On March 21st, 17 students from New York University’s Abu Dhabi campus attended lectures at CRRC Armenia as part of their Spring School Program in Ethnography. The students came from countries and regions including the Czech Republic, South Korea, Iran, United States, Palestine, Argentina, Ethiopia, Singapore and Azerbaijan. They spent 3 days in Armenia with the goal of contemplating how Armenian identity was created and how it is expressed today. Political expert Alexander Iskandaryan of the Caucasus Institute gave a lecture about the current political situation in the country in light of the forthcoming elections. Dr. Levon Abrahamian of the Institute of Anthropology and Archaeology at Armenia’s National Academy of Sciences spoke on the issue of the Karabagh movement and national identity. Also, CRRC Armenia Country Director, Dr. Heghine Manasyan discussed socio-economic developments in Armenia during the transition period.

In addition to the lecture series, Professor Georgi Derluguian of Northwestern University in the United States (currently teaching at NYU in Abu Dhabi) guided the students on several field trips in order to give them hands-on experience to aid their studies. The group visited various sites in Yerevan such as the Central Bazaar and Sergei Paradjanov Museum in order to make ethnographic observations. On the final day of their visit, the students ventured into the countryside to see several cultural monuments including the Geghard monastery and excavated site of Erebuni fortress, where local experts gave lectures on the history of the sites. During their trip, the students were encouraged to think about the role of history in the formation of modern Armenian identity. 

Students at Garni