“It’s part of our identity.” New endowed fund will support Armenian language and literature at Berkeley

April 15, 2025

Jennifer Monahan

The Armenian language and literature program at Berkeley will be supported in perpetuity thanks to an effort led by alum Eric Esrailian (B.A. ‘96 Integrative Biology) and his family.

When Dr. Esrailian first came to Berkeley in the early 1990s, it was a large and often impersonal place. Seeing a flyer about the Armenian Students Association helped him find community and feel at home.

Today, Dr. Esrailian is an accomplished UCLA physician and administrator, Emmy-nominated film producer, human rights advocate, and successful entrepreneur in various industries. He is recognized for his global philanthropic efforts and work involving social justice, particularly in the Armenian community. The Armenian National Committee of America has recognized his influence on securing recognition of the Armenian Genocide by the U.S. government. He was honored with the Benementi medal, the highest civilian honor conferred by Pope Francis, for his humanitarian work and leadership in raising awareness about human rights abuses. In 2025, he will also receive the Ellis Island Medal of Honor, joining other notable Berkeley alums with this recognition.

He’s giving back to Berkeley, he explains, because it helped him get his start. “As a public institution, Berkeley and the entire UC system, including UCLA, are engines of economic opportunity and upward mobility. I'm an example of that, so I feel grateful for the opportunities afforded me by Berkeley and the whole University of California system.”

For Esrailian, fostering academic communities dedicated to Armenian studies at the top global research universities is a vital way to educate people about the importance of the Armenian community to the world. It also helps people understand the roots of the geopolitical circumstances facing Armenians today. His vision was instrumental in establishing The Promise Armenian Institute and The Promise Institute for Human Rights at UCLA, and he gives all thanks to the support of his late friend Kirk Kerkorian. At Berkeley, he chose to focus on Armenian language instruction because the language is a vital part of Armenian culture, history, and faith. He credits his parents and another dear friend and mentor, Vatche Manoukian, with instilling a sense of pride in his heritage and emphasizing the importance of the Armenian language. Because of the Genocide, Armenians are scattered around the world, and over generations, the language is spoken less in diasporic communities. This fact makes language preservation and revitalization an essential element in strengthening the ties that unite Armenians worldwide.

Dr. Eric Esrailian

“[Armenian language] is part of our identity,” says Esrailian. “It's important, while we have scholars who are able to study it and teach it, and students who are interested in learning it, to create that opportunity at Berkeley and at the most prestigious universities around the world."

He also sees his family’s philanthropy — now and in the future — as part of a larger effort, one that he hopes will inspire others. “For us to truly say never forget and never again, it’s essential to support the study and preservation of Armenian language, culture, and history at the highest level.”

Armenian language classes — both Eastern and Western — have the highest enrollment among language courses in the Slavic department at Berkeley. However, the funding to teach them comes from various and fluctuating sources. This new support led by the Esrailian family will bring long-term sustainability, ensuring permanent funding for the lecturer position for Armenian language and literature. And as the fund — housed in the Arts & Humanities Dean’s Office — continues to grow through future philanthropic support from others, it can also support faculty and graduate student research and bring increased visibility to the program through lectures, workshops and conferences.

students in Armenian dress performing play

Students Performing Hovhannes Tumanyan's "A Drop of Honey," Spring 2024

Classes in Armenian have been offered at Berkeley since the late 1980s, when a group of Armenian-American alums laid the foundation for a program in Armenian Studies. That initial gift quickly evolved into the William Saroyan Visiting Professorship, named in honor of the Armenian-American author whose works reflected the Armenian experience in California and the poignancy of the human condition. Other donations followed, but these recent gifts are the first dedicated specifically to language and literature.

Dr. Dzovinar Derderian, a history professor who has led the Armenian Studies program in the Institute of Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Studies (ISEEES) since the program’s founding professor Stephen Astourian retired in 2022, is grateful for the long-term stability this gift will bring to the instruction of Armenian language and literature at Berkeley. “I am immensely thankful for the efforts by the Esrailians: not only for the gifts, but also for directing them towards the instruction of language and literature.”

Berkeley’s Armenian program reflects the vibrant contributions of Armenian-Americans to California history and culture. California has had established Armenian communities since the late 19th century, and in the wake of World War I those communities became a place of refuge for survivors of the Armenian genocide. Additional waves of immigration followed throughout the 20th century. Today, California is home to the largest concentration of Armenians outside Armenia… and UC Berkeley is home to an active Armenian alumni group as well as the Armenian Students Association that Dr. Esrailian joined as a freshman.

While Berkeley’s Armenian Studies program is housed within ISEEES and has a multidisciplinary focus, language and literature classes in Armenian are taught by Slavic Languages and Literatures, which is widely viewed as a top-ranked program due to its breadth of coverage and interdisciplinary approach. In addition to Armenian, Slavic also offers Russian, Polish, Hungarian and a cluster of Balkan languages: Bosnian, Croatian and Serbian. In another instance of Berkeley’s recognition of the power of language to preserve identity and memory in the face of aggression, Slavic Languages and Literatures is also building a Ukrainian Studies program thanks to another recent gift.

Slavic Languages and Literatures offers a minor in Armenian Studies, and the Slavic major track in Russian / East European / Eurasian Languages and Cultures allows students to concentrate on a particular language, including Armenian. Students design their own programs to include language classes as well as courses in fields like history, history of art, or theater, dance and performance studies.

Dr. Myrna Douzjian has been teaching Armenian language, literature, and culture courses — including classes on Armenian and European drama and representations of the Armenian genocide in film — since 2016. Many of her students are of Armenian heritage and want to connect with their culture, deepen their knowledge of the language and literature, or simply talk to family members.

A student in Introductory Armenian works on a translation exercise.

At the same time, over half of her students have no familial or personal ties to Armenia. “Their motivation stems purely from their intellectual curiosity,” she explains, “or from connections they perceive between their own experiences and education and topics that are covered in my classes, such as diaspora, art and politics, identity, and the transnational development of modern Armenian literature.”

“Language is essential to recognizing historical violence, revitalizing cultural traditions, and preserving the legacies of communities around the world,” said Sara Guyer, Dean of the Division of Arts & Humanities. “Through their philanthropy and leadership, the Esrailians have dedicated themselves to the revitalization of Armenian languages and cultures. These gifts demonstrate that one of the most profound acts of humanitarianism is the preservation and reanimation of language, which will have an impact on generations of students and scholars at Berkeley and beyond.”