July 7, 2021 marks the centenary of the martyrdom of the namesake of Haigazian University, Rev. Prof. Armenag Haigazian (1870 – 1921, Hadjin) who died in Harpoot, Turkey, on July 7, 1921.
Regarded as “the most prominent Armenian educator in the Near East” by the New York Times, Armenag Haigazian was a theologian, educator, scientist, linguist and musician, who earned his B.A. degree from the Central Turkey College, Aintab, in 1889 at the age of nineteen, and his Ph.D. from the Graduate School of Yale University in 1898, at the age of twenty eight.
Rev. Prof. Armenag Haigazian was arrested in Konya by the Kemalist forces in May 1921, and died in Harpoot on July 7, 1921 after suffering from typhus during his forcible deportation, and intentional delayed medical treatment.
Years later, in 1955, to honor the great memory of this exemplary man, with a donation by his daughter Mary and son-in-law Avak (Steven) Mehagian, and the help of Stephen Philibosian, Haigazian University was founded in Beirut, Lebanon, by the Union of the Armenian Evangelical Churches in the Near East (UAECNE) and the Armenian Missionary Association of America (AMAA). It was named after him!
Haigazian University which now celebrates the 66th year of its founding, honors the centenary of the martyrdom of its namesake through a series of hybrid events in Lebanon and Armenia.
On July 7th a musical video clip “Hov Arek” by Gomidas, performed by Lebanese guitarist Megerdich Mikayelian and Armenian Soprano Lianna Mikayelian will be launched on the University’s official online platforms, special story feature on the legacy of Armenag Haigazian will be broadcasted on a local and satellite channels, in addition to a memorial event to take place at the Genocide Museum and Dzizernagapert, Yerevan.
Read more on Armenag Haigazian on this link https://www.haigazian.edu.lb/about-haigazian/our-history-heritage/
Mira Yardemian
Public Relations Director