HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Nina G. Garsoïan (April 11, 1923 – August 14, 2022) was a French-born American historian specializing 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 across the ...
and Byzantine history. In 1969 she became the first female historian to get tenure at
Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manha ...
and, subsequently, became the first holder of Gevork M. Avedissian Chair in Armenian History and Civilization at Columbia. From 1977 to 1979, she served as dean of the Graduate School of Princeton University.


Biography

Nina G. Garsoïan was born in Paris on April 11, 1923, to
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 ...
parents from Nakhichevan-on-Don (
Rostov-on-Don Rostov-on-Don ( rus, Ростов-на-Дону, r=Rostov-na-Donu, p=rɐˈstof nə dɐˈnu) is a port city and the administrative centre of Rostov Oblast and the Southern Federal District of Russia. It lies in the southeastern part of the East ...
) and
Tbilisi Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the capital and the largest city of Georgia, lying on the banks of the Kura River with a population of approximately 1.5 million p ...
. She moved to New York in 1933. She received a Bachelor of Arts in
classical archaeology Classical archaeology is the archaeological investigation of the Mediterranean civilizations of Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome. Nineteenth-century archaeologists such as Heinrich Schliemann were drawn to study the societies they had read about ...
from
Bryn Mawr College Bryn Mawr College ( ; Welsh: ) is a women's liberal arts college in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. Founded as a Quaker institution in 1885, Bryn Mawr is one of the Seven Sister colleges, a group of elite, historically women's colleges in the United Sta ...
in 1943 and both Master of Arts degree and
PhD PHD or PhD may refer to: * Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), an academic qualification Entertainment * '' PhD: Phantasy Degree'', a Korean comic series * ''Piled Higher and Deeper'', a web comic * Ph.D. (band), a 1980s British group ** Ph.D. (Ph.D. albu ...
from
Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manha ...
in
Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantin ...
, Near Eastern, and
Armenian history The history of Armenia covers the topics related to the history of the Republic of Armenia, as well as the Armenian people, the Armenian language, and the regions historically and geographically considered ''Armenian''. Armenia is locate ...
. She received
Fulbright Fellowship The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States Cultural Exchange Programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people of ...
to study at the Mekhitarist monastery of
San Lazzaro degli Armeni San Lazzaro degli Armeni (, "Saint Lazarus of the Armenians"; called Saint Lazarus Island in English sources; hy, Սուրբ Ղազար, Surb Ghazar) is a small island in the Venetian Lagoon which has been home to the monastery of the Mekhita ...
on San Lazzaro Island in
Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 bridges. The isla ...
. Garsoïan began teaching at
Smith College Smith College is a private liberal arts women's college in Northampton, Massachusetts. It was chartered in 1871 by Sophia Smith and opened in 1875. It is the largest member of the historic Seven Sisters colleges, a group of elite women's c ...
in 1956 and Columbia in 1962. In 1969 she became the first female professor to receive tenure at Columbia's Department of History. Garsoïan became the first female dean of the Princeton University Graduate School when she was appointed to the position in 1977. She served in that position until 1979. In 1979, she became the first holder of Gevork M. Avedissian Chair in Armenian History and Civilization at Columbia University. She retired in 1993 and was subsequently
professor emerita ''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...
of Armenian History and Civilization. Garsoïan was the director of the
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. ...
-based ''
Revue des Études Arméniennes ''Revue des Études Arméniennes'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal that publishes articles relating to Classics, Classical and medieval Armenian history, art history, philology, linguistics, and literature.Medieval Academy of America The Medieval Academy of America (MAA; spelled Mediaeval until c. 1980) is the largest organization in the United States promoting the field of medieval studies. It was founded in 1925 and is based in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The academy publishes ...
and a Corresponding
Fellow of the British Academy Fellowship of the British Academy (FBA) is an award granted by the British Academy to leading academics for their distinction in the humanities and social sciences. The categories are: # Fellows – scholars resident in the United Kingdom # C ...
. She participated in a Byzantine Studies Symposium at
Dumbarton Oaks Dumbarton Oaks, formally the Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection, is a historic estate in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. It was the residence and garden of wealthy U.S. diplomat Robert Woods Bliss and his wife, ...
, twice serving as a co-director. Garsoïan died on August 14, 2022, at the age of 99.


Publications

Garsoïan published numerous books and journal and encyclopedia articles on Armenian, Byzantine, and Sasanian history. In her publications she emphasized the Iranian/Persian influence on Armenian history. ;Books *''The Paulician Heresy''. Mouton, 1968. *''Armenia between Byzantium and the Sasanians''. Variorum Publishing. 1985. *''L'Église arménienne et le grand schisme d'Orient''. Peeters Publishers. 1999. *''Church and Culture in Early Medieval Armenia''.
Ashgate Ashgate Publishing was an academic book and journal publisher based in Farnham (Surrey, United Kingdom). It was established in 1967 and specialised in the social sciences, arts, humanities and professional practice. It had an American office ...
, 1999. *''De Vita Sua''. Mazda Publishers, 2011. (memoir) ;Articles *"Byzantine Heresy. A Reinterpretation." '' Dumbarton Oaks Papers'' 25 (1971): 85–113. *"Secular jurisdiction over the Armenian church (fourth-seventh centuries)." '' Harvard Ukrainian Studies'' 7 (1983): 220–250. *"Byzantium and the Sasanians." ''
Cambridge History of Iran ''The Cambridge History of Iran'' is a multi-volume survey of Iranian history published in the United Kingdom by Cambridge University Press. The seven volumes cover "the history and historical geography of the land which is present-day Iran, as ...
'' 3.1 (1983): 568–592. *"The problem of Armenian integration into the Byzantine empire." ''Studies on the internal diaspora of the Byzantine Empire'' (1998): 53–124. ;Translations *''The trade and cities of Armenia in relation to ancient world trade'' by Hakob Manandian. 1965 *''Armenia in the Period of Justinian'' by Nicholas Adontz.
Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation The Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation ( pt, Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian), commonly referred to simply as the Gulbenkian Foundation, is a Portuguese institution dedicated to the promotion of the arts, philanthropy, science, and education. On ...
. 1970. *''The Arab Emirates in Bagratid Armenia'' by Aram Ter-Ghevondyan. Livraria Bertrand. 1976 *''The Epic Histories Attributed to Pʻawstos Buzand: (Buzandaran Patmutʻiwnkʻ)''.
Harvard University Press Harvard University Press (HUP) is a publishing house established on January 13, 1913, as a division of Harvard University, and focused on academic publishing. It is a member of the Association of American University Presses. After the reti ...
, 1989.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Garsoïan, Nina 1923 births 2022 deaths People from Paris American historians Armenian studies scholars American Byzantinists Iranologists Columbia University alumni Scholars of Byzantine history Women Byzantinists Women medievalists French emigrants to the United States French people of Armenian descent American people of Armenian descent Bryn Mawr College alumni Smith College faculty Columbia University faculty Princeton University faculty