Antonia Arslan ( hy, Անտոնիա Արսլան, born 1938) is an Italian writer and

academic An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, ...

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 across the ...

origin.

Biography

Arslan was born in

Padua Padua ( ; it, Padova ; vec, Pàdova) is a city and ''comune'' in Veneto, northern Italy. Padua is on the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice. It is the capital of the province of Padua. It is also the economic and communications hub of the ...

in 1938 to Michele Arslan and Vittoria Marchiori. Her paternal grandfather Yerwant Arslanian was born in 1865 in Kharpert, now

Harpoot Harpoot ( tr, Harput) or Kharberd ( hy, Խարբերդ, translit=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 ...

. After graduating in

archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landsca ...

she became a professor of modern and contemporary

Italian literature Italian literature is written in the Italian language, particularly within Italy. It may also refer to literature written by Italians or in other languages spoken in Italy, often languages that are closely related to modern Italian, including ...

at the

University of Padua The University of Padua ( it, Università degli Studi di Padova, UNIPD) is an Italian university located in the city of Padua, region of Veneto, northern Italy. The University of Padua was founded in 1222 by a group of students and teachers from ...

and published copious studies, ''inter alia'', on Italian popular fiction and Italian women writers of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Her primary concern as a literary critic is the Italian literary canon. Her most recent publications have focused on her Armenian heritage. She translated two volumes of

Daniel Varujan Daniel Varoujan ( hy, Դանիէլ Վարուժան, 20 April 188426 August 1915) was an Armenian poet of the early 20th century. At the age of 31, when he was reaching international stature, he was deported and murdered by the Young Turk gover ...

’s poetry into Italian and edited works on the

Armenian genocide The Armenian genocide was the systematic destruction of the 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 through t ...

and on the experiences of Armenian refugees in Italy. Her first novel,

La masseria delle allodole ''The Lark Farm'' (Italian: ''La masseria delle allodole'') is a 2007 Italian drama film directed by Paolo and Vittorio Taviani about the Armenian genocide. Plot The story, drawn from ''La masseria delle allodole'', the best-selling novel by Ant ...

, was published by Rizzoli in 2004. Drawing on the history of her own recent ancestors it tells of the attempts of the members of an Armenian family caught up in the

to escape to Italy and join a relation who had been living there for forty years. Among other awards, it won the Premio Berto, Premio Fregene, Premio Stresa di Narrativa, Premio Fenice-Europa for 2004. It was also a finalist and winner of the 2004

Premio Campiello The ''Premio Campiello'' is an annual Italian literary prize. A Jury of Literary Experts (''Giuria di letterati'' in Italian) identifies books published during the year and, in a public hearing, selects five of those as finalists. These books ar ...

award. After winning the Il Campiello Secondo Noi by a spectacular margin - the book received nearly 50% of all votes, outstripping the book in second place by 26 votes - Antonia Arslan's ''La masseria delle allodole'' was expected to win the

Premio Super-Campiello The and its twin the are sedans sold in Japan from 2001 to 2021 by Toyota. The sedans are designated as a compact car by Japanese dimension regulations and the exterior dimensions do not change with periodic updates. Unlike Toyota's other v ...

easily. After a stunning series of unexplained events, it scandalously came in second place for that award, possibly due to political calculations, losing for two votes. Incidentally, the difference of one vote would have triggered a recasting of the votes. In 2005 ''La masseria delle allodole'' was awarded the Premio P.E.N.
Passate edizioni Premio PEN
''. and the Premio Manzoni.
Antonia Arslan, autrice del libro "La masseria delle allodole", in Biblioteca civica
', Città di Bolzano. The book has been translated into numerous languages, including a translation into English by Geoffrey Brock as ''

Skylark Farm ''Alauda'' is a genus of larks found across much of Europe, Asia and in the mountains of north Africa, and one of the species (the Raso lark) endemic to the islet of Raso in the Cape Verde Islands. Further, at least two additional species are ...

