Fall 2013

History 107C
Armenia and Armenians in World History: Empire, Diaspora, and Nation-State

Professor Sebouh D. Aslanian

[email protected]
Time: Tu/Th 9:30AM - 10:45PM (Bunche Hall, 3156)
Office Hours Tu/Th: 2:00-3:00 PM or by appointment
Office: Bunche Hall 7383

As Armenians entered the modern period beginning with the nineteenth century, they were
largely “transimperial subjects” scattered across the Ottoman, Iranian, and Russian empires
with the majority living on their ancestral lands in the region straddling the Ottoman and
Russian imperial domains. This course provides an introductory survey to Armenian history
from its imperial contexts in the early nineteenth century, through genocide, short-lived
independence, and sovietization, to the emergence of an independent republic of Armenia
following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. In addition to covering Armenian history
as the history of an Armenian nation-state, much of the course will focus on Armenians as
either nineteenth-century “transimperial subjects” scattered across and interacting with
several empires or as twentieth-century members of a post-genocide transnational and global
diaspora with a history that transcends multiple ethnic or religious boundaries and
encompasses much of the world.

In addition to the textbooks assigned for the course, there will be a number of essay-length
readings made available to students in pdf format, as well as excerpted selections of primary
sources in English translations. Pdf readings are marked by an asterisk on the syllabus and
are available for downloading.

THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE SYLLABUS

Enrollment in this course implies acceptance of all rules, policies and requirements of this class. I
reserve the right to make small changes to this syllabus in accordance with the specifics of the class
dynamic.

N OTES, C AUTIONARY AND OTHERWISE :

 I encourage you to come to my office hours, to discuss any questions about the issues raised, or to
talk about assignments and/or problems you might be having (or just to give us an opportunity to get
to know each other better), so that we can work together in providing sufficient explanations to
questions and resolutions to problems. For most of you, this course covers unfamiliar regions and
periods and will involve learning new concepts; please do not wait until the end of the quarter to see
me.

 Students are expected to express themselves openly and participate in creating a non-intimidating
classroom environment that contributes to open discussion. They are expected to think objectively
and historically and to listen respectfully to others’ remarks.
 In this course, as in others, each student is in charge of and responsible for his/her own education.
In other words, what one gets out of this course depends on what one puts into it. This includes
grades. Grades are not negotiable. All grades are earned; if you want an A and not an A-, then earn it.
If you have an issue with a grade on an assignment and can explain in writing why your assignment
deserves a different grade, I am willing to take a second look. Please be forewarned, however, that I
will look at the assignment with a fresh eye; that means grades may be raised, lowered, or remain the
same.

 This is an upper-division course. The written work you submit should be of the highest
quality. All essays should be free of grammar, spelling, typographical, and form errors. All
written work should be typed, double-spaced, with 12-point font size. Fonts such as Times and
Times Roman are acceptable. Be sure to have 1” margins. Paginate your essays (page numbers)
and staple pages together. Your essays should have a title, an introduction, a thesis, supporting
paragraphs, and a conclusion.

 All assigned readings for the day must be completed before you come to class. You should be
prepared to discuss the readings and participate in all the class discussions.

 All assignments are due at the beginning of class on the day assigned. I will not accept an
assignment if the student has not attended class that day. Exceptions may be made in rare cases. If I
permit the late submission of an assignment, I will deduct points 5 points per day.

 Electronic submission and late assignments will not be accepted without prior agreement.

 Students are required to be present at every class session and to be prepared for class. Unexcused
absences will be penalized. Students must contact the instructor if a conflict arises that will prevent
them from attending class. Only students who have excused absences and approval from the
instructor will be able to make up a missed assignment. I am not obligated to consider other absences
except the following excused absences: illness or injury to the student; death, injury, or serious illness
of an immediate family member or the like; religious reasons (California Education Code section
89320); jury duty or government obligation; university sanctioned or approved activities (examples
include: artistic performances, forensics presentations, participation in research conferences,
intercollegiate athletic activities, student government, required class field trips.) Please contact me
immediately if a situation arises that forces your absence from class. If I do not hear from you,
I will consider your absence unexcused.

 Consistent tardiness will not be acceptable and will result in a grade deduction. You need to let me
know ahead of time if you are going to be late. If you are late to class beyond twenty minutes of class
time, I will consider you absent for the day.

