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Educational Programs of the Museum of Folk Arts in Beirut and the First Folk Master from the Diaspora

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From April 3 to 13, 2025, the Hovhannes Sharambeyan Museum of Folk Arts was on a working visit to Beirut, where it carried out educational programs and awarded the title of “Folk Master” to the first recipient from the Armenian Diaspora.

At the invitation of Haigazian University, the Museum implemented educational programs in Beirut for the fourth time. Gayane Aslanyan, Deputy Director for Development, and woodcarving master Vahe Mnatsakanyan visited Beirut to lead the activities. As part of the Museum’s educational platform, artistic woodcarving workshops were held for students of Armenian schools in Beirut. It is worth mentioning that in previous years, the programs focused on Armenian carpet weaving and blacksmithing.

The first master from the Diaspora to be awarded the “Folk Master” certificate is 94-year-old Zaven Gazandjian. The awarding process was recently updated, allowing masters not only from Armenia but also from the Diaspora to apply. Remarkably, Mr. Gazandjian is a third-generation representative of a coppersmithing family. He also donated to the Museum a copper tray crafted by his grandfather Hovhannes Gazandjian in Urfa, dated 1905.
The Museum extends its gratitude to Mr. Gazandjian and to Dr. Andranik Dakessian, Director of the Armenian Diaspora Research Center at Haigazian University.

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Barekendan

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Barekendan is an Armenian folk festival that is movable, as it is associated with the celebration of Holy Resurrection. Its duration is two weeks, with the second week being called Bun Barekendan. The festival is characterized by communal singing and dancing, feasts, games, and amusements, mask-wearing performances, the overturning of traditional societal norms, diverse and hearty food, and more. Being movable, the celebration took place in February or early March and was linked to the arrival of spring. The amusements had the purpose of joyfully greeting the awakening nature, and people wished each other a good life. The performances had a carnival-like nature, with masks, and the roles were imitations of real-life people and events. The presentations were grouped around themes of daily life, history, ethnoculture, love, and value systems.
Until the early 20th century, Barekendan was one of the most beloved holidays among Armenians, accompanied by masquerades, games, and dances. In the early 20th century, Barekendan was interrupted, but it shared many similarities with the masquerade traditions of European and Slavic peoples.
As an intangible cultural heritage, this celebration can have a positive influence on relationships within communities, different groups in society, and individuals, fostering friendship, closeness, and respect. At the same time, it promotes the development of festivals, bringing Armenian culture closer to its historically and civilizationally native culture and contributing to the formation of public leisure.

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Armenia’s Participation in the 38th Surajkund International Crafts Festival

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Armenia participated in the 38th Surajkund International Crafts Festival and Fair, held from February 7 to 23 in Faridabad, India.
Every year, the Folk Arts Museum takes part in this event with the support of the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture, and Sports of the Republic of Armenia.
The museum’s artisans – Armenuhi Khachatryan, Marine Gharibyan, and Taguhi Asatryan – showcased a variety of Armenian handicrafts and conducted masterclasses for visitors of different ages interested in Armenian craftsmanship.
The Armenian pavilion won second prize in the “Best Foreign Pavilion” category. The award was presented to the museum’s master embroiderer, Armenuhi Khachatryan, by India’s Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs, Manohar Lal Khattar.
Armenian artisans also held doll-making and carpet-weaving masterclasses at the Armenian Embassy in India for the wives of ambassadors and diplomats from various countries, as well as for expatriates and locals living in India. Additionally, they presented materials about Armenia’s culture and history.

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On the Etymology of the Nicknames of the Ritual Doll Narin/Nurin

