those of their new society. One of the most common themes in these letters — one with clear points of juncture and disjuncture with Armenian American experiences today — relates to language. Unlike today, nearly all the letter-writers noted speaking Armenian at home with their parents. At the time, speaking Armenian more often than not meant speaking the Armenian dialect of their parents’ native region: Kharpert, Sivas, Diyarbekir or elsewhere. These largely extinct forms of Armenian differ quite dramatically from the standard Western Armenian spoken today. While nearly all the letter-writers spoke Armenian to varying degrees, few had the opportunity to learn to read and write in the language. A host of social factors can help us explain the absence of literacy skills among this generation of Armenian Americans born around 1910. The generation itself can be divided into those born abroad and those born in the United States. Among those born abroad, the Armenian Genocide either interrupted their education or cut it short entirely. While some children of this generation studied Armenian in the schools and orphanages that dotted the post-Genocide Middle East, many nonetheless arrived in the United States in the late 1910s and 1920s without the ability to read or write in Armenian. Those born in the United States spent their days in American public schools at a time when the children of immigrants were being pressured to assimilate into broader American society. In this atmosphere, mastery of English was prized, and immigrant languages were discouraged if not outright disparaged. Afterschool language programs and Saturday schools did, however, sprout up in concentrated Armenian communities and were attended by the children of parents who saw value in becoming literate in Armenian — yet not all parents did. These supplementary schools varied in rigor, and ultimately, often only the most committed students learned to read and write with a confidence that endured. Some letter-writers attest to basic literacy skills in Armenian but none, by their own estimation, that compare to their ease with the language of their formal education: English. Setting their sights on success in the United States, some Armenian Americans had little interest in investing the time and energy needed to learn to read in Armenian or to keep the skill active. “I have not attempted to regain my former proficiency in reading Armenian because, in the hurry and bustle of modern life, I must cast overboard all except the most essential baggage necessary for survival,” wrote Harry Boyajian of Cambridge, Massachusetts. Others wanted to learn but lived in places without Armenian language classes. In these cases, children were commonly taught to read and write informally by a relative or tutor. It is important to remember that not all children of this generation could ask their parents for help. Having often grown up in Ottoman provinces where schooling was by no means universal, the parents of this generation commonly immigrated to the New World without ever having learned to read or write in Armenian themselves. Given all of these social factors, it should come as no surprise that the majority of the Armenian Americans who responded to the Hairenik’s questionnaire composed their letters in English. This reliance, however, often came with quite a bit of self-consciousness and regret. Like many Armenian Americans today, they were aware that other Armenians criticized them for their use of English and had internalized the idea that to be a good Armenian meant to speak, read and write in Armenian, however misaligned this idea was with their lived realities. “I want to say how sorry I am that I, an Armenian youth, cannot express my opinion in my own language as I should,” wrote Albert Papazian of Toronto, Ontario. Many letter-writers were quick to emphasize that just because they did not read Armenian did not mean that they were indifferent to their Armenian heritage or to Armenian community life, as people had assumed. “Speaking as one of this class, I can say that there are many Armenians who unfortunately have not been able to learn to read Armenian but who are nevertheless interested in Armenian affairs,” wrote Stella Sachaklian of Syracuse, New York. Nearly all the letter-writers expressed a strong attachment to their Armenian heritage but admitted wishing that they knew more about Armenian history and culture. Many wrote of their Armenian education being limited to whatever their parents would tell them or whatever resources they could find on the shelves of their public library. At that time, books in English on Armenian themes were hard to come by, and most information about Armenian life was written in Armenian. “Not being proficient in my reading knowledge of the Armenian language, I find it takes time to read the Armenian newspapers, books and magazines,” wrote Elizabeth A. Tashjian of Cambridge, Massachusetts. “But I always look for articles concerning Armenian[s] in English and read every word of it.” Among