PARRHESİAPAR

PARRHESİAPAR

Seeking Wholeness in a New Life: Boundaries and Fine Lines
Ecosomatic practices, which are also experiential learning practices, are being widely used globally by experts in various fields—in addition to dance—such as psychology, education, art therapy, healing architectural design, and climate activism. This is because they develop skills like sensory awareness and empathy, and can help re-establish the lost connection with the 'Other.'
24 November 2025
One Kilo of Almonds, One Block Down
One hot summer afternoon, my father asked me to bring back “one kilo of almonds,” (noush in Armenian). I was to try our local grocers first, but if I couldn't find any, I had permission to go to Nor Marash. My wish had finally been granted. That day, I gained the opportunity to cross the avenue that was otherwise off-limits to my nine-year-old self. I entered the first shop with enthusiasm. Noticing that no one was speaking Armenian, I simply said, “Baddi kilo noush” (one kilo of noush in Arabic), not realizing that “noush” was not an Arabic word.
9 November 2025
Hair, Body, and Power
Photographs showing Armenian women with long, braided hair were mostly taken before 1915. After that date, in cities such as Aleppo, Beirut, Jerusalem, Alexandria, Cyprus, Syros, Athens, Piraeus, and elsewhere, surviving Armenian women, orphans and widows alike, appear with their hair cut short or completely shaved. The hair of children, in particular, was often shaven off. Cutting the hair of women and young girls was seen as a precaution against an invisible threat.
26 October 2025
“An Apology for Armenian Feminism”
Every March 8, various events are held on the Ottoman Armenian women’s movement, and over the years a considerable number of books and opinion pieces have been published about these pioneering writers. Yet I must admit — and this forms the first reason for my “apology” — that their literary production has largely been overshadowed by their life stories.
12 October 2025
Remembering that we are weavers
Hratch Kozibeyokian was born into weaving. His father learned carpet weaving from the surviving women weavers of Kaghtagayan in Aleppo. In 1977, Hratch came from Beirut to California, where he continued the profession of carpet restoration with his father. When Hratch began to take carpets from his collection and “read” their stories one by one, I realized how deprived we are of such fundamental knowledge, and how no amount of listening would ever feel enough. He would look at a single carpet and see an entire lifetime.
26 September 2025
Life-Giving Stories, Fermented Memories
What I remember most vividly about my grandma Koharig is her restlessness and her extraordinary talent for preparing food. She could bring together whatever was available at home and make a delicious meal. She gave meaning to her life by constantly cooking and feeding her loved ones (sometimes forcefully). Maybe that was her way of telling the family stories she couldn't put into words. Ursula K. Le Guin, in her essay The Carrier Bag Theory of Fiction, opened a critical window onto the notion of the hero in literature. Instead of heroic narratives that often devolve into destructive power over time, she proposed carrier narratives. She reminded us that the first cultural tool wasn’t a weapon for killing, but a bag used to carry and preserve. This view, supported by anthropologist Elizabeth Fisher, places survival, nourishment, and transformation at the center of narrative.
6 July 2025
The Safety of Being Unseen
My paternal grandfather Istepan survived 1915 in Tokat-Erbaa with the help of some young female relatives and neighbours. Disguised in girls’ clothing and with mud smeared on his face, he was saved thanks to the words “Don’t take that one, she’s ugly.” He became the only surviving member of his six-sibling family at the age of seven. My maternal grandfather Sarkis was born into a family of basket weavers and farmers in Sinop-Gerze. He grew up without learning Armenian, underlined with the importance of hiding his identity. When I asked him about his memories, he would at first hesitate, then recall the beauty of his village’s nature, and eventually recount uncomfortable stories.
22 June 2025
Waiting
Arek Khachikian was born in 1895 in the village of Khachaluys, “the light of the Cross,” in the town of Khnus, present-day Hinis. She was from a respected family and excelled at the village school. As a girl she was betrothed to a young man from a prosperous family. As fate would have it, though, an unfortunate accident left her lame and caused that good family to reconsider the match. Fortunately, a nice boy named Sako, from a poor family, stepped in and consented to marry her. In 1915, the gendarmes killed Sako and beheaded his and Arek’s two little boys.
6 June 2025
From Konya Ereğli to Istanbul: My Grandmother’s Story
Her story in Ereğli ended when she got married at the age of 17 and moved to Istanbul with my grandfather. At that time, Armenian families would marry off their daughters at a young age to Armenian men to protect them. That’s how my grandmother got married and came to Istanbul for the first time—for her own wedding.
25 May 2025
A Violin, A Marriage, and a Century-Long Life
This article was written for the exhibition re-membering: Traces of Armenian Life in the Diaspora, held at the Villa Oppenheim, Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf Museum in Berlin. The exhibition was organized in collaboration between the Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf Museum, Akebi, and Houshamadyan. Upon Tamar Sarkissian’s invitation, I contributed a family heirloom violin and photographs to the exhibition curated by Asuman Kırlangıç — and now, we share their story with our readers.