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EMMA PETROSYAN
One of the rituals to call for rain in drought consider to make a doll of the Bride of the Rain, lead it around the village (from house to house) with sing, dance and ask for food to feed” it. The nickname Bride of the Rain is possible to interpret as the Bride of the Thunderer.
The ceremony ends with a meal for the participants and the drowning of the doll as a connection with the Bridegroom – the Rain.
This plot is called “Heavenly Wedding in the Indo-European mythology”. The main name of the doll usual is considered Narin/Nurin.
The semantic of the name Narin/Nurin is Indo-European or Nostr. – * ner/* nor and associates with the female mythological creature. The etymology of the name goes back to Nostr. * nara – ‘fire’ or Hitt. Nara (from ancient Greek Nereus) – * narin> nurin – ‘sea nymph’, ‘bride’. Probably, the secret her name is the Goddess of fertility, Mother Earth. Different districts have their own way of making dolls: they dress up a broom for a bride, wrap a ladle, a spoon, tiе sticks or a bundle of straw crosswise, or dress up a girl or an adult․ The objects from which the dolls made, give them the name as a nickname – an obvious name, as is the case in the mythology of many peoples. The nickname of the Chamcha Khatun doll, as the double of ‘ladle, large spoon’ and Khatun ‘Mistress’.
The nickname Soup Doll refers to the object from which the doll is made. The nickname Khurdzkululu is derived from khurdz – ‘sheaf’ and kululu (el) ‘bunch’, that is, ‘bundle’ of straw. Such is the broom. Variants of the names of the doll Kashuk, Gudza, Koti / Godi, Chomcha, Chomcha kelen indicate the identity of the objects from which the doll is made and the names of the ritual porridge, as well as the portion size. This way builts the semantic series of nicknames (codes) of the goddess Narin / Nurin.
According to the chronology of the plots of Indo-European mythology, the forming of the ritual of the Great Goddess relation to water and fire belongs to the third chronological level of the 8th-6thMillenniumB.C.
The geography of the myth indicates that it originates in the Middle East among the early Indo-Europeans, and the Great Goddess took over the functions of the Virgin of Creation, providing fertility and abundance.
http://www.old.ysu.am/files/05E_Petrosyan.pdf

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Handmade Works of Armenian Craftsmen at the Spittelberg Christmas Market

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Armenia is participating in the Spittelberg Christmas Market in Vienna with a separate pavilion.
Until December 23, the Armenian pavilion will display the handmade works of about 40 masters: samples of woodwork, embroidery, felting, pottery, doll making, and souvenirs.
The Museum of Folk Arts, which has been engaged in the preservation and popularization of intangible cultural heritage for many years, participated in the organization of the pavilion. The Museum has extensive experience in ensuring the representation of the country on various international platforms. Back in 2023, Armenia participated for the first time in the Strasbourg Christmas Market, widely known in Europe, presenting the handmade works of Armenian masters.
The program is implemented by the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sports of the Republic of Armenia, jointly with the Yerevan Municipality, with the support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Armenia, in cooperation with the Cultural Development Foundation, the Museum of Folk Arts and the Fastex Company.
The aim is to promote Armenia’s cultural heritage and to increase the country’s visibility.
The Spittelberg Christmas Market in the Austrian capital of Vienna has been held since the 1970s in one of the historic districts of Vienna. It is one of the most famous Christmas markets in Vienna, attracting thousands of visitors every year. The market takes place on the pedestrian streets of Spittelberggasse, Gutenberggasse and Schrankgasse in the Spittelberg district of Vienna, which are distinguished by their beautiful architecture and festive atmosphere.

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The 6th Conference on Epic Studies

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In total, more than 100 researchers from Armenia, the USA, the Russian Federation, India, Iran, Georgia, Abkhazia, Germany, France, Great Britain, Holland, Serbia, as well as from the autonomous republics of North Ossetia-Alania, Chechnya, Adygea, Dagestan, Kalmykia, and Udmurtia participated in the six international epic conferences held in Armenia.
The 1st International Epic Conference was held in Tsakhkadzor from November 4 to 6, 2003. The conference was called “The Armenian “Sasna Tsrer” Epic and the World Epic Heritage”, and was organized by the joint initiative of two institutes of the NAS of the Republic of Armenia: the Institute of Literature named after M. Abeghyan and the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography, as well as with the assistance of the National Commission of Armenia for UNESCO.
The second conference was held 3 years later, on June 23-24, 2006 in Tsaghkadzor and Talin, with a slightly changed title: “The Armenian Folk Epic and the World Epic Heritage”, and this time with the support of the Government of the Republic of Armenia, but again at the initiative of the same institutes.
The 3rd Conference on Epic Studies was organized by the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography of the RA National Academy of Sciences and the Research Center for Armenian Literature of the Armenian-Russian (Slavonic) University, and was held in Yerevan from November 12 to 14, 2009, under the title “The Armenian Folk Epic and the World Epic Heritage”.
The 4th Conference on Epic Studies was held again in Tsaghkadzor in 2012, оctober 8-10, this time only at the initiative of the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography, but like the previous three conferences, mainly through the efforts of Professor Azat Yeghiazaryan. The conference had a special thematic focus – it was dedicated to the epics of the Armenian and Caucasian peoples and the connections between them.
The 5th Conference was held from October 11 to 13, 2017 at the Slavonic University, the organizers were the Armenian-Russian (Slavonic) University, the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography of the NAS of the Republic of Armenia and the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).
After a seven-year break, the 6th International Conference took place, this time under the title “Epic, Identity and Culture”, at the initiative of the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography and with the support of the All-Armenian Fund for Armenological Studies. The conference was dedicated to the 150th anniversary of the publication of the first known story of the epic, “David of Sasun or the Door of Mher”, which in fact marked the one and a half century anniversary of the scientific study of “Sasna Tsrer”.

