Hagop Barsoumian

Who was Hagop Barsoumian?

Hagop Barsoumian. He was an Armenian scholar who concentrated on Armenology, in particular studies of the Armenian community in the Ottoman Empire in the nineteenth century. Dr. Barsoumian had published many articles on the Armenian amira class and the constitutional movement.

He was also a professor of Armenology at the Haigazian University in Beirut during the 1980s. In 1986, during the Lebanese Civil War, Dr. Barsoumian was abducted by Armenian leftist factions and reportedly murdered.

His Early Years

Hagop lost his parents at a very young age, and was then cared for by his grandmother, Eliza Kahkedjian. Despite her old age, she worked hard to raise Hagop, his younger sister, and brother. A few years later Hagop was placed in a youth shelter maintained by the Armenian Relief Society. He became a student at the then newly found school, Karen Yeppe, where he proved to be a bright and eager learner. After completing his secondary education, he enrolled in the local French Lycee where he received his Baccalaureate Part II in the field of Philosophy.

In 1960, Hagop settled in the United States, in San Francisco, California. There he attended San Francisco State University where he earned a BS followed by an MA in International World Trade. The focus for his thesis was the European Common Market.