Armenian Minister of Education Zhanna Andreasyan visits University of Tartu

On 19 May, the Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sports of Armenia Zhanna Andreasyan visits the University of Tartu and meets Vice Rector for Research Mari Moora, students and teaching staff.

Minister Andreasyan will be accompanied by Ambassador of Armenia Ara Margarian and heads of cultural and educational institutions of Armenia. During the visit, the guests will see the exhibition of the Armenian liturgical songbook manuscript Saraknots at the UT Art Museum.

This centuries-old Armenian manuscript was donated to the University of Tartu Library in 1831 by Khachatur Abovian, Armenian educator and creator of the modern Armenian literary language, who has become a legend of historical cultural ties between Estonia and Armenia. Until now, the manuscript has been preserved in the Department of Manuscripts and Rare Books of the University of Tartu Library. From 20 to 25 May, everybody can see it at the University of Tartu Art Museum.

Khachatur Abovian (1809–1848) met the University of Tartu Professor of Physics Johann Jacob Friedrich Wilhelm Parrot in 1829, when Parrot was on a research expedition in the Caucasus. The professor invited the young science-minded man to continue his studies in Tartu. Abovian studied at Tartu Teachers’ Seminary during his formative years from 1830 to 1836 and also listened to courses at the university. Lecture hall 140 in the main building of the University of Tartu is named after Khachatur Abovian, and a bust erected in his memory is also located there.

Zhanna Andreasyan has been the Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sports of the Republic of Armenia since 2022. She holds a doctoral degree in sociology and has taught at several universities in Yerevan.