«Ոչ նյութական մշակութային ժառանգությունը և թանգարանները».jpg

“Intangible Cultural Heritage and Museums”

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From September 12 to 14, a three-day training course on “Intangible Cultural Heritage and Museums” was held, organized by the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture, and Sports of the Republic of Armenia in cooperation with the Tehran Center for Regional Studies on Intangible Cultural Heritage of Western and Central Asia under the auspices of UNESCO.

Staff from various Armenian museums participated in the training, gaining new insights into the preservation of intangible cultural heritage, particularly with the involvement of local communities to maintain living heritage within museum environments. The course offered methodological guidance for professionals on the preservation, appreciation, transmission, and promotion of intangible cultural heritage in museums.

The course was opened with welcoming remarks from Astghik Marabyan, Head of the Department of Cultural Heritage of the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sport of Armenia, Atousa Momeni, Director General of the Tehran Center, and Janet Blake, UNESCO international consultant and course trainer.

The training took place at the Hovhannes Sharambeyan Folk Arts Museum and the Yeghegnadzor Regional Museum, conducted by UNESCO experts Janet Blake and Joanna Orr. The course also included a virtual presentation by Rustam Muzaffarov, Deputy Chairman of the National Commission on Intangible Cultural Heritage of Kazakhstan, who shared Kazakhstan’s experience in safeguarding intangible cultural heritage in museums. Participants also learned about research outcomes from Lucimara Letelier, Deputy Director of the International Council of Museums (ICOM), based on her research in Brazil, with footage prepared specifically for the course. Additionally, there were workshops on carpet weaving and gata baking.

It is worth noting that Armenia, in collaboration with UNESCO’s Tehran Center, organized two international courses in 2017 and 2019 focused on preserving intangible cultural heritage within communities and preparing international applications. This current training represented another significant initiative within this ongoing cooperation aimed at furthering the field.

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Opening of the Second International Crafts Festival

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RA Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sports Zhanna Andreasyan took part in the opening of the second International Crafts Festival in Dilijan, which was held by the Folk Arts Museum after Hovhannes Sharambeyan on July 20-21 with the support of the Ministry.

The minister got acquainted with the handicrafts made by Armenian and international masters. Welcoming the participants and guests of the festival, Zhanna Andreasyan emphasized that folk crafts and art are important values of our identity and culture, the preservation and development of which is an issue of the day.

” I am sure that with the help of such festivals, we can make visible folk crafts, which are an integral part of our culture, and through which we can see an important layer of both values and work. It’s also about reinventing our traditions, which is also very important. Handicrafts are first of all work, and we encourage work, education and importance for folk crafts to continue. Moreover, in the modern world, they take interesting forms, becoming truly a work of art” said Zhanna Andreasyan and thanked all the masters participating in the festival for their cooperation and invaluable work.

Zhanna Andreasyan informed that the next Crafts Festival will be held this fall in Vayots Dzor region. The minister happily stated that the participation of international masters in the festival held in our country is gradually increasing. In particular, representatives from Serbia, Bulgaria, Iran, Georgia and other countries are participating in the festival this year.

