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Friends of UCLA Armenian Language and Culture Studies
Media Contact: Anahit Cowe
Tel: 818-645-5571
Friends of UCLA Armenian Language and Culture Studies
Prof. Peter Cowe honored at Los Angeles banquet
Los Angeles, June 12, 2014 - On the evening of June 1, a banquet
honoring the 30th anniversary of Prof. S. Peter Cowe's scholarly
career and the 45th anniversary of the Narekatsi Chair in Armenian
Studies at UCLA was held in Los Angeles. The jubilant event, which took
place at The London, West Hollywood, was organized jointly by the 30th
Anniversary Committee and the Friends of UCLA Armenian Language and
Culture Studies, in support of the expansion of the Armenian Studies
program and particularly Western-Armenian instruction at UCLA.
The over 200 guests included community leaders, scholars, and Armenology
students. Present were a number of academics from Armenia, Europe, and
the Americas who were participating in a UCLA conference organized by
Dr. Grigor Areshian on `Current Practices in Aremenian Studies: the
Creation and Visibility of New Knowledge.' Most of the evening's
speakers were UCLA alumni of Armenian Studies.
Two elements were particularly noteworthy about the evening: one was the
warm atmosphere between students and teacher; and the second, the
impressive growth of Armenian Studies as a highly sought-after field
among the present generation - marked by the large number of local
scholars in the field, as befits the largest Armenian diasporan
community, and reinforced by visiting colleagues from different parts of
the world.
Following a cocktail reception and book exhibit at The London's Marble
Terrace, the banquet started inside the Kensington Ballroom. Welcome
remarks were delivered by Shahane Martirosyan and Gayane Khechoomian,
and grace was said by the Very Rev. Fr. Dajad Yardemian of the Western
Diocese.
In his opening address, Ben Charchian said, `At UCLA, walking around
the campus, learning that the language you speak is thousands of years
old and your alphabet is over 1,600 years old, you hold your head up
high. Prof. Cowe was instrumental in instilling in me, and hundreds of
other students, that sense of pride.'
An early highlight of the banquet was the ritual presentation of haggis,
a traditional Scottish dish, as a surprise tribute to Prof. Cowe's
Scottish descent. The colorful presentation, complete with bagpipe
music, comprised a procession around the hall led by the piper and a
thunderous haggis oration delivered by Dr. Neil McLeod, followed by a
performance of the Scottish sword dance. Subsequently haggis was served
to the guests.
Next, an encyclical from Catholicos Aram I, congratulating Prof. Cowe on
his achievements as an outstanding Armenologist, was read by Right Rev.
Fr. Boghos Tinkjian. Among other things, His Holiness wrote, `We have
known Dr. Cowe closely over the last 30 years, both personally and
through his serious investigations and critical studies, which have
contributed to the advance of Armenian Studies. Therefore, this
initiative to celebrate Dr. Cowe's 30 years of academic activity is to
be warmly welcomed.'
Presenting the 45th anniversary of the Narekatsi Chair was Shushan
Karapetian, the most recent PhD recipient in the Armenian Studies
program at UCLA, who in turn was introduced by Ani Shirinian.
As she reminisced about her experiences as a student of Prof. Cowe,
Karapetian said, `A few years into my graduate program, as I had just
completed Intermediate Classical Armenian, I walked into Prof. Cowe's
office and told him, `I wish there were more; I wish we could pursue
studies in Classical Armenian as well.' And he said, `The advanced
level has never been offered.' So I shrugged, disappointed. But he
said, `I don't see why it shouldn't be.' So, with no further
ado, he inaugurated an advanced series of Classical Armenian at my
simple little request, after which my fellow students and I had the most
amazing year of our lives studying the subject. We also created a team
name, Team Grabar, whose leader was Prof. Cowe - labeled `The
Michael Jordan of Grabar' by fellow student Ara Soghomonian. We were
all aspiring players who knew we would never be as good as our teacher
but we were going to die trying!'
Karapetian's address was followed by the screening of a short
documentary, Inside the Academic Studio, directed and produced by
Armenian Studies doctoral student Ara Soghomonian. The film featured
humorous, highly engaging conversations between Prof. Cowe and a number
of his students, shedding fresh light on his life and career as a
beloved Armenologist.
Subsequently Dr. Talar Chahinian introduced the event's keynote
speaker, Theo van Lint, who is a Calouste Gulbenkian Professor of
Armenian Studies at Oxford and a Fellow of Pembroke College. As he
presented the honoree's career and accomplishments, van Lint said,
`When Peter sets out a scholarly position, his work is always
carefully contextualized, with all caveats and nuances required to
tackle all facets of a problem. This innate fairness, coupled with a
sharp mind and an absolute passion for the subject at hand, can lead to
a feast of conversation.'
`Many of us familiar with Peter's scholarly work, and particularly
his style, are used to long sentences in which the various aspects of a
position are carefully considered while the reader longs for a period!'
Prof. van Lint continued jokingly. `Fifteen subordinate clauses are no
exception to Peter. And it's all one sentence, one big thought, which
he will bring to a brilliant end and it will be like a fugue. That is
what he does: he thinks in terms of music. That's quite rare in
Armenian Studies. It's quite rare among scholars. It's quite rare
among human beings.'