 Some class sessions will be discussion focused. Please bring appropriate readings and texts to class
with you. Give yourself sufficient time to complete the reading and prepare before coming to class.
Moreover, give yourself sufficient time to understand assignment guidelines, complete
writing assignments accordingly, and seek help early if you are having difficulties.

 Classroom etiquette: please abide by the etiquette guidelines established on the first day of class.
• NO reading of extraneous material in class;
 • NO radios, headsets, iPods, or any other distractions;
• NO conversations other than those directed at the class;
• NO cell phones, no texting. If you must have one for any reason, see me before class.
• NO packing up before class is dismissed.

 Academic Integrity and Honesty :

Cheating and plagiarism are serious offenses and will not be tolerated. They are violations of university
regulations. All students will be held to a high standard of academic integrity, which is defined as "the
pursuit of scholarly activity free from fraud and deception." Academic dishonesty includes, but is not
limited to, to the following: cheating; plagiarizing; fabricating of information or citations; facilitating
acts of academic dishonesty by others; having unauthorized possession of examinations; submitting
work of another person or work previously used without informing the instructor; tampering with the
academic work of other students; the submission of a work, either in part or in whole, completed by
another; failure to give credit for ideas, statements, facts or conclusions with rightfully belong to another;
in written work, failure to use quotation marks when quoting directly from another, whether it be a
paragraph, a sentence, or even a part thereof; or close and lengthy paraphrasing of another's writing or
programming. Acknowledgement of an original author or source must be made through appropriate
references, i.e., quotation marks, footnotes, or commentary. All acts of academic dishonesty will be
subject to disciplinary action. All take-home written assignments for the course must be submitted
electronically through Turnitin in order to ensure the authenticity of the presented written work. A
single act of cheating or plagiarism by an undergraduate student will result in a failing grade
on that assignment. A single act of cheating or plagiarism by a graduate student will result in
a failing grade in the course, regardless of other graded course assignments.

Grading:
A = 93 – 100 A- = 90 – 92
B+ = 87 – 89 B = 83 – 86 B- = 80 – 82
C+ = 77 – 79 C = 73 – 76 C- = 70 – 72
D+ = 67 – 69 D = 63 – 66 D- = 60 – 62
F = 0 – 59

COURSE REQUIREMENTS/ASSESSMENT

I. WRITTEN ASSIGNMENTS:
1) 1 MAP QUIZ (10% TOTAL)
2) IN-CLASS ID EXAM (25 %)
3) TAKE-HOME MID-TERM EXAM (8 PP., 25%)
4) FINAL EXAM (8 PP., 30%)

All written assignments must be typed, double-spaced, paginated, in black ink, 12-point font, and with
one-inch margins.

II. C LASS PARTICIPATION AND DISCUSSION (10%)

This includes coming to class on time having read and thought about the week’s material and prepared
to discuss it. Knowledge and understanding of readings will enable us to have productive class
discussions as well as help you be prepared for other assignments. Attendance without participation
will be insufficient and will be reflected in grades.

REQUIRED TEXTS:
• Richard G. Hovannisian, ed. The Armenian People From Ancient to Modern Times (New York: St.
Martin’s Press, 2004), vol. 2.
• Razmik Panossian, The Armenians: From Kings and Priests to Merchants and Commissars (New York:
Columbia University Press, 2006)

The textbooks will be available for purchase at the bookstore.

Other readings will be available on electronic reserve in pdf. format and are marked with an asterisk
below.

WEEK 1 (SEPT. 26): INTRODUCTION TO THE COURSE AND RECAP TO THE

NINETEENTH CENTURY

Readings: GENERAL METHODOLOGICAL APPROACHES: “ETHNIES,” “NATIONS” AND “AUTONOMOUS”

VERSUS “INTERACTIVE” HISTORIES

• Aslanian, Sebouh. “‘The Treason of the Intellectuals: Reflections on the Uses of Revisionism and
Nationalism in Armenian Historiography,” Armenian Forum 2/4 (Spring 2002): 1-38.*
• Suny, Ronald. “Introduction: From National Character to National Tradition,” Looking Towards
Ararat: Armenia in Modern History (Bloomington: University of Indiana Press, 1993), 1-15.*
• Panossian, Razmik. “Theoretical Considerations and Definitions,” in Panossian textbook, 1-31.

