I retrieved the originals of the attached translations I did, from the PhilipZakarian.com website and from the commentary of the Catholicos Karekin I/II Sarkissian of Blessed memory. Philip Zakarian’s name will remain linked to his popular title: “The Orphan Built a House.” Տես ներեւը տեղադրուած հայերէն շաղկապը։ Vahe H. Apelian
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| Philip Zakarian with his mother in an orphanage in Aleppo, in 1921 |
Who was Philip Zakarian?
Philip Zakarian (1916-1976), was born in Beylan, a coastal city in the Antioch region, Turkey. The Apelian family of Kessab is said to have originated there. I have passed through the town.
As a child, he was left in the care of "Bird's Nest" orphanage in the town of Jbeil (Byblos) in Lebanon. He lived in Aleppo, Jerusalem, and finally settled in Beirut.
In 1972, he published the stories he wrote in a book he titled "The Orphan Built a House"- «Որբը Տուն Շինեց».
His second book was titled “The Vigil of the Last Orphan” - «Վերջին Որբերուն Հսկումը», which was published by the Hamazkayin Vahe Setian publication in 1974.
Philip Zakarian died two years after his second book saw the light of day.
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| "The Vigil of the Last Orphan", Hamazkayin Vahe Setian Publication, Beirut, 1974 |
How did Philip Zakarian introduce his first book?
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| "The Orphan Built a House", Shirak Publication, Beirut, 1972 |
In his introduction of “The Orphan Built a House”, Philip Zakarian wrote the following.
“This book is divided into two parts.
The first part is the world of my youth: the pure, the unadulterated, Armenian camp.
I refuse to accept the state of the currently existing dirty and messy campsites.
Our camps were different.
In this volume, the camp is seen through the eyes of the young. Generally, I presented the events in the first person, but often, the heroes were my friends.
I had not dusted the shoes I wore in my youth. I still smelled the camp as I put my memories on paper. I made my first attempts in writing thirty or more years ago in "Badanegan Artsagang" – “Պատանեկան Արձականք» (see note 1), where a dozen or so of my writings were published with "H. K." initials as my pen name. Then, in "Houssaper Literary Monthly" – “Յուսաբեր Գրական Ամսագիրք» (see note 2), and "Hai Tedak Weekly" – “Հայ Դիտակ Շաբաթաթերթ» (see note 3), where I continued to write about the life of the campers under "Z. Karian" penname. In the last ten years, in "Chanasser" – “Ջանասեր” (see note 4) and in “Aztak” - «Ազդակ»(see note 5), where I have given several depictions under my real name.
Here, along with my unpublished stories, I have included some of the above-mentioned writings.
I love the people of the camp and I tried to present to the Armenian people the sad and the neglected page of our recent history.
The second part is my current world: the life of orphans, migrants, suffering people, and the youth of the country in want of fatherland.
It is not a sad book. The orphan condemned to extermination has already built his house. There is no shortage of smiles in both the first and second parts.”
The commentary of Karekin I (August 27, 1932 – June 29, 1999), the Catholicos of the Armenian Apostolic Church
The commentary Karekin I wrote about the book “The Orphan Built a House” was not on the first edition of the book that saw the light of day in 1972, a few years before Philip Zakarian’s untimely death. Catholicos Karekin was sixteen years junior to Philip Zakarian’s. He claimed that he got to know of Philip Zakarian when he was a young Vartabed reading his stories, and later personally.
His commentary as a preface is written in the 1985, when the Catholicosate of Cilicia undertook the publication the entire works of Philip Zakarian, at the 70th anniversary commemoration of the Armenian Genocide, along with a few other books.
Catholicos Karekin noted that Philip Zakarian is a well-established literary talent and needed no further literary review and that the overnight sale of 800 copies of the newly published sequel attested to Philip Zakarian’s popularity as the literary voice of the Armenian Genocide orphans.
Needless to say, that Catholicos Karekin Sarkissian of blessed memory was a fan of Philip Zakarian’s literature. I have heard him mention Philip Zakarian and his book “The Orphan Built a House” in his public address.
Philip Zakarian’s Complet literary Output.
The attached is an excerpt from Catholicos Karekin’s preface that sheds light on the literary output of Philip Zakarian.
“The author (i.e. Philip Zaarian), has mentioned more than once that his volume "The Orphan Built a House" is a combination of two volumes. It consists of two clear, separate sections in its first, original and only edition:
First part - "This Wonderful People" - «Այս Սքանչելի Ժողովուրդը»։
Second part - "The Indestructible" - «Անխորտակելին»։
“In the foreword of the "The Vigil of the Last Orphans" volume (note Philip Zakarian’s other work that saw the light of day in his lifetime); it is Philip Zakarian himself, who stated with some anguish, that he forcibly combined the two sections in one volume. "Certainly, it would be more appropriate if the two parts of this book, were given in separate volumes. However, taking into consideration the dire financial condition of our people, and not to subject them to the martyrdom of buying another book, I forced the orphan to build a two-story house.” He wrote.
I don't know if he were alive today, how he would have wanted to "enrich" those two volumes. I had the pleasure of learning that his children Mrs. Shoghik Chekijian (Տիկին Շողիկ Չէքիճեան), and Miss Astghik Zakarian (Աստղիկ Զաքարեան), have an envelope containing the copies of the stories Philip Zakarian had published in journals, and handwritten unpublished writings, as a legacy from their father. After reviewing the content, I was moved and I thought publishing them in a third volume, in this same series, but this time giving it a title from one of the stories that are part of its content. The title of the last volume "The Vigil of the Old Combatant" («Ծեր Մարտիկին Հսկումը»), followed the tradition Philip Zakarian set for titling the first two volumes of the sequel.
This is how "The Orphan Built a House" became a three-volume sequel. The orphan thus begot his nation a three-story literary building, instead of the "two-story", built solidly with Armenian letters as its stones.”
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| "The Orphan Built a House", volume 1, "This Wonderful People", Antelias,, 1985 |
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| "The Orphan Built a House", volume 2, "The Indestructible", Antelians, 1983 |
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| "The Orphan Built a House", volume 3, "The Vigil of the Old Combatant", Antelian, 1983 |
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Notes:
1 – “Badanegan Artsagang" - "Պատանեկան Արձականգ",in is an Armenian Evangelcial journal for the youth and is published in Lebanon since 1951.
2. “ Housaper Literary Monthly” - “Յուսաբեր Գրական Ամսաթերթ», appears to have been published in 1944-1948 in Egypt.
3. "Hai Tedak Weekly” – “Հայ Դիտակ Շաբաթաթերթ», no information appears to be available
4. “Chanasser” – “Ջանասէր”, is the journal of the Union of the Armenian Evangelical Churches in the Near East, in Beirut,and has been published since 1937.
5. “Azrag” –“Ազդակ”, is a daily newspaper and the official newspaper of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation and has been published since 1927,
Հայերէն շաղկապը՝
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