After a musical interlude featuring a performance on traditional
Armenian instruments, Ardashes Kassakhian, Glendale City Clerk and a
former student of Prof. Cowe, took the podium. As he drew parallels
between the great Armenian translators of the Middle Ages and
present-day Armenologists, Kassakhian said, `Today, as the Armenian
nation is dispersed around the world, it is thanks to scholars and
translators like Prof. Cowe that Armenian history and the masterpieces
of the Armenian intellectual legacy are being brought forth for the
enjoyment of the world and diaspora Armenians such as myself.'
Kassakhian then invited the evening's honoree to the stage.
`When I started out as an Armenologist, I couldn't imagine my
journey would be so enriching and rewarding,' Prof. Cowe began. `It
has proved beyond my expectations. Yet I had an inkling then that
Armenology was an idea whose time would come, and the subsequent
proliferation of the field, as testified by so many in our midst
tonight, has confirmed my impression.'
`I also appreciate the tribute to my Scottish background tonight,'
Cowe continued. `In this respect, it gives me great pleasure to know
that one of my longstanding goals has been met, that Armenian is now
being taught in Scotland, in our oldest university, at St. Andrews.'
Cowe closed his remarks by stating: `My wish is that all of you, and
Armenians as a whole, would step back from the immediate pressures of
your surroundings to recenter, to reintegrate with your core, and
reenergize your cultural capacity to creatively engage with the current
environment. Yours is not a culture that is on its last legs, that needs
to be artificially `preserved' in an oxygen tent; rather, it is one
that is actual and vital, seeking new modes of expression to be
authentic to its reality. You have not only a legacy, but a potential,
one you must claim and make your own.'
The banquet concluded with a benediction, followed by a
Scottish-Armenian musical composition arranged by Artashes Kartalian and
combining the bagpipe and zurna.
Accompanying the event was a beautiful booklet featuring the honoree's
biography, publications, awards, and list of PhD students supervised, as
well as congratulatory letters and notes from colleagues around the
world, including the following commendation from his senior colleague at
UCLA Prof. Richard G. Hovannisian: `S. Peter Cowe has given strong
impetus to Armenian Studies in the United States and abroad. His
erudition and broad horizons allow for a useful comparative approach
that helps to integrate Armenian Studies into World History and Culture.
I welcome the opportunity to congratulate him on his 30th anniversary in
the field and to wish him many productive years of research,
publication, teaching, and community participation as the Holder of the
Media Contact: Anahit Cowe
Tel: 818-645-5571
Friends of UCLA Armenian Language and Culture Studies
Prof. Peter Cowe honored at Los Angeles banquet
Los Angeles, June 12, 2014 - On the evening of June 1, a banquet
honoring the 30th anniversary of Prof. S. Peter Cowe's scholarly
career and the 45th anniversary of the Narekatsi Chair in Armenian
Studies at UCLA was held in Los Angeles. The jubilant event, which took
place at The London, West Hollywood, was organized jointly by the 30th
Anniversary Committee and the Friends of UCLA Armenian Language and
Culture Studies, in support of the expansion of the Armenian Studies
program and particularly Western-Armenian instruction at UCLA.
The over 200 guests included community leaders, scholars, and Armenology
students. Present were a number of academics from Armenia, Europe, and
the Americas who were participating in a UCLA conference organized by
Dr. Grigor Areshian on `Current Practices in Aremenian Studies: the
Creation and Visibility of New Knowledge.' Most of the evening's
speakers were UCLA alumni of Armenian Studies.
Two elements were particularly noteworthy about the evening: one was the
warm atmosphere between students and teacher; and the second, the
impressive growth of Armenian Studies as a highly sought-after field
among the present generation - marked by the large number of local
scholars in the field, as befits the largest Armenian diasporan
community, and reinforced by visiting colleagues from different parts of
the world.
Following a cocktail reception and book exhibit at The London's Marble
Terrace, the banquet started inside the Kensington Ballroom. Welcome
remarks were delivered by Shahane Martirosyan and Gayane Khechoomian,
and grace was said by the Very Rev. Fr. Dajad Yardemian of the Western
Diocese.
In his opening address, Ben Charchian said, `At UCLA, walking around
the campus, learning that the language you speak is thousands of years
old and your alphabet is over 1,600 years old, you hold your head up
high. Prof. Cowe was instrumental in instilling in me, and hundreds of
other students, that sense of pride.'
An early highlight of the banquet was the ritual presentation of haggis,
a traditional Scottish dish, as a surprise tribute to Prof. Cowe's
Scottish descent. The colorful presentation, complete with bagpipe
music, comprised a procession around the hall led by the piper and a
thunderous haggis oration delivered by Dr. Neil McLeod, followed by a
performance of the Scottish sword dance. Subsequently haggis was served
to the guests.
Next, an encyclical from Catholicos Aram I, congratulating Prof. Cowe on
his achievements as an outstanding Armenologist, was read by Right Rev.