,'' published by

Knopf Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. () is an American publishing house that was founded by Alfred A. Knopf Sr. and Blanche Knopf in 1915. Blanche and Alfred traveled abroad regularly and were known for publishing European, Asian, and Latin American writers in ...

in 2007, and was selected as a finalist for the

Los Angeles Times Book Prize Since 1980, the ''Los Angeles Times'' has awarded a set of annual book prizes. The Prizes currently have nine categories: biography, current interest, fiction, first fiction (the Art Seidenbaum Award added in 1991), history, mystery/thriller ...

and the

International Dublin Literary Award The International Dublin Literary Award ( ga, Duais Liteartha Idirnáisiúnta Bhaile Átha Chliath), established as the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award in 1996, is presented each year for a novel written or translated into English. ...

/ It inspired the

Taviani brothers Paolo Taviani (; born 8 November 1931) and Vittorio Taviani (; 20 September 1929 – 15 April 2018), collectively referred to as the Taviani brothers, were Italian film directors and screenwriters who collaborated on film productions. At the C ...

’ 2007 film ''

La Masseria Delle Allodole ''The Lark Farm'' (Italian: ''La masseria delle allodole'') is a 2007 Italian drama film directed by Paolo and Vittorio Taviani about the Armenian genocide. Plot The story, drawn from ''La masseria delle allodole'', the best-selling novel by Ant ...

'' (''

The Lark Farm ''The Lark Farm'' (Italian: ''La masseria delle allodole'') is a 2007 Italian drama film directed by Paolo and Vittorio Taviani about the Armenian genocide. Plot The story, drawn from ''La masseria delle allodole'', the best-selling novel by Ant ...

'' in English). Her second novel, ''La Strada di Smirne'', was published in 2009 by Rizzoli, and it appeared in Armenian as '' Զմյուռնիայի ճանապարհ'' in 2012. Arslan's more recent publications include '' Ishtar2: cronache dal mio risveglio'' (2009) published by '' Rizzoli'', and chronicles her brush with death in 2009, '' Il cortile dei girasoli parlanti'' published by '' Piemme Edizioni'' in 2011, and '' Il libro di Mush'' published by ''

Skira The festival of the Skira ( grc, Σκίρα) or Skirophoria ( grc, Σκιροφόρια) in the calendar of ancient Athens, closely associated with the Thesmophoria, marked the dissolution of the old year in May/June. Description At Athens, t ...

'' in 2012. The latter book is an account of the '' Msho Charantir'', the largest surviving Armenian manuscript. It won the prestigious '' Premio Giuria Viareggio''. Arslan has received such awards as the '' Narekatsi Medal'' (2010) and the '' Movses Khorenatsi Medal'' (2012) for her cultural contributions.

Works

* ''Dame, droga e galline. Il romanzo popolare italiano fra Ottocento e Novecento''. Cleup, 1977. * ''Dame, galline e regine. La scrittura femminile italiana fra '800 e '900''. Guerini e Associati, 1999. * ''La masseria delle allodole''. Rizzoli, 2004. **(deutsch ''Das Haus der Lerchen'') * ''La strada di Smirne''. Rizzoli, 2009. * ''Il cortile dei girasoli parlanti'', Piemme, 2011. * ''Il libro di Mush'', Skira narrativa, 2012. * ''Il calendario dell'avvento'', Piemme, 2013. * ''Il rumore delle perle di legno'', Rizzoli, 2015.

Works in English

* ''Skylark farm'', New York : Vintage Books, 2013. * ''Silent angel'' translator Siobhan Nash-Marshall, San Francisco : Ignatius Press ; Greenwood Village, CO : Augustine Institute, 2020.

References

External links

Official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Arslan, Antonia 1938 births Living people Italian women writers Academic staff of the University of Padua Italian people of Armenian descent Translators from Armenian Translators to Italian