Ambivalence to Things Armenian in Middle Eastern Studies and the War on Artsakh in 2020. (August 2022) - Der Matossian, Bedross
Abstract : For decades Armenian studies has been marginalized in Middle Eastern, Turkish, Iranian, and Ottoman studies for political and ideological reasons. 1 Ignorance and reluctance to understand the field also have contributed to this marginalization. Some scholars viewed the field as an archaic one, remote from the above-mentioned fields. Whereas some only thought of Armenian studies as part of Caucasian studies, others did not want to be associated with Armenian studies due to its research focus on the Armenian Genocide, concerned that any such association might endanger their access to the Ottoman archives or be tainted as advocating an "Armenian point of view." However, in the past two decades the situation has started to change, as a new generation of young scholars, few in number and mostly based in the West (with a few in Turkey), have embarked on diverse research projects to understand the history and the culture of the Armenians in the Ottoman Empire, Iran, and the Arab Middle East. Although these have only scratched the surface, they should be welcomed as an honest approach to understanding the history and contribution of the Armenians to the region that goes beyond the approach of "good Armenian, bad Armenian" that was endemic to Ottoman and Turkish studies during the Cold War period. 2 Although the new trend tends to concentrate on the 19th and early 20th centuries, it should be considered a welcome step.