WEEK 2 (OCT. 1 AND 3): T HE I MPERIAL FOUNDATIONS: OTTOMANS, R USSIANS, AND I RANIANS
DURING THE NINETEENTH CENTURY

Tuesday: Armenians in three Empires

• Berberian, Houri. “Armenians in the Nineteenth Century,” in Armenians and the Iranian Constitutional
Revolution of 1905-1911: ‘The Love of Freedom has no Fatherland.’ (Boulder, Co.: Westview Press, 2001),
15-34.*
• Panossian, Razmik. “The Russian Conquest of Eastern Armenia, ” in Panossian textbook, pp. 119-
128.

Thursday: The Millet System and the History of Ottoman-Armenians:

• Benjamin Braude, ‘Foundation Myths of the Millet System’ in Benjamin Braude and Bernard
Lewis (eds), Christians and Jews in the Ottoman Empire, vol. I: The Central Lands, (New York: Holmes
and Meier, 1982), 69-87.*
• Kevork B. Bardakjian, “The Rise of the Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople,” In Christians
and Jews in the Ottoman Empire, edited by B. Braude and B. Lewis, vol.1 The Central Lands (New
York: Holmes and Meier, 1982), 89-100.*

Week 3 (OCT. 8 & 10) : A HYBRID C ULTURE WITH A SYNCHRETIC LANGUAGE : ARMENO-T URKISH
LITERATURE AND C ULTURE IN CONTEXT

Tuesday: Ottoman Literary Culture in the Age of Print and Armeno-Turkish:

Readings:
• Strauss, Johann. 2003. “Who Read What in the Ottoman Empire (19th-20th Centuries)?” Arabic
Middle Eastern Literatures 6 (1): 39-76.*
• Aprahamyan, Garo. “A Note on the Bibliographic Catalogues of Armeno-Turkish Literature,” in
Between Religion and Language: Turkish-Speaking Christians, Jews and Greek-Speaking Muslims and Catholics in
the Ottoman Empire. Eds. Evangelia Balta and Mehmet Ölmez. (İstanbul: Eren, 2011), 147-152.*

Thursday: Armeno-Turkish Literary Culture and Ottoman Social History

• Sagaster, Börte. “The role of Turcophone Armenians as literary innovators and mediators of
culture in the early days of Modern Turkish Literature.” In Between Religion and Language:
Turkish-Speaking Christians, Jews and Greek-Speaking Muslims and Catholics in the Ottoman
Empire. Eds. Evangelia Balta and Mehmet Ölmez. (İstanbul: Eren, 2011), 101-110.*
• Mignon, Laurent. “Lost in Translation: A few remarks on the Armeno-Turkish novel and Turkish
Literary Historiography.” In Between Religion and Language: Turkish-Speaking Christians, Jews
and Greek-Speaking Muslims and Catholics in the Ottoman Empire. Eds. Evangelia Balta and
Mehmet Ölmez. (İstanbul: Eren, 2011). 111-123*

Primacy Source Reading:

• Abbot Mkhitar, “Preface to the First Published Armeno-Turkish Book” English Translation by
Sebouh D. Aslanian (unpublished manuscript)

Week 4 (OCT. 15 AND 17): T ANZIMAT R EFORMS, N ATIONAL “AWAKENING” AND THE
F ORMATION OF N ATIONAL P ARTIES

Tuesday: The Amira Class and Relations of Power within the Millet:
• Barsoumian, Hagop. “The Dual Role of the Armenian Amira Class within the Ottoman
Government and the Armenian Millet (1750-1850)” in Benjamin Braude and Bernard Lewis (eds),
Christians and Jews in the Ottoman Empire, vol. I: The Central Lands (New York: Holmes and Meier,
1982), 171-184.*
• _______________. “The Eastern Question and the Tanzimat Era,” in Hovannisian textbook,
175-202.
• Panossian, Razmik. “A Multilocal Awakening: The Consolidation and Radicalization of Collective
Identity in the 19th Century,” in Panossian, textbook, 128-180.
Thursday: Nationalism, Socialism, and Marxism:

• Panossian, Razmik. “Political and Revolutionary Organizations,” in Panossian textbook, 200-214.

