Arslan, Antonia

Antonia Arslan was born in 1938 in the north of Italy in the city of Padua . Received its name in honor of the patron saint of Padua - St. Anthony of Padua . Her grandfather Yervant Arslanian (1865-1949) was a famous otolaryngologist . He was born in Kharberd , at the age of 13 he moved to Italy, graduated from the Murad Rafaelyan Armenian College in Venice , then the University of Padua . Already in Italy, he, like many Armenians living abroad, shortened his last name, removing the last syllable from it ^[2] .

Antonia Arslan graduated from Padua University , where she received an archeological diploma. After some time, she devoted herself entirely to the study of Italian literature of the New Age. Inspired by the poems of the Armenian poet Daniela Varouzhan , based on family memories, she began writing books about the Armenian genocide ^[3] . Being a professor of modern Italian literature and a master of ethnography, he successfully performs at universities in Europe and the USA with various lectures and seminars ^[4] .

In September 2010, the Ministry of Culture of Armenia, for outstanding creative achievements in the field of Armenian culture, art and literature, awarded Anthony Arslan the Movses Khorenatsi medal ^[4] .

Italian Theme

The main theme of Anthony Arslan's research was first the genre of the Italian “folk novel” of the 19th century (stories from everyday life, which were published as appendices to the periodical press). After that, she drew attention to the practically unexplored stratum of Italian literature: the work of female writers and gradually published a whole series of forgotten or generally unknown texts. She wrote articles and monographs devoted to the works of Italian writers Dino Buzzati , Carlo Goldoni , Enrico Pea ^[2] , as well as translations of works by Paul Verlaine , Arthur Rambeau , Pierre Lamartin , Victor Hugo and many others. Thanks to her research, the works of such forgotten in modern Italy writers of the second half of the XIX century , such as Matilda Cerao , Countess Lara, Marquis Colombi, Vittoria Aganur , Neera ^[5], were republished.

Armenian Theme

The works of the writer often present Armenian themes. Antonia Arslan translated a number of artistic and scientific works of Armenian authors into Italian . Some of them were included in the school curriculum for home reading, others were enrolled in school libraries ^[6] . As a writer, she became widely known after the release of the novel “ The Lark Manor ” , which tells about the family of Uncle Antonia Arslan, who was in the epicenter of the Armenian Genocide. The novel was translated into 20 languages ^[2] , after which famous directors Taviani brothers filmed it under the name “ Lark 's Nest ” ^[5] . Immediately after the release, the book was among the finalists of the prestigious literary awards in Italy, and today it has been awarded 15 literary awards ^[6] . The monograph entitled “The Way to Smyrna” continued the theme of the Armenian Genocide in her work. The tragedy of the Armenian people has also become the main storyline of the book “Mush Homiliarius” (or “Mush Preaching”), which tells about the history of the ancient Armenian manuscript. Antonia Arslan has written unpublished ballads in Armenian, relating to the tragic history of Armenians. Together with the French historian Claude Mutafyan, she published a booklet and a collection of testimonies of compatriots “Silence. Italian Voices of Surviving Armenians ” dedicated to the genocide ^[5] .

• Award Stresa di Narrativa (2004) ^[3]
• Nomination for the Campielo Prize (2004) ^[3]
• Manzoni Award (2005) ^[3]
• PEN Club International Award (2005) ^[6]
• Movses Khorenatsi Medal (2010) ^[4]

• Ladies, dope and chicken. Italian folk novel at the turn of the XVIII and XIX centuries.
• Ladies, hens and queens. Italian "women's literature" at the turn of the XVIII and XIX centuries.
• “Husher. Memory. Italian evidence of genocide survivors "(2001) - in collaboration with Laura Pisanello
• Manor House
• Mushsky homilarium
• Way to Smyrna
• Silence. Italian voices of surviving Armenians

Fiction

• 1992 - collection of poems "The Song of Bread" ( D.Varuzhan )
• 1995 - collection of poems "The Sea of ​​Ears" ( D.Varuzhan )

Nonfiction

• 1995 - “Metz Yeghern. A Brief History of the Armenian Genocide "(with K. Mutafyan )
• 2003 - “The History of Armenians” ( J. Dedeyan )
• 2003 - “The History of the Armenian Genocide. National conflicts from the Balkans to the Caucasus "( V.Dadryan )

• " The Lark 's Nest " (2007) - the film by the Taviani brothers , based on the novel "The Lark Manor"