Kevork Vartani Ajemian (''Adjemian'') (in

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian diaspora, Armenian communities around the ...

Գևորգ Աճեմյան, in

Western Armenian Western Armenian ( ) is one of the two standardized forms of Modern Armenian, the other being Eastern Armenian. It is based mainly on the Istanbul Armenian dialect, as opposed to Eastern Armenian, which is mainly based on the Yerevan Arme ...

Գէորգ Աճեմեան) (May 23, 1932 – December 27, 1998) was a prominent Syrian-Armenian writer, journalist, novelist, theorist and public activist, and long-time publisher of the

Beirut Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...

-based literary, artistic and general publication '' Spurk'' (in

Սփիւռք). Ajemian was a co-founder of the

Armenian Secret Army for the Liberation of Armenia Armenian Secret Army for the Liberation of Armenia (ASALA) was a militant organization active between 1975 and the 1990s whose stated goal was "to compel the Government of Turkey, Turkish Government to acknowledge publicly its responsibility for ...

(ASALA) military organization.

Biography

Ajemian was born in

Manbij Manbij (; ; ) is a city in the northeast of Aleppo Governorate in northern Syria, west of the Euphrates. The 2004 census gives its population as nearly 100,000.

, near

Aleppo Aleppo is a city in Syria, which serves as the capital of the Aleppo Governorate, the most populous Governorates of Syria, governorate of Syria. With an estimated population of 2,098,000 residents it is Syria's largest city by urban area, and ...

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

, into a family of survivors of the

Armenian genocide The Armenian genocide was the systematic destruction of the Armenians, Armenian people and identity in the Ottoman Empire during World War I. Spearheaded by the ruling Committee of Union and Progress (CUP), it was implemented primarily t ...

, originally from Sasun. He studied in Aleppo, then in 1952 he moved to

. Ajemian graduated from the

American University of Beirut The American University of Beirut (AUB; ) is a private, non-sectarian, and independent university chartered in New York with its main campus in Beirut, Lebanon. AUB is governed by a private, autonomous board of trustees and offers programs le ...

in 1958. He taught Armenian and English language and literature in some Armenian schools of Beirut and Cyprus for a few years. He was the editor of '' The Daily Star'' in Beirut, contributed to ''Shirak'' and ''Graser'' Armenian literary magazines. He was a regular contributor to Spurk'', which he edited for a short time in 1965 and then from 1975-1978. He later published three issues as a yearbook from 1985-1998. A representative of the new generation of

Armenian Diaspora The Armenian diaspora refers to the communities of Armenians outside Armenia and other locations where Armenians are considered an indigenous population. Since antiquity, Armenians have established communities in many regions throughout the world. ...

n writers of the 1960s, Ajemian wrote both in Armenian and in English, and his books were published in

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

Soviet Armenia The Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic (ArSSR), also known as Soviet Armenia, or simply Armenia, was one of the Republics of the Soviet Union, constituent republics of the Soviet Union, located in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Soviet Armenia ...

and the United States. Ajemian "has been acclaimed as a powerful intellectual voice in Armenian freedom movements as his works express the longing, rootlessness, and despair of diasporan peoples everywhere". As a novelist he experimented with modern forms and postsurrealist techniques. According to "The Book Buyer's Guide" (1969), in his first English novel ''Symphony in Discord'', Ajemian, "a well-known Armenian author takes a look and a laugh at life in an unusually provocative study". His ''Ruling over the Ruins'' novel is a love story of a bright young Irish journalist and an aging Armenian lawyer marooned together in war-ravaged Beirut. According to Kari S. Neely, Ajemian's writings in both Armenian and English are more like philosophical tracks than fiction and his "writing style, perhaps like his lifestyle, is aggressive and direct, never mincing words". They overtly deal with themes of diaspora's identity. In his ''A Perpetual Path'' novel Ajemian points the finger "inwardly to the Armenian people, blaming them for their past calamities". Even the violence is necessary to assert your rights, because no one is going to give them to you willingly. Ajemian was one of the founders of ASALA and developed the policy of the organization. One of the most famous novels of Ajemian, ''The Descendants of Milky Way'' ("''Hartkoghi zharankortnere''"), is dedicated to the life of the Armenian youth in

of the 1970s. In another novel by Ajemian, "A Time for Terror" (1997), the story concerns an attempt to assassinate the head of the Armenian Liberation Army in 1980s Beirut. In 1997 the book was discussed at

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

radio. In 1979 Ajemian took part in the First Armenian Congress Organizing Committee (

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

). He died in

Lyon Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...

, France, aged 66. In 1999, a collection of the best journalistic works of Ajemian was published by ASALA.

Selected bibliography

In English

*''Symphony in Discord'', novel,

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, 1961, 128 p., *''The Fallacy of Modern Politics'', politological research,

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

, 1986, 199 p., *''A Time for Terror'', novel,

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

, 1997, 196 p. *"Ruling over the Ruins", novel, United States, 1999, 262 p..

In Armenian

*''Impossible Story'',

, 1956, *''Unsafe Streets'',

Yerevan Yerevan ( , , ; ; sometimes spelled Erevan) is the capital and largest city of Armenia, as well as one of the world's List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest continuously inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Yerev ...

, 1968, 375 p., *''The Only Decision'',

, 1972, 199 p., *''A Speech for the Road'', 1999, 349 p. *''The Complete Works in Armenian'', Vol I-V, Yerevan, 2012-2018

References

External links

Kevork Ajemian
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ajemian, Kevork 1932 births 1998 deaths Syrian people of Armenian descent People from Manbij District Syrian emigrants to France 20th-century Armenian writers French male writers 20th-century French male writers