LOS ANGELES — Scholars from Italy, Mexico, France, Armenia, England, Portugal, Holland, Germany, and the United States will gather on October 12-13 at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) to participate in a major conference, “Diaspora and ‘Stateless Power’: Social Discipline and Identity Formation across the Armenian Diaspora during the Long Twentieth Century,” marking the 45th anniversary of the founding of the Society for Armenian Studies. The two-day conference also honors, the preeminent scholar of Diaspora Studies in general and the Armenian Diaspora in particular.
The conference is free and open to the public and will take place in Rolfe Hall, Room 1200 on the UCLA campus.
The conference is co-sponsored by the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, the Richard Hovannisian Endowed Chair in Modern Armenian History (UCLA), the Narekatsi Chair in Armenian Studies (UCLA), the Meghrouni Family Presidential Chair (University of California, Irvine), the Institute of Armenian Studies (University of Southern California), the Armenian Studies Program (California State University, Fresno), the Armenian Studies Program (California State University, Northridge) and the National Association for Armenian Studies and Research (NAASR).
The themes covered during the conference include Armenian Immigrants in the Transnational Context, Social Memory and Cultural Production in the Armenian Diaspora; Institutions, Governmentality and the Shaping of Armenian Diasporic Diversities; Armenian Communities in the Middle East, and (Soviet) Armenian-Diasporic Relations. A special panel is dedicated to the Armenian Diaspora Survey Project organized by the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation. Tölölyan will deliver the keynote speech titled “From the Study of Diasporas to Diaspora Studies.”
Tölölyan is one of the founders of the field of diaspora studies and the founding editor of the prestigious journal Diaspora: A Journal of Transnational Studies, a Zoryan Institute publication. Initially published by Oxford University Press, Diaspora is currently published by the University of Toronto Press. Tölölyan established the basis of Armenian Diaspora Studies and played a leading role in examining the Armenian Diaspora from a theoretical perspective.
The SAS 45th Anniversary Banquet, sponsored by the Organization of Istanbul Armenians, will be held on Saturday, October 12, at the Organization of Istanbul Armenians Banquet Hall located at 19726 Sherman Way in Winnetka. During the Banquet the Society for Armenian Studies will honor its past presidents: Nina Garsoïan, Avedis K. Sanjian, Richard G. Hovannisian, Robert Thomson, Ronald G. Suny, Kevork Bardakjian, Dickran Kouymjian, Robert Hewsen, Dennis Papazian, Joseph Kechichian and Barlow Der Mugrdechian.