They speak old and new languages around us,

Let’s speak Armenian, my brother!

Let’s not give in to the devouring,

Let’s not let our language be destroyed,

Let’s always speak Armenian!”

Khachik Dashtents

February 21^st is International Mother Language Day, which has been set by the UNESCO. Ahead of the holiday, as I was walking on the streets of Yerevan and talking to some of our compatriots, I asked for their opinions and suggestions, and I present them to the readers of Hayern Aysor.

Gaiane Simonyan, Yerevan, housewife: I didn’t know there was such a holiday. Why don’t the presses, radio and television stations let us know about that in advance so that we can participate in the events? Why don’t they prepare programs devoted to the holiday instead of making viewers cry with Indian soap operas, perverted Brazilian films and Armenian soap operas that make viewers get tired? I am a mathematician. I am simply unemployed and spend the whole day at home with my children and help them learn their lessons…It would be wrong to say that we speak Armenian purely at home. My children learn so many words and phrases at school, in the yard and on television such as “naturi”, “helnem”, “tenam”, “vopshm”, “OK”, “mam”, “sotivi”, “piskem ara”, “jeb”, “avtoyi bandazhner”, “sumka chkhol”, “plyonka”…It is also hard to fight against this. After all, they are boys. We need to think of something else. I think it has to be done at the state level.

Karapet Hakobyan, taxi driver: Hey, sister! What are you going after? We simply talk and understand each other, that’s it! I just don’t like those words in English like “OK” and “wow”…Everyone is writing words in English on the windows of stores, think about that…A person who doesn’t know English won’t understand the words…Let them go to the United States or the United Kingdom and see if there is anything written in Armenian on the windows of stores or outlets…We Armenians are betraying the language. Let the government set a fine just like it set a fine for committing traffic violations…

Serineh Hambardzumyan, student: I am sorry, but I won’t tell you the name of my university because some of our lecturers speak Armenian worse than us students…What can you demand from average citizens? As for the children, it depends on the family, district and environment. I am a future economist. I might not be able to speak Armenian purely due to my profession, but I would like to see dictionaries with the Armenian equivalents of the words in economics and other fields. For instance, I would like to see dictionaries for the terminologies of construction, law, automobile construction, etc. As far as International Mother Language Day is concerned, I have heard and know about it, but I would like to see Armenians celebrate it with splendor.

Shoghik Mesropyan, seller at fair in Malatia district of Yerevan: I graduated from an institute, but I am a trader. However, this doesn’t mean that we should talk however we want. There are simply names of types of clothing and undergarments that will sound funny to buyers. I don’t even know the names of most of the products in Armenian. I don’t know what we need to do to make sure people in Armenia speak Armenian purely. I didn’t know about the holiday, but am very happy that there is a holiday like that and congratulate all Armenians. I wish that we try to preserve our language and speak Armenian purely and beautifully.

Juliet Martirosyan, Editor-in-Chief of Avantgarde newspaper: Unfortunately, our mother language is being tortured everywhere-on television, in many households, on the street and on the Internet where people type with English letters not only because they don’t have Armenian fonts, but also because they want to cover up for their illiteracy. Due to that, they make another mistake, that is, everyone writes the letters j, x(kh) however they want. There are more sins against the language on television. It is nice to see that people are talking about the language and expressing their concerns, but it is not enough. I believe the relevant authorities need to be more concerned about this and put an end to this devastating situation through legislation. Our state language is Armenian, and this says it all. Nobody has the right to make assaults against our sacred mother language. Signs in foreign languages and English-language advertisements on the streets are not only written in foreign languages, but are also full of mistakes made in that particular foreign language. The relevant authorities need to be seriously involved in the solution to this issue. I must set aside the great, consistent and rewarding task of the RA Ministry of Diaspora in preserving the purity of the mother language. The Minister of Diaspora of the Republic of Armenia not only introduced Mother Language Day in Armenia, but also celebrates Mother Language Day consistently every year, keeping the idea of preserving the purity of the Armenian language alive in the conscience of the people. Who gave the person celebrating Book Donation Day the right to post a sign in front of the Pedagogical University reading “Only a camel doesn’t read books”. What does this mean? Does this mean that sheep, goats and donkeys read books? This should be eliminated. Who is the author of that “brilliant” idea? This has an impact on people’s psychology and makes them commit acts that are unacceptable.

As a citizen, I first and foremost congratulate the Minister of Diaspora for being consistent with remembrance of this holiday, allowing the people to participate in the events devoted to the holiday. I also congratulate all Armenians around the world. We are more than grateful to Hranush Hakobyan, who managed to draw our attention to the major holiday, the pro-national phenomenon, but preserving the purity of a language is a daily and ongoing task. I pray that other ministries follow the example of the Ministry of Diaspora. If they don’t organize events, they should at least respond.

By Karine Avagyan