66954 - Armenian Language and Culture (1)

Learning outcomes

By the end of the course students will have a basic knowledge of Armenian language and literature; they will have a theoretical and methodological basis and the language skills to interpret artworks and literature. They will be aware of how Armenian culture ties up and interacts with other cultures historically and geographically. They will have learnt to listen respectfully to different viewpoints, spot tie-ups with different disciplines and discuss subjects effectively with suitable bibliographic references.

Course contents

The course will introduce the Armenian history, civilisation and language. A general outline of the Armenian literature from its beginning (5th century) up to the year 1000 will be given, together with a translated selection of passages belonging to works of the same period (in Italian language). A particular attention will be paid to the Armenian alphabet (signs and sounds), to the basic elements of ancient Armenian (grabar) and to the evolution of the Armenian language. Students will also deal with the grammatical analysis and translation of a short text in grabar using dictionaries, both paper and digital. Monographic topic: the Matenadaran of Yerevan, the main Armenian manuscript library in the world.

Attendance at the lessons is strongly recommended. Those students who cannot attend the course for exceptional reasons, are invited to contact the lecturer at least six months before the exam.

Readings/Bibliography

1) G. Uluhogian, Gli armeni, Il Mulino, Bologna 2009 (rep. 2013 and 2015);

2) D. van Damme, A Short Classical Armenian Grammar, Second corrected edition, Fribourg-Göttingen 1978 (the edition is sold out, but it is available for copies at the "Giorgio Franci" Library, via Zamboni 33);

3) Chapters II and III (Pietre e geometrie e L'arte del libro) in G. Uluhogian, B.L. Zekiyan, V. Karapetian, Armenia. Impronte di una civiltà, Milano, Skira, 2011, pp. 61-113;

4) photocopies distributed during the lessons;

5) texts in electronic format.

Students who do not attend lessons are kindly requested to observe the above-mentioned indications.

Teaching methods

Frontal lessons; exercises for reading and writing the Armenian letters; exercises of grammatical analysis and translation of a short passage from ancient Armenian.

Assessment methods

Students who attend at least 75% of the lessons are considered to be attending.

The exam will be conducted orally and will assess the student's command of the material presented during the course (both cultural and linguistic matters), or referred to in the bibliography. The student can also be asked to write single words or grammatical elements using the Armenian alphabet.

Top marks will be awarded to a student displaying an ability to summarise, compare to each other and critically discuss topics raised in the course.

Average marks will be awarded to a student who has memorized the main points of the material and is able to summarise them satisfactorily, while failing to display a complete command of the appropriate terminology.

Training gaps and / or inappropriate language will lead to votes that will not exceed the sufficiency.

Training gaps, inappropriate language, lack of guidance within the materials offered during the course will lead to failed assessments.

Notice reserved for Master's degree students of the course 75680 - ARMENIAN LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE 1A (LM)

This 6 CFU course can be chosen as a part of the 12 CFU Integrated Course "Armenian Language and Literature I (C.I.) (LM)". If the student has the Integrated Course (12 CFU) in his/her study plan, the final grade will result from the arithmetic average of the marks obtained in the two parts ("Armenian Language and Literature 1A (LM)" and "Armenian Language and Literature 1B (LM)").

Teaching tools

Blackboard, photocopies and power point presentations.

Office hours

See the website of Anna Sirinian