• Suny, Ronald. “Labor and Socialism among Armenians in Transcaucasia,” in Looking Toward
Ararat: Armenia in Modern History (Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1993), 79-93.*

Primary Source Readings:

Decrees from the Ottoman Tanzimat:
• “The Gulhane Proclamation” and “An Ottoman Bill of Rights” both from Gettleman,
Marvin and Stuart Schaar, eds. The Middle East and Islamic World Reader (New York: Grove
Press, 2003), 69-83.*
Political Party Platforms:
• “The Manifesto of the Federation of Armenian Revolutionaries”*
Recommended:
• Libaridian, Gerard. “Nation and Fatherland in Nineteenth Century Armenian Political Thought,”
in Modern Armenia: People, Nation, State (New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Publishers, 2004), 51-72.*

IN-CLASS MAP QUIZ OCT. 17 (20 minutes)

WEEK 5 (OCT. 22 AND 24): ARMENIANS, THE DECLINE OF E MPIRES, AND C ONNECTED
R EVOLUTIONS

Tuesday:
• Houri Berberian, “Traversing Boundaries and Selves: Iranian-Armenian Identities during the
Iranian Constitutional Revolution,” in Comparative Studies of South Asia, Africa, and the Middle East 25, 2
(2005): 279-296.*
• _____________. “Connected Revolutions: Armenians and the Russian, Ottoman, and Iranian
Revolutions in the Early Twentieth Century,” in “L’ivresse de la liberté”: La révolution de 1908 dans l’Empire
ottoman, edited by François Georgeon (Leuvain, Belgium: Peeters, 2012), 487-510.*

Thursday:

• Der Matossian, Bedross, “Formation of Public Sphere(s) in the aftermath of the 1908 Revolution
among Armenians, Arabs and Jews,” in “L’ivresse de la liberté”: La révolution de 1908 dans l’Empire ottoman,
edited by François Georgeon (Leuvain, Belgium: Peeters, 2012),189-220*
• Feroz Ahmed, “Unionist Relations with the Greek, Armenian, and Jewish Communities of the
Ottoman Empire, 1908-1914,” in Benjamin Braude and Bernard Lewis (eds), Christians and Jews in the
Ottoman Empire, vol. I: The Central Lands, (New York: Holmes and Meier,1982), 401-436*

MID-TERM EXAM DUE OCT. 24 THROUGH TURNITIN AND IN HARDCOPY IN

CLASS (Questions will be provided two weeks in advance)
WEEK 6 (OCT. 29 AND 31): GENOCIDE AND THE P OLITICS OF DENIAL

Tuesday:
• Selim Deringil, “‘The Armenian Question is Finally Closed’: Mass Conversions of the Armenians
in Anatolia During the Hamidian Massacres of 1895-1897,” in Comparative Studies of Society and History,
5,1 (2009): 344-371.*
• Ron Suny, “Rethinking the Unthinkable: Towards an Understanding of the Armenian Genocide,”
Looking Towards Ararat: Armenia in Modern History (Bloomington: University of Indiana Press, 1993), 94-
118.*
• Donald Bloxham, “The Beginning of the Armenian Catastrophe: Comparative and Contextual
Considerations,” in Der Voelkermord an den Armeniern und die Shoah (The Armenian Genocide and the Shoah)
(Zurich: Chronos Verlag, 2002), 100-128.*
• Belinda Cooper and Taner Akcam, “Turks, Armenians, and the G-Word,” World Policy Forum,
(Fall, 2005): 81-93.*
• Panossian, (textbook), 228-242.
Primary Source Readings:
• “Henry Morgenthau Recounts Aspects of Nationalist-Driven Ethnic Cleansing of Armenians in
Turkey, 1915,” in Sources in the History of the Modern Middle East (Boston: Cengage Learning, 2011),
144-149.*

Recommended Readings:
• Akcam, Taner, “Ottoman Sources and the Question of their Being Purged,” in The Young Turks’
Crime Against Humanity: The Armenian Genocide and Ethnic Cleansing in the Ottoman Empire, (Princeton:
Princeton University Press, 2012), 1-29*
• Umit Ugur Ungor, “Genocide of Christians,” in The Making of Modern Turkey: Nation and State in
Eastern Anatolia (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2011), 55-106.*

Thursday: Denial and the Politics of History

• Richard Hovannisian, “Denial of the Armenian Genocide in Comparison to Holocaust Denial,”