Fr. Boghos Tinkjian. Among other things, His Holiness wrote, `We have
known Dr. Cowe closely over the last 30 years, both personally and
through his serious investigations and critical studies, which have
contributed to the advance of Armenian Studies. Therefore, this
initiative to celebrate Dr. Cowe's 30 years of academic activity is to
be warmly welcomed.'
Presenting the 45th anniversary of the Narekatsi Chair was Shushan
Karapetian, the most recent PhD recipient in the Armenian Studies
program at UCLA, who in turn was introduced by Ani Shirinian.
As she reminisced about her experiences as a student of Prof. Cowe,
Karapetian said, `A few years into my graduate program, as I had just
completed Intermediate Classical Armenian, I walked into Prof. Cowe's
office and told him, `I wish there were more; I wish we could pursue
studies in Classical Armenian as well.' And he said, `The advanced
level has never been offered.' So I shrugged, disappointed. But he
said, `I don't see why it shouldn't be.' So, with no further
ado, he inaugurated an advanced series of Classical Armenian at my
simple little request, after which my fellow students and I had the most
amazing year of our lives studying the subject. We also created a team
name, Team Grabar, whose leader was Prof. Cowe - labeled `The
Michael Jordan of Grabar' by fellow student Ara Soghomonian. We were
all aspiring players who knew we would never be as good as our teacher
but we were going to die trying!'
Karapetian's address was followed by the screening of a short
documentary, Inside the Academic Studio, directed and produced by
Armenian Studies doctoral student Ara Soghomonian. The film featured
humorous, highly engaging conversations between Prof. Cowe and a number
of his students, shedding fresh light on his life and career as a
beloved Armenologist.
Subsequently Dr. Talar Chahinian introduced the event's keynote
speaker, Theo van Lint, who is a Calouste Gulbenkian Professor of
Armenian Studies at Oxford and a Fellow of Pembroke College. As he
presented the honoree's career and accomplishments, van Lint said,
`When Peter sets out a scholarly position, his work is always
carefully contextualized, with all caveats and nuances required to
tackle all facets of a problem. This innate fairness, coupled with a
sharp mind and an absolute passion for the subject at hand, can lead to
a feast of conversation.'
`Many of us familiar with Peter's scholarly work, and particularly
his style, are used to long sentences in which the various aspects of a
position are carefully considered while the reader longs for a period!'
Prof. van Lint continued jokingly. `Fifteen subordinate clauses are no
exception to Peter. And it's all one sentence, one big thought, which
he will bring to a brilliant end and it will be like a fugue. That is
what he does: he thinks in terms of music. That's quite rare in
Armenian Studies. It's quite rare among scholars. It's quite rare
among human beings.'
After a musical interlude featuring a performance on traditional
Armenian instruments, Ardashes Kassakhian, Glendale City Clerk and a
former student of Prof. Cowe, took the podium. As he drew parallels
between the great Armenian translators of the Middle Ages and
present-day Armenologists, Kassakhian said, `Today, as the Armenian
nation is dispersed around the world, it is thanks to scholars and
translators like Prof. Cowe that Armenian history and the masterpieces
of the Armenian intellectual legacy are being brought forth for the
enjoyment of the world and diaspora Armenians such as myself.'
Kassakhian then invited the evening's honoree to the stage.
`When I started out as an Armenologist, I couldn't imagine my
journey would be so enriching and rewarding,' Prof. Cowe began. `It
has proved beyond my expectations. Yet I had an inkling then that
Armenology was an idea whose time would come, and the subsequent
proliferation of the field, as testified by so many in our midst
tonight, has confirmed my impression.'
`I also appreciate the tribute to my Scottish background tonight,'
Cowe continued. `In this respect, it gives me great pleasure to know
that one of my longstanding goals has been met, that Armenian is now
being taught in Scotland, in our oldest university, at St. Andrews.'
Cowe closed his remarks by stating: `My wish is that all of you, and
Armenians as a whole, would step back from the immediate pressures of
your surroundings to recenter, to reintegrate with your core, and
reenergize your cultural capacity to creatively engage with the current
environment. Yours is not a culture that is on its last legs, that needs
to be artificially `preserved' in an oxygen tent; rather, it is one
that is actual and vital, seeking new modes of expression to be
authentic to its reality. You have not only a legacy, but a potential,
one you must claim and make your own.'
The banquet concluded with a benediction, followed by a
Scottish-Armenian musical composition arranged by Artashes Kartalian and
combining the bagpipe and zurna.
Accompanying the event was a beautiful booklet featuring the honoree's
biography, publications, awards, and list of PhD students supervised, as
well as congratulatory letters and notes from colleagues around the
world, including the following commendation from his senior colleague at
UCLA Prof. Richard G. Hovannisian: `S. Peter Cowe has given strong
impetus to Armenian Studies in the United States and abroad. His
erudition and broad horizons allow for a useful comparative approach
that helps to integrate Armenian Studies into World History and Culture.
I welcome the opportunity to congratulate him on his 30th anniversary in
the field and to wish him many productive years of research,
publication, teaching, and community participation as the Holder of the