this generation, there was a hunger for information about all things Armenian, and the Armenian language stood in the way of satisfying it. Unsurprisingly, the Hairenik’s question about whether the Armenian youth of America saw the need for an English-language newspaper was met with a resounding yes. “Publishing an English paper weekly or monthly for our young generation is a good idea,” wrote Sevart Kachigian of West Pullman, Illinois. “Here I am, can’t read Armenian, but would like to know more about my people, all over the world. Wouldn’t it be easier to get this information through an English paper?” The Hairenik’s editors were paying close attention to Sevart’s letter and to the scores of others like it that expressed the same yearning for an English-language newspaper. The editors did not push back against this generation’s preference for English. They knew that this would risk stifling their curiosity and eventually alienate them altogether. What they did was jump into action with an English-language column in the Armenian-language Hairenik. This column strove both to spread knowledge about Armenian history and culture and give the new generation a place to write about their experiences as Armenian Americans. “The young generation hereafter will be able to peep into the life of the Armenian people of which they sincerely profess their almost complete ignorance, and like thirsty souls, they ask for sources to quench their thirst,” wrote the editors to explain the purpose of the column. The column featured excerpts from books and articles on Armenian history alongside short stories, poetry, cultural criticism and literary translations contributed by young men and women from across the United States. Notably, the column addressed the problem of where to find information about the Armenian past, with a list of book recommendations in English on Armenia and Armenians. It also printed accounts of prominent Armenians, like Diana Apcar, who “was born on foreign soil, under foreign skies, and like American-born Armenians of our days, has never seen Armenia.” These choices were made carefully in hopes of helping young Armenian Americans see beyond the “starving Armenian” stereotype that haunted so many of them and kindle in them a sense of pride in their Armenian identities. “We have many famous men to be proud of,” wrote Queen Antaramian of Haverhill, Massachusetts. “…Unless the boys and girls are given something to remember the Armenians by, they will deny any relationship to a race that is still slumbering where it concerns youth.” This column ran in the Armenian-language Hairenik as the groundwork was being laid for the creation of a separate English-language Hairenik. This newspaper debuted in March 1934 and was called the Hairenik Weekly. It was renamed the Armenian Weekly in 1969. The roots of the Armenian Weekly can thus be found in a bold decision to do things differently. In the early 1930s, the editors of the Hairenik noticed a rift widening between generations old and new. They saw enthusiastic young men and women edged out of Armenian American community life, which had been constituted in the image of the old country and bogged down by its feuds. They read letter after letter in which young people expressed their eagerness to learn about the Armenian past, to narrate their Armenian American present and to chart their Armenian future in the United States on their own terms. The Hairenik’s editors had the humility to learn from these letters, to understand the perspectives in them and to devise a plan. They did not scold the youth for their preference for English, argue that they were not Armenian without Armenian or insist that they find a way to learn the language properly, as many others had. By the 1930s, this was already such a tired tune that it would have surely fallen on deaf ears. Instead, the editors sympathized with their real, practical and widespread struggle to read Armenian and met them where they were with an English-language newspaper of their own. This decision was certainly not universally understood or accepted. Even a few of the young letter-writers themselves saw an English-language newspaper as deviating too far from convention. But the vast majority of the letter-writers longed for one. The Hairenik’s editors responded to this longing and stepped in. “Let us begin to talk with our younger set with a language other than what we have used in the past, with a language that they understand better,” wrote the editors at the conclusion of the questionnaire. “We must change our attitude towards them; we must respect their feelings and their views, as we expect them to respect those of ours.” In taking this approach, the Hairenik gave credence to the unpopular truth that Armenianness could be lived in languages other than Armenian. This decision to adapt to linguistic realities rather than disregard them has since allowed generations of Armenian Americans to access Armenian community life in ways they could not have otherwise. It is in part