Zhanna Andreasyan also thanked the administration of the Hovhannes Sharambeyan Museum of Folk Arts for the important activity and emphasized the importance of the early reopening of the museum’s Dilijan branch. As part of the visit to Dilijan, Minister Zhanna Andreasyan also visited the Dilijan branch of the museum, where renovation works are being carried out with state funding. Zhanna Andreasyan got acquainted with the progress of the works, which are in the final stage.

Lusine Toroyan, director of Hovhannes Sharambeyan Museum of Folk Arts, expressed her hope that the International Crafts Festival will become a popular event for artists from the region as well as from all over the world.

Within the framework of the festival, various samples of crafts and arts were presented in the city park of Dilijan: embroidery, unique works made of wood and metal, carpets, jewelry, dolls, pottery, etc.

About 40 craftsmen from Armenia and abroad participated in the festival, displaying their handicrafts. Zhanna Andreasyan also emphasized the participation of Gyumri blacksmiths in the festival, taking into account the fact that Gyumri’s blacksmithing tradition was included in the UNESCO list of intangible cultural heritage of humanity.

The first International Crafts Festival was held in 2022 in Gyumri.

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Blacksmithing master classes in Lebanon

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May 11-23, on the initiative of Haykazyan University and with the participation of the Museum of Folk Arts, 15 Armenian schools in Lebanon (Beirut, Antilias, Anchar) held master classes in Armenian blacksmithing.
The program was held with the participation of Gayane Aslanyan, Deputy Director of Museum Development, and Gyumri blacksmith Hovhannes Mnoyan.
For the 3rd year, the Museum of Folk Arts has been conducting folk crafts master classes for the students of the Armenian schools of Beirut, at the invitation of Haykazian University of Beirut, represented by Andranik Dakesyan, director of the University’s Armenian Diaspora Study Center.
The master classes, implemented in cooperation between the Museum of Folk Arts and Haykazian University of Beirut, are held within the museum’s “Identity Lab” school.
Let’s remind that “Tradition of blacksmithing in Gyumri” was registered in the list of intangible cultural heritage of UNESCO in 2023.

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“The Birth of Crafts”: animation films

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Supported by the RA Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sports, the presentation of the program “The Birth of Crafts” was held at Hovhannes Sharambeyan Museum of Folk Art.
ESCS Minister Zhanna Andreasyan and Deputy Minister Alfred Kocharyan attended the event.
As part of the project, 6 short animation films were created, which depict the crafts used in Armenia from ancient times to the present day: rug and carpet weaving, embroidery and lace making, felting, pottery, blacksmithing, and woodworking.
ESCS Minister Zhanna Andreasyan thanked the participating structures, groups and individuals for the outstanding effort: “Work is successful when a healthy creative environment is provided in which everyone is concerned about a good outcome. The result of this project requires the field to remain consistently in the spotlight, disseminating knowledge about folk art on both international platforms and among the general public. The program can also serve as an outstanding educational resource for schools. This will enhance the visibility and comprehension of textbook knowledge for our children. I would like to express my special gratitude to our folk artists, whose work we must make visible. I am glad that thanks to the successful collaboration with the museum, their work is gaining value and significance.”
Zhanna Andreasyan emphasized that the Ministry is willing to promote concepts meant to disseminate and popularize the national.
The film series is dedicated to the 20th anniversary of the UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage and is represented under the UNESCO logo.
Specialists of the “Invisible Friends” animation studio from different countries worked on creating bilingual films in Armenian and English: Armenia, Russia, Georgia, Israel, and France.
When producing the visual content for the films, both the collections of Hovhannes Sharambeyan Museum of Folk Art and the History Museum of Armenia, along with the personal archives of individual masters were used.
As part of the event, the ceremony of cutting a carpet of the Khndzoresk type dedicated to the 45th anniversary of the Museum was also held. It was weaved by Margarita Khachyan, forcibly displaced from Nagorno-Karabakh, who has been working at the Museum of Folk Art since 2023. The newly created museum choir “Manel” also performed at the event.
Accompanied by Museum Director Lusine Toroyan, Minister Zhanna Andreasyan toured the museum and got acquainted with the main exhibits, temporary exhibitions and educational programs.