Remembering Leading Armenian Scholar, Dr. Richard G. Hovannisian

On July 10, 2023 Richard G. Hovannisian passed away at the age of 90. His scholarship on the Armenian Genocide was groundbreaking and his work to archive the testimony of survivors has been highly influential in the development of Armenian Studies programs and curriculum. His work leaves a lasting legacy that has been a gift to both historians and educators.

The son of genocide survivors, Hovannisian was born in California, November 9, 1932. This excerpt from our publication Crimes Against Humanity and Civilization: The Genocide of the Armenians, to which Hovannisian was a key contributor, shares insight into his early life:

“[He] grew up in a small Armenian community in the San Joaquin Valley of California. A dozen or so Armenian families lived in his rural town: ‘almost all farmers of small vineyards and nearly all from the same village in historic Armenia.’ Hovannisian recalls hearing Armenian women, survivors of the genocide, sharing stories of the horrors that they had witnessed. During his childhood, he was not aware of the impact these stories would have on his life.”

Hovannisian would go on to pioneer Armenian studies in the United States. Beginning his academic career in 1966 after receiving his PhD from UCLA, Hovannnisian understood that the murder of over a million Armenians represented far more than just a horrific loss of life. His work studying this history was a catalyst for increased efforts to explore the concepts of identity and membership, preserve the history and individual stories of Armenian people, and promote genocide education.

To name just some of Hovannisian’s impressive accomplishments, he was the Armenian Educational Foundation Professor Emeritus of Modern Armenian History at the University of California, Los Angeles, a Guggenehim Fellow, six-time president of the Society for Armenian Studies, and an acclaimed author. His participation in Facing History’s Board of Scholars over several decades was a critical impetus and support for the development of our curriculum and materials on the history of Armenia and the genocide of its people. 

Facing History was not alone in learning from and incorporating his scholarship. Before Hovannisian’s exploration of Armenian history, this was not a field widely taught or known. As the Armenian National Committee of America notes, “Richard Hovannisian was one of the founders of Armenian Studies as a discipline in the United States, producing numerous articles and books that are considered foundational, while also training young scholars who went on to become experts in the study of Armenia from ancient to modern times.” From the 1970s to the 2000s he and his students recorded over 1,000 interviews directly from Armenian Genocide survivors and their children and grandchildren, donating the collection to USC Shoah Foundation and helping preserve and honor thousands of years of unique culture and spirituality.

In keeping with his connection to Facing History, Hovannisian’s research did not just emphasize calamity: he also looked for the upstanders and lifted up the brave and kind acts of people who chose to help the Armenian people. He wrote, “Even in the extreme circumstances of 1915, there were thousands of Turks, Kurds, and others who opposed the persecution of the Armenians. Some of them tried to intervene. The testimony of the victims attests to the fact that kindness and solace were manifest amid the cruelty and suffering, and that the human spirit was never fully extinguished.”

Facing History was privileged to have him as a friend and advisor, and many staff fondly recall his powerful intellect and forceful advocacy for the teaching of this essential history. His focused and passionate work was defined by helping people remember. Throughout his long career he inspired new generations of academics to pursue this line of scholarship and encouraged members of the Armenian community to keep finding and sharing the stories of their families. The legacy of Richard Hovannisian will live on in the lessons he leaves behind. Truth, justice, and memory matter.

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Learn more about the Armenian Genocide and see the work of Richard G. Hovannisian in these resources:

• Book: Crimes Against Humanity and Civilization: The Genocide of the Armenians
   
• Video: Introducing the Armenian Genocide
  Scholar Richard G. Hovannisian gives an overview of the Armenian Genocide.