11 May 2025
Reflections on Wasafiri’s Armenia(n)s: Elevation Issue II: Realizing We Have a Living Literature
Of course, in modern Armenian literature, it is impossible to overlook the traumas experienced by writers and poets, their sense of displacement, or the traces of their personal histories within their works. And yet, the fact that classical and modern Western Armenian works are still examined primarily through the lens of author biographies, whether in Istanbul or elsewhere, prevents the literature itself from receiving the recognition it deserves. In this way, a deep-rooted and rich literary tradition is reduced, in the Western gaze, to a mere struggle for visibility. What’s more troubling is that this perspective is not only held in the West but is also increasingly internalized within today’s Istanbul Armenian community.
27 April 2025
Reflecting upon Wasafiri's 'Armenia(n)s: Elevation' - Language and Culture
Wasafiri approached this as one of the central themes of its issue. One of the most striking texts was the lead feature titled “Two Armenians Conversing in Two Armenians” by Tamar Marie Boyadjian and Hrach Martirosyan, translated into English by Maral Aktokmakyan. The conversation opens with an editorial note acknowledging the division of the Armenian language into two variants—close enough to be mutually intelligible, yet distant enough to create alienation. In this dialogue, Boyadjian and Martirosyan, each speaking one of the two variants, find common ground in their shared love for the language and its literary heritage.
13 April 2025
The Angels of History: Our Grandmothers
The relationship between yayas born outside of Istanbul and the Armenian language was also highly intriguing. Some never learned Armenian, while others, speaking in local dialects, were shamed for it. The mistaken belief that Istanbul Armenian was the ideal and most beautiful version of the language played an active role in the rapid loss of these local dialects. The stories of our friends’ yayas in the diaspora are different from ours. The grandmothers of Armenians who migrated from Cilicia to the Aleppo-Beirut route or those who immigrated to the United States carry narratives distinct from those who remained in Turkey
28 March 2025
The Istanbulite Armenian woman as a performative idol
The expected performance of an Istanbulite Armenian woman includes setting up tables during name days, hosting relatives, cooking well, being the one who brings the extended family together, keeping the house constantly clean and organized, and always being well-groomed and stylish. In other words, the Istanbulite Armenian woman must be a type of person beyond perfection!
2 March 2025
February 14 and Armenian Holidays
This year, Diyarnıntaraç will be celebrated on February 14, while the Surp Sarkis Feast will take place on February 15. I’m not sure if these holidays can be associated with St. Valentine, but for Armenians, these days represent not only hope, fertility, marriage, and purification but also have connections to the land and crops.
13 February 2025
Leaving a colorful mark on the future
As January 19th approaches, the children who participated in the "Breathing with Colors" event held at Sebat Apartment will remember Sarkis’ works, which offer profound meanings to viewers, even years from now. The 23.5 Hrant Dink Memory Site was opened to visitors in 2019 at Agos newspaper’s former office in Sebat Apartment. Designed with the memory and symbolic significance of the building in mind, the space offers visitors a unique emotional and experiential journey with the realistic texture of its materials.
23 January 2025
Gathering around New Year and Christmas tables
Beyond its historical and religious meanings, Christmas in Armenian culture is a celebration that upholds traditional and societal values. These traditions have been carried on in various forms for years in the lands of Anatolia, Mesopotamia, and Thrace.While traces of regional customs can still be seen in the homes of Armenians in Istanbul, some traditions, unfortunately, have faded over time.
31 December 2024
Aleppo’s Forty Martyrs Armenian Cathedral: A Testament to the Syrian Armenian Community
It is noteworthy that the recorded presence of Armenians in Syria dates back to the 14th century, and by 1500, the prelacy was established in the vicinity of the Cathedral. In 1616, during his visit to Aleppo, Simon of Poland recounts the situation of this prelacy and the Armenian community, particularly noting the Armenian merchants. It is well-known from Armenian history that Armenians have always established educational centers alongside their monasteries and churches. Thus, a school was built next to the Cathedral, which became an important center for the arts and sciences.
22 December 2024
A Never- Ending Search: Where Is Home?
The independent theater group Hangardz brought Saroyan’s play My Heart’s in the Highlands to life under the direction of Tara Demircioğlu and Yeğya Akgün, delivering a performance that deeply moved audiences and earned accolades. For nearly three seasons, it graced various stages in Istanbul. After the group’s tour in Armenia, the idea for the documentary emerged, revisiting themes explored in the play, such as belonging, roots, longing for home, and a sense of safety.
8 December 2024
‘Unufak’: Displaced Lives, Fragmented Narratives
In his debut novel Unufak, Rober Koptaş attempts to touch upon the suffering and devastating societal events experienced by the Armenian community of the 20th century through a story crafted across three generations.
24 November 2024
If We Live, We Will See
Weeks ago, when the Israeli army ordered the people of the south via X (formerly Twitter) to leave their homes and 'relocate to safer places,' large numbers of refugees arrived in our areas. Zaven, a clothing vendor friend in Bourdj Hammoud, told me, 'Three women came to my shop, around 50–60 years old, dressed in black and wearing headscarves, asking if I needed workers; they’re looking for work. My heart shattered. I already don’t have work for myself; I couldn’t say anything to them.' Not long after, a woman stopped me in front of my house, asking, 'Do you know of any houses for rent?'