because of this willingness to adapt that the Armenian Weekly has endured to this day, now serving the children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren of those who wrote in more than 90 years ago, painted vivid portraits of their lives and overwhelmingly advocated for a newspaper through which to express their Armenianness in the language they knew best: English. Do you know someone whose letter was published in the Hairenik in 1932? Aghajanian, A. [Ա. Աղաճանեան], Windsor, ON, Canada (issue no. 6124) Ansbigian, Antranik [Անդրանիկ Անսպիկեան], Everett, MA (issue no. 6147) Antaramian, Queen [Գուին Անթառամեան], Haverhill, MA (issue no. 6166) Apigian, Joseph [no Armenian rendering], Fresno, CA (issue no. 6167) Arzigian, Simon Martin [Սիմոն Մ. Արզիկեան], Lynn, MA (issue no. 6155) Atamian, Arax [Արաքս Ադամեան], Paterson, NJ (issue no. 6123) Avakian, Armen S. [no Armenian rendering], Providence, RI (issue no. 6176) Avakian, Arra S. [Արա Ս. Աւագեան], Providence, RI (issue no. 6163) Avakian, Virgine [Վերգինէ Աւագեան], Watervliet, NY (issue no. 6132) Baghdoyan, Hrayr Nerses [Հրայր Ներսէս Պաղտօեան], Winchester, MA (issue no. 6168) Bardezbanian, Aram [Արամ Պարտիզպանեան], New York, NY (issue no. 6142) Bardezbanian, Haigoohi [Հայկուհի Պարտիզպանեան], New York, NY (issue no. 6129) Boyajian, Harry [Հէրի Պոյաճեան], Cambridge, MA (issue no. 6118) Boyajian, Torkom [Թորգոմ Պոյաճեան], Brooklyn, NY (issue no. 6135) Barberian, John C. [Ճան Պարպէրեան], no location listed (issue no. 6126) Chloodian, Manoog N. [Մանուկ Ն. Չլուտեան], Chelsea, MA (issue no. 6114) Dedekian, Vartan K. [no Armenian rendering], Watertown, MA (issue no. 6188) Der Hovanesian, Marion [Մերիըն Տէր Յովհաննէսեան], Portland, ME (issue no. 6140) Der-Manuelian sisters [Տէր-Մանուէլեան քոյրեր], Lowell, MA (issue no. 6134) [in Armenian] Derzakarian, Aram G. [Արամ Տէր Զաքարեան], Fresno, CA (issue no. 6141) Eminian, Herpsime M. [Հռիփսիմէ Մ. Էմինեան], Cleveland, OH (issue no. 6162) Gasparian, Movses [Մովսէս Գասբարեան], Detroit, MI (issue no. 6122) Gulezian, Harry Aram [Հէրրի Արամ Կիւլէզեան], no location listed (issue no. 6161) Hagopian, Azad [Ազատ Յակոբեան], Highland Park, MI (issue no. 6150) Hatchadrian, Adrienne [Ատրիէն Խաչատուրեան], New York, NY (issue no. 6159) Kachigian, Sevart [no Armenian rendering], West Pullman, IL (issue no. 6175) Kailian, Vahan [Վահան Գայլեան], Brockton, MA (issue no. 6120) Keljikian, Dorothy [Տորոթի Կելճիքեան], Brooklyn, NY (issue no. 6156) Khanbegian, Antranig [Անդրանիկ Խանպէկեան], Brooklyn, NY (issue no. 6145) [in Armenian] Khanbegian, Hrire [Հրայր Խանպէկեան], New York, NY (issue no. 6144) [in Armenian] Khoodoyan, Haig [no Armenian rendering], no location listed (issue no. 6174) Krikorian, Mrs. Harry [Տիկ. Հէրի Գրիգորեան], Newton Highlands, MA (issue no. 6173) Magarian, Oscar K. [Ասքըր Մակարեան], Orlando, FL (issue no. 6137) Mardick, Arax Frances [Արաքս Ֆրանսիզ Մարտիկ], New York, NY (issue no. 6151) Mayhanagian, Vanoosh [no Armenian rendering], Grand Rapids, MI (issue no. 6182) Memishian, Hagop [Յակոբ Մեմիշեան], Chelsea, MA (issue no. 6158) Mooradian, Levon [no Armenian rendering], Hamilton, ON, Canada (issue no. 6200) Muckjian, Nevart [Նուարդ Մխճեան], Cambridge, MA (issue no. 6127) Najarian, Albert [Ալպըրթ Նաճարեան], Rockland, MA (issue no. 6154) Nersesian, Alice [no Armenian rendering], New York, NY (issue no. 6181) Nigolian, Sarkis and Kevork [Սարգիս եւ Գէորգ Նիկոլեան], Syracuse, NY (issue no. 6166) [in Armenian] Odabashian sisters [Օտապաշեան քոյրեր], East Bridgewater, MA (issue no. 6160) Ouzounian, Anooshavan [Անուշաւան Ուզունեան], Detroit, MI (issue no. 6119) Palotzian, Dori [Տիրանուհի Բալուցեան], Detroit, MI (issue no. 6157) Papazian, Albert [no Armenian rendering], Toronto, ON, Canada (issue no. 6186) Papazian, S. [Ս. Փափազեան], Bronx, NY (issue no. 6149) Peranian, Agnes [Ակնէս Փիրանեան], Middleboro, MA (issue no. 6152) Peranian, Rose V. [Րոզ Վ. Փիրանեան], Middleboro, MA (issue no. 6153) Sachaklian, Stella [Սթելլա Սաչագլեան], Syracuse, NY (issue no. 6121) Sarkisian, Sarkis [Սարգիս Սարգիսեան], no place listed (issue no. 6148) Seferian, Hayastan [Հայաստան Սէֆէրեան], Toledo, OH (issue no. 6117) Semerjian, Richard E. [Րիչըրտ Սէմէրճեան], Akron, OH (issue no. 6138) Shamgochian, Jacque [Ժագ Ժամկոչեան], no place listed (issue no. 6170) Shoushanian, Arthur A. [Արծրունի Շուշանեան], Lawrence, MA (issue no. 6125) Sinanian, Takouhi [Թագուհի Սինանեան], Roxbury, MA (issue no. 6136) Tashjian, Elizabeth A. [Էլիզըպէթ Թաշճեան], Cambridge, MA (issue no. 6139) Tomasian, Zarouhie [no Armenian rendering], Winston-Salem, NC (issue no. 6175) Toofangjian, John [no Armenian rendering], Syracuse, NY (issue no. 6173) Vartanian, Vaken [Վահագն Վարդանեան], Pawtucket, RI (issue no. 6172)

Young Armenians in 1930s America speak: Language, identity and the first stirrings of the Armenian Weekly

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Jennifer Manoukian

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This story is FREE for you...

Jennifer Manoukian

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