Tessa Hofmann, Der Genozid an den indigenen Christen des Osmanischen Reiches: Armenier, Griechen, Syro-Aramäer/Assyrer/Chaldäer։ eine ausführliche Dokumentation mit drei Modulen von je neun Unterrichtseinheiten
Summary
Gerayer A. Koutcharian (Berlin, Germany)
Doctor of Natural Sciences
In Germany and beyond, the philologist and genocide scholar Tessa Hofmann is considered an expert on the genocide of the Ottoman Christians, which was also the first large-scale genocide of the 20 century. In my review of Tessa Hofmann’s most recent work “The Genocide of the Indigenous Christians of the Ottoman Empire” (2024), I emphasize that the book serves a dual purpose: it serves as a very comprehensive introductory reading on the course and methods of the Ottoman – Young Turk and Kemalist – genocide of over three million indigenous Christians (Armenians, Greek Orthodox Christians, Syro-Aramaeans, Assyrians and Chaldeans) in the Ottoman Empire and in northwest Iran, which was temporarily occupied by the Ottomans in 1914 and 1918. In the second part of her book, she presents three modules, each with nine teaching and learning units for school lessons on genocide.
Until now, there have been no such handouts in Germany, where the largest diaspora of Turks is located (with the exception of the federal states of Brandenburg and Saxony-Anhalt, where they are now out of print). A special feature of the book is also its inclusive approach, which includes all Christian victims and illustrates the interactions between the acts against Greek Orthodox, Armenian and Syro-Aramaic Christians. An extensive bibliography as well as contributions by Roy Knocke (Director of the Lepsius House in Potsdam) on Johannes Lepsius and two associations of members of Turkish descent on coming to terms with the past and the culture of remembrance round off this extremely remarkable book, which will hopefully find its way into German schools.
REFERENCES
Hofman T’., Qristoneay bnik joghovurdneri tseghaspanut’yune’ Osmanean kaysrut’ean mej: Hayer, yoyner, siriats’i-arameats’iner /asoriner/, qaghdeats’iner. Manramasn vaveragrut’yun- baghkatsatc 3 masits ev usutsman 9 miavorits’. Vaylersvist’-Meternikh, “Haze ev K’eohler” hrat., 2024 (in Armenian).