Remembrance and Denial: The Case of the Armenian Genocide, ed. Richard Hovannisian, (Detroit: Wayne
State University Press, 1999), 201-237.*
• Jennifer M. Dixon, “Defending the Nation? Maintaining Turkey’s Narrative of the Armenian
Genocide,” South European Society and Politics 15, 3 (2010): 467-485.*

Recommended Reading:
• Jennifer M. Dixon, “Education and National Narratives: Changing Representations of the
Armenian Genocide in History Textbooks in Turkey,” The International Journal for Education Law and
Policy, Special Issue on “Legitimation and Stability of Political Systems: The Contribution of National
Narratives” (2010): 103-126.*
• Ron Suny, “AHR Forum: Truth in Telling: Reconciling Realities in the Genocide of the Ottoman
Armenians,” American Historical Review 114, 4 (October 2009): 93-946.*
• Bedross Der Matossian, “Venturing Into the Minefield: Turkish Liberal Historiography and the
Armenian Genocide,” in Richard G. Hovannisian, ed., The Armenian Genocide: Cultural and Ethical
Legacies, (New Brunswick and London: Transaction, 2007), 369 – 388*
WEEK 7 (NOV. 5 AND 7): T HE F IRST R EPUBLIC OF ARMENIA (1918-1920) AND
SOVIETIZATION

Tuesday: The Republic of Armenia

• Richard Hovannisian, “Armenia’s Road to Independence” and “The Republic of Armenia,” in

Hovanissian textbook, 275-347.
• Razmik Panossian, “The Independent Republic and Sovietization,” in textbook, 242-261.

Thursday: S OVIETIZATION , S TALINISM , AND I NDUSTRIALIZING THE N ATION

• Razmik Panossian, “Differing Identities, Soviet Armenians, Diaspora Armenians, 1921-

1987,” in Panossian textbook, 262-291.
• Ron Suny, “Soviet Armenia,” in Hovannisian textbook, 347-389.

WEEK 8 (NOV. 12 AND 14):

Tuesday:

IN-CLASS ID EXAM: NOV. 12 (whole class)

Thursday: (No Class on Nov. 14; I will be at a conference in China)

WEEK 9 (NOV. 19 AND 21): S OVIET N ATIONALITY P OLICY, P ERESTROIKA, THE KARABAGH
MOVEMENT , AND THE GLOBAL ARMENIAN DIASPORA

Tuesday: Soviet Nation-Building:

• Razmik Panossian, “Strengthening National Identity Soviet Style, 1921-1987,” in textbook, 319-
384.

Thursday: Diaspora Nation-Building:

• Khachig Tololyan, “Elites and Institutions in the Armenian Transnation,” in Diaspora: A

Journal of Transnational Studies, 9,1 (2000), 107-136.*
• Razmik Panossian, “Creating a Diasporan National Identity,” in Panossian textbook, 291-
318.
WEEK 10 (NOV. 26 AND 28): T HE S ECOND R EPUBLIC OF ARMENIA (1991-2013)

Tuesday:
• Razmik Panossian, “Conclusion: A Multilocal Nation Continues,” in Panossian textbook, 384-
393.
• Gerard Libaridian, “From People to State, Once More: An Overview from 1980 to 2003,” in
Modern Armenia: People, Nation, State (New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Publishers, 2004), 119-265.*
Primary Source Reading:
• Statement of Levon Ter Petrosian, Armenian National Movement Candidate for the Presidency
of the Armenian Supreme Soviet” in Armenia at the Crossroads: Democracy and Nationhood in the Post-
Soviet Era, edited by Gerard Libaridian (Watertown, Mass.: Blue Crane Books, 1991), 95-106.*
• “Declaration of Armenia’s Independence by the Parliament of Armenia,” in Armenia at the
Crossroads: Democracy and Nationhood in the Post- Soviet Era, edited by Gerard Libaridian (Watertown,
Mass.: Blue Crane Books, 1991), 107-111.*

Recommended Reading:
• Stephen Astourian, “From Ter-Petrosian to Kocharian: Leadership Change in Armenia,”
(Berkeley, 2001-2002), 1-64.*

Thursday: (No class, Thanksgiving holiday)

WEEK 11 (DEC. 3 AND 6): (No Class; I will be at a conference in Tokyo)

FINAL EXAM DUE DECEMBER 12 BY ELECTRONIC SUBMISSION

(QUESTIONS WILL BE PROVIDED TO YOU TWO WEEKS IN ADVANCE)