“Destiny gave the Armenians an intricate territory. The Armenian nation has seen numerous dangers on its road, but it has continued to live, survive and grow due to its virtues and innate talents”-these are the thoughts that Greek writer Mitsos Alexandropoulos expressed to describe the Armenians in his book “The Armenians”.

The Greeks also lived next to the Armenians in that intricate territory by fate, and some of them settled in the Mehmana village of the Martakert region of Artsakh in the early 19^th century.

The residents of this exotic village shared the traditions, lifestyles, war, crisis, joys and victories with the people of Artsakh. For the Greeks, it is not an ordinary territory, but a familiar cradle. Student of Athens State University Kristina Elevterova has talked about the current image and daily activities in Mehmana and shared her vision for the future of Mehmana in her book entitled “The Greek Village in Armenia”. She specifically emphasized the service that her grandmother, People’s Artist of the Republic of Armenia Angela Atabekyan from Mehmana has provided as an Armenian canon player.

The meeting with Elevterova was hosted by the Department of Ethnography at Athens State University on 22 June. The young ethnographer was praised by lecturer of ethnography at Athens State University Vasiliki Krisantopoulou and well-known intellectual, poet Hagop Jelalian. The meeting became unforgettable with a performance by Ani Armenian Song Ensemble, one of the performers of which was reed player Kristina Elevterova, the author of the book. The attendees enjoyed listening to performances of the songs of Sayat-Nova, Khachatur Avetisyan and other Armenian composers.

By Nane Karapetyan

Hayastan news network