Kevork Ajemian
Kevork Ajemian | |
---|---|
Born | Manbij, Syria | May 23, 1932
Died | December 27, 1998 Lyon, France | (aged 66)
Occupation | Novelist, Writer, Journalist and Public activist |
Genre | Realist |
Notable works | A Speech for the Road, Ruling Over the Ruins |
Kevork Vartani Ajemian (Adjemian) (in Armenian Գևորգ Աճեմյան, in Western Armenian Գէորգ Աճեմեան) (May 23, 1932 – December 27, 1998) was a prominent Syrian-Armenian writer, journalist, novelist, theorist and public activist, and long-time publisher of the Beirut-based literary, artistic and general publication Spurk (in Armenian Սփիւռք). Ajemian was a co-founder of the Armenian Secret Army for the Liberation of Armenia (ASALA) military organization.
Biography
Ajemian was born in
Ajemian graduated from the
According to Kari S. Neely, Ajemian's writings in both Armenian and English are more like philosophical tracks than fiction and his "writing style, perhaps like his lifestyle, is aggressive and direct, never mincing words". They overtly deal with themes of diaspora's identity. In his A Perpetual Path novel Ajemian points the finger "inwardly to the Armenian people, blaming them for their past calamities".[4] Even the violence is necessary to assert your rights, because no one is going to give them to you willingly.[5]
Ajemian was one of the founders of ASALA and developed the policy of the organization. One of the most famous novels of Ajemian, The Descendants of Milky Way ("Hartkoghi zharankortnere"), is dedicated to the life of the Armenian youth in Lebanon of the 1970s. In another novel by Ajemian, "A Time for Terror" (1997), the story concerns an attempt to assassinate the head of the Armenian Liberation Army in 1980s Beirut. In 1997 the book was discussed at New York City radio.[6]
In 1979 Ajemian took part in the First Armenian Congress Organizing Committee (Paris). He died in Lyon, France, aged 66.
In 1999, a collection of the best journalistic works of Ajemian was published by ASALA.[citation needed]
Selected bibliography
In English
- Symphony in Discord, novel, Philadelphia, 1961, 128 p.,
- The Fallacy of Modern Politics, politological research, Virginia, 1986, 199 p.,
- A Time for Terror, novel, Dallas, 1997, 196 p.
- "Ruling over the Ruins", novel, United States, 1999, 262 p..
In Armenian
- Impossible Story, Beirut, 1956,
- Unsafe Streets, Yerevan, 1968, 375 p.,
- The Only Decision, Beirut, 1972, 199 p.,
- A Speech for the Road, 1999, 349 p.
- The Complete Works in Armenian, Vol I-V, Yerevan, 2012-2018[7]
References
- ^ Ruling Over the Ruins, by Kevork Ajemian, Amazon Editorial Review
- ISBN 0-8044-3135-3. p. 121
- ^ The Book Buyer's Guide, 1969, p. 38
- ^ Diasporic Representations: A Study of Circassian and Armenian Identities in Greater Syria, by Kari S. Neely, 2008 - 312 p., p. 276
- ^ Diasporic Representations: A Study of Circassian and Armenian Identities in Greater Syria, by Kari S. Neely, 2008 - 312 p., p. 272
- ^ New York Magazine, Nov 17, 1997, Vol. 30, No. 44, p. 142
- ^ "«ՍՓԻՒՌՔ» ԳԻՏԱՈՒՍՈՒՄՆԱԿԱՆ ԿԵՆՏՐՈՆԻ ԱՄԲՈՂՋԱԿԱՆ ՀՐԱՏԱՐԱԿՈՒԹԻՒՆԸ. ԳԷՈՐԳ ԱՃԵՄԵԱՆ/ 05 Հոկտեմբեր 2018". Archived from the original on 2019-08-01. Retrieved 2019-07-01.