Zahrad

Zareh Yaldizciyan (1923-2007), better known by his pen name Zahrad (Armenian: Զահրատ), was a Western Armenian poet. [ [http://www.hairenik.com/armenianweekly/fea02240702.htm Zahrad (1924-2007)] ]

Biography

Zahrad was born in Istanbul, Turkey. His father, Movses, had been a jurist, adviser, and translator for the Ottoman Foreign Ministry. His mother, Ankine, was from Samatya.

In 1942 he graduated from Özel Pangaltı Ermeni Lisesi, the local Mechitarist Armenian lyceum. He attended medical school for a short time but decided to put his education on hold in order to work. He began writing under a pen name because he felt that his family would not be receptive to his work. In November 1963, he married Anayis Antreasian.

Legacy

Levon Ananyan, the president of the Writers Union of Armenia, characterized Zahrad as "the huge oak tree of diasporan poetry, whose literary heritage had a deep and stable influence upon modern poetry of not only the diaspora, but also Armenia." [ [http://www.armeniadiaspora.com/ADC/news.asp?id=2062 Zahrat Was One Of Great Figures Of Armenian Poetry, Literary Critic Suren Danielian Says] ]

Works

* «Մեծ քաղաքը» ("Big City", Istanbul, 1960)
* «Գունաւոր սահմաններ» ("Colored Borders", (Istanbul, 1968)
* «Բարի Երկինք» ("Kind Sky", Istanbul, 1971)
* «Կանանչ հող» ("Green Soil", Paris, 1976)
* «Մէկ քարով երկու գարուն» ("Two Springs with One Stone", Istanbul, 1989)
* «Մաղ մը ջուր» ("A Sieve of Water", Istanbul, 1995)
* «Ծայրը ծայրին» ("A Tight Fit", Istanbul, 2001)
* «Ջուրը պատէն վեր» ("Water Up the Wall", Istanbul, 2004)

Notes and References