Tweet
AFTER THE EXODUS: HALIL OZSAVLI'S RESEARCH ASKS HOW ARMENIANS ADAPTED TO THEIR ENVIRONMENT IN THE EARLY 1900S
US Official News
April 26, 2014 Saturday
Dearborn
The University of Michigan-Dearborn has issued the following news
release:
Imagine being forced to flee your hometown, leaving behind friends,
family and other treasured keepsakes.
Then imagine thousands of your neighbors being forced to do the same.
That's what happened in the early 1900s when droves of Armenians
were forced to vacate the Anatolian provinces of the Ottoman Empire
(now in the east of modern Turkey). Many were killed or died on
the deportation routes, and a significant number of the survivors
relocated to parts of Syria and Lebanon.
What happened to these Armenians after this mass exodus and how they
adapted to their new environment are questions Halil Ozsavli is trying
to answer.
A doctoral student at Hacettepe University and a scholar at
Kilis 7 Aralęk University in Turkey, Ozsavli joined University
of Michigan-Dearborn's Armenian Research Center (ARC) as a
scholar-in-residence to study how Armenians created a new communal
life in Lebanon, keeping their language, culture and traditions.
"They essentially had to find new lives," said Ozsavli, an Arab who
was raised in Turkey.
Ozsavli plans to include his findings in a dissertation, which will
focus on Armenians living in Syria and Lebanon from 1914-1939.
The center provides an ideal research hub for Ozsavli, as it includes
countless microfilms, periodicals and books that detail not only
Armenian history, but also the history of the Arabic countries of
the Middle East and Turkey.
"This is a great opportunity for me," said Ozsavli, who plans to
return to Turkey in July to defend his dissertation. "I would have
never found these Armenian periodicals, microfilms and books in
Turkey. You can find all types of resources here."
Ozsavli commended ARC Director Ara Sanjian and Gerald Ottenbreit Jr.
for their assstance throughout the research project.
"Professor Ara's suggestions guided my research when I got lost among
an endless sea of historical information," he said. "Without Gerald's
assistance, I could not find particular books among the thousands of
books in the center. He never hesitated to buy microfilms or a book,
which I needed if the center did not have it already. And thanks
to him, my wife and I could settle in Dearborn without having any
problems when we arrived in this country."
UM-Dearborn is the first American university with an Armenian Research
Center. In an effort to preserve Armenian history and culture, staff
there collect Armenian periodicals, establish exchange programs with
Armenian libraries and schools, as well as forge domestic partnerships
with prominent institutions.
"The Armenian Research Center is unique in that scholars have, in
one location in a university setting, a rich reference library about
the Armenians and their neighbors, with research assistance at hand,
and a knowledgeable director who will mentor young scholars," said
Ottenbreit, the center's longtime research assistant. "If a scholar
needs something we do not own, we will obtain it, within reason,
either through purchase or interlibrary loan. During Halil's stay,
we purchased several dozen microfilms from the National Archives and
an additional half-dozen from Gale."
From: A. Papazian
US Official News
April 26, 2014 Saturday
Dearborn
The University of Michigan-Dearborn has issued the following news
release:
Imagine being forced to flee your hometown, leaving behind friends,
family and other treasured keepsakes.
Then imagine thousands of your neighbors being forced to do the same.
That's what happened in the early 1900s when droves of Armenians
were forced to vacate the Anatolian provinces of the Ottoman Empire
(now in the east of modern Turkey). Many were killed or died on
the deportation routes, and a significant number of the survivors
relocated to parts of Syria and Lebanon.
What happened to these Armenians after this mass exodus and how they
adapted to their new environment are questions Halil Ozsavli is trying
to answer.
A doctoral student at Hacettepe University and a scholar at
Kilis 7 Aralęk University in Turkey, Ozsavli joined University
of Michigan-Dearborn's Armenian Research Center (ARC) as a
scholar-in-residence to study how Armenians created a new communal
life in Lebanon, keeping their language, culture and traditions.
"They essentially had to find new lives," said Ozsavli, an Arab who
was raised in Turkey.
Ozsavli plans to include his findings in a dissertation, which will
focus on Armenians living in Syria and Lebanon from 1914-1939.
The center provides an ideal research hub for Ozsavli, as it includes
countless microfilms, periodicals and books that detail not only
Armenian history, but also the history of the Arabic countries of
the Middle East and Turkey.
"This is a great opportunity for me," said Ozsavli, who plans to
return to Turkey in July to defend his dissertation. "I would have
never found these Armenian periodicals, microfilms and books in
Turkey. You can find all types of resources here."
Ozsavli commended ARC Director Ara Sanjian and Gerald Ottenbreit Jr.
for their assstance throughout the research project.
"Professor Ara's suggestions guided my research when I got lost among
an endless sea of historical information," he said. "Without Gerald's
assistance, I could not find particular books among the thousands of
books in the center. He never hesitated to buy microfilms or a book,
which I needed if the center did not have it already. And thanks
to him, my wife and I could settle in Dearborn without having any
problems when we arrived in this country."
UM-Dearborn is the first American university with an Armenian Research
Center. In an effort to preserve Armenian history and culture, staff
there collect Armenian periodicals, establish exchange programs with
Armenian libraries and schools, as well as forge domestic partnerships
with prominent institutions.
"The Armenian Research Center is unique in that scholars have, in
one location in a university setting, a rich reference library about
the Armenians and their neighbors, with research assistance at hand,
and a knowledgeable director who will mentor young scholars," said
Ottenbreit, the center's longtime research assistant. "If a scholar
needs something we do not own, we will obtain it, within reason,
either through purchase or interlibrary loan. During Halil's stay,
we purchased several dozen microfilms from the National Archives and
an additional half-dozen from Gale."
From: A. Papazian