David Barsum Kashish (1901 – 1979), better known as David Barsum Perley, was an Assyrian nationalist writer and activist. He was also known as a philosopher and nationalist who created some of the theories of

Assyrian nationalism Assyrian nationalism is a movement of the Assyrian people that advocates for Assyrian independence movement, independence or autonomy within the regions they inhabit in northern Iraq, northeastern Syria, northwestern Iran, and southeastern Turkey. ...

. Perley was originally of the

Syriac Orthodox Church The Syriac Orthodox Church (), also informally known as the Jacobite Church, is an Oriental Orthodox Christian denomination, denomination that originates from the Church of Antioch. The church currently has around 4-5 million followers. The ch ...

, and was born in

Harput Harpoot () or Kharberd () is an ancient town located in the Elazığ Province of Turkey. It now forms a small district of the city of Elazığ. p. 1. In the late Ottoman period, it fell under the Mamuret-ul-Aziz Vilayet (also known as the Harpu ...

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

Early life

Kashish was born in 1901 in

Elazığ Elazığ () is a city in the Eastern Anatolia region of Turkey, and the administrative centre of Elazığ Province and Elazığ District. Founded in and around the former city of Harput, it is located in the uppermost Euphrates valley. The plai ...

(Harput). He was a student of the Assyrian nationalist figure Ashur Yousif Kashish was a student of the Assyrian nationalist figure Ashur Yousif, and he attended the Euphrates College in Harput. His father was killed during the

Assyrian genocide The Sayfo (, ), also known as the Seyfo or the Assyrian genocide, was the mass murder and deportation of Assyrian/Syriac Christians in southeastern Anatolia and Persia's Azerbaijan province by Ottoman forces and some Kurdish tribes during ...

, and after a two-year stay in

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

, he settled in

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

. At some point, he changed his last name to Perley.

Career and activism

Perley graduated from

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a Private university, private research university in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. BU was founded in 1839 by a group of Boston Methodism, Methodists with its original campus in Newbury (town), Vermont, Newbur ...

with a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

degree in 1926 and from

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...

with a

Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...

in 1933. He practiced law in

Paterson, New Jersey Paterson ( ) is the largest City (New Jersey), city in and the county seat of Passaic County, New Jersey, Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. After the Simele massacre, Perley was left distraught and contributed to two chapters in The British Betrayal of the Assyrians. He founded the Assyrian American National Federation in response to the massacre. The notion of a British betrayal towards the Assyrians would remain a consistent theme throughout his writings. Perley was critical of the mixing of religious affiliation with ethnicity and emphasized Assyrian ethnic identity over church names, dedicating writings to defending the

Assyrian Church of the East The Assyrian Church of the East (ACOE), sometimes called the Church of the East and officially known as the Holy Apostolic Catholic Assyrian Church of the East, is an Eastern Christianity, Eastern Syriac Christianity, Syriac Christian denomin ...

from the

Nestorian Nestorianism is a term used in Christian theology and Church history to refer to several mutually related but doctrinarily distinct sets of teachings. The first meaning of the term is related to the original teachings of Christian theologian ...

misnomer. In 1973, Perley was named the "Assyrian of the Year" by the

Assyrian Universal Alliance Assyrian Universal Alliance (, ; ), usually abbreviated as AUA and popularly known as Khoyada (English: ''Unity'') is an ethnic Assyrian worldwide umbrella organization made up of different sectors of the Assyrian federations and organizations t ...

Legacy

Perley is remembered as a strong advocate of the Assyrian cause, using many of the opportunities available to him to strengthen and grow while dedicating his time to researching Assyrian history. His philosophical views on Assyrian nationalism are often cited when understanding views of the movement during the 20th century. In 1984, a memorial fund was established by Perley's family and friends in his honor at

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

. The fund was established in order to promote the research of Assyrian history,

culture Culture ( ) is a concept that encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and Social norm, norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, Social norm, customs, capabilities, Attitude (psychology), attitudes ...

language Language is a structured system of communication that consists of grammar and vocabulary. It is the primary means by which humans convey meaning, both in spoken and signed language, signed forms, and may also be conveyed through writing syste ...

, and literature past the

17th century The 17th century lasted from January 1, 1601 (represented by the Roman numerals MDCI), to December 31, 1700 (MDCC). It falls into the early modern period of Europe and in that continent (whose impact on the world was increasing) was characterized ...

. A collection of books from the fund is maintained by the Middle East Division of

Harvard Library Harvard Library is the network of libraries and services at Harvard University, a private Ivy League university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Harvard Library is the oldest library system in the United States and both the largest academic librar ...

. In August 2016, a collective of writings by Perley was published as the first book of the independent ''Nineveh Press''. The book's editor, Tomas Beth-Avdalla, had begun compiling materials in 2010 and had sent manuscripts to an Assyrian publisher in Sweden, which was rejected. The book contains articles, letters, speeches, and other published work by/related to Perley.

Quote

“I am an Assyrian, and as an Assyrian I am obligated to be actively interested in the destiny of the Assyrians, once the greatest nation now almost forgotten. I would be an arch-criminal if I failed to assume this obligation”. "One's being an Assyrian is a synthesis of heritage, religion, and culture, and emotional consciousness that transcends all diversities, theological demographics, and otherwise. To be an Assyrian is to feel: the past is my heritage I shall forget it not; the present, my responsibility; the future, my challenge.” "The term Assyrian is one single unity. The approach of this oneness of all Assyrians regardless of their religious adherence, is through the avenue of blood, and through the majesty of common memories." "The Soul of Assyria is spiritual through and through, and not material, and that which is spiritual is coexistent with Eternity. "You must remember the past in order that you may adequately look forward to an on-coming future with hope or with fear. And if fate has made my origin to be in ruin and desolation, no outrage or lamentation will retard my assent to the fact that therein lies my fixed abode."

References

Bibliography

External links

Dr. David Barsum Perley (1901-1979)
- Assyrian Information Management. {{DEFAULTSORT:Perley, David B. 1901 births 1979 deaths Assyrian nationalists Syriac Orthodox Christians Turkish Oriental Orthodox Christians People from Elazığ Assyrians from the Ottoman Empire