7 November 2024
Ankara’s first photographers
Cevahirciyan, who was an apprentice to Abdullah Brothers in Istanbul, established the first photography studio in Ankara in 1889 or 1890. Until the mid-1910s, he photographed events such as groundbreaking ceremonies of official buildings, inaugurations and official celebrations. Tsolag, one of the Dildilyan Brothers, apprenticed under Cevahirciyan, who is believed to have had a studio in Sivas before Ankara, and learnt the profession from him.
20 October 2024
Solidarity From “Women to Women” Against Gendered Violence
The International Hrant Dink Award ceremony turned into a celebration for women this year, and later created a discussion area where we could talk about ‘woman-to-woman’ solidarity models. When it comes to Armenian women living in the diaspora, there is not enough space to talk about violence against women in the public sphere. Different practices of violence against women and girls that remain behind closed doors can be buried in silence
4 October 2024
In Tribute to Haroutioun Kurkjian
Born and raised in Beirut, I have navigated the complexities of my identity, especially in relation to my Armenian neighborhood, Bourdj Hamoud. In 1968, Kurkjian delved into this existential struggle of the Diaspora Armenian in his pivotal piece, "A Second Equation with Multiple Unknowns." He poses crucial questions about the nature of Armenian identity in the Diaspora.
19 September 2024
Dog Stories and Beyond
Following Chienne d’Histoire [The Barking Island], a wordless film from the perspective of the non-human, where we only hear the dogs’ voices, Avedikian’s documentary Histoire de Chiens [Dog Stories] was screened. This documentary, focusing on the relationships between Istanbul residents and street dogs 100 years after the 1910 dog massacre, differed from the first film in that it presented people’s perspectives on their relationships with dogs. The film momentarily eased the heaviness left by the first film with its style.
12 September 2024
When I met Parrhesia Collective...
When I met Parrhesia Collective, this word gained a much more special meaning for me. Parrhesia Collective is the name of a community of women who think, speak, read and write in Armenian, different from the ancient usage of the word.
29 July 2024
Getting Stronger Together
The main theme of our meeting and the common point that brought us together was that we were all Armenian women. Although each of us had thought about, discussed, and even found opportunities to take action on the problems we face as women in society, we realized that as Armenian women, we deeply felt the lack of a space that would allow us to express these problems and seek solutions.
14 July 2024
Armenian Carpets, Migration, and Solidarity
After the massacres of the Hamidiye Regiments in the late 19th century and after 1915, with the increase in the number of orphanages, Armenian women and orphans predominantly worked in the carpet workshops established by the missionaries. Carpet weaving was a craft that some orphan girls knew from their families. This craft provided them with a space of solidarity after they had lost everything in the face of savagery. In return, they were employed as cheap labor for the companies of American and European missionaries.
30 June 2024
Madam Martha and a Tale of Speculation
Remembering the story of Martha, after whom the cove is named, may help us understand the latest developments on the beach. There seems to be a significant parallel between the perspective that objectifies and exploits a woman's body and the desire to possess and control a rare beach like Martha Cove. Martha Arat was a Lebanese Armenian woman, born in 1920. When her father was appointed to the Ottoman Bank, she came to Istanbul at a young age and attended Saint Benoit High School.
18 June 2024
Survival as a work of art
Long before 1915, Armenians had begun migrating to the United States due to abusive taxation and other oppressive policies in the provinces. The best known of these migration centers is Fresno, the hometown of William Saroyan. Another, of course, is Philadelphia. Armenian families in Philadelphia, which is still a heavily Armenian-populated city today, have numerous correspondence with their relatives living in the Ottoman provinces, photographs, and family archives documenting the daily life of Armenians at the turn of the 20th century. The exhibit “The Armenian Genocide, One Family's Story”, organized last year at Stockton and Montclair universities, was a good example of this.
6 June 2024
Fishermen and Net Mender Women of Kumkapı
The sea and fishermen form a common theme in Ara Güler's photographs of Istanbul. The exhibition of a selection of photographs taken in the old fishermen's neighborhood of Kumkapı under the title 'Kumkapı Fishermen' was inspired by Ara Güler's series of articles titled 'Kumkapı with Armenian Fishermen' published in Jamanak newspaper in 1952, taken when he was still a young photojournalist. Among his famous signature photographs of fishermen and net menders captured sometimes in groups or single, there are also women who immediately catch our eye, the most striking one being Merametci Saten Hanım.
23 May 2024
Can we illuminate our dark future?
On Wednesday, April 24th, alongside Nesim Ovadya İzrail, our memory walk with approximately twenty participants led us to a point where we encountered the memory of spaces where Armenian intellectuals, whose stories we have read in books and their photographs we have seen in commemorative ceremonies, once converged. As one participant noted, during our walk, "unlike official history, what happened appeared more real to us”.
10 May 2024