When an Anniversary is Not a Birthday

2015 is particularly filled with feelings and thoughts inspired by the hundredth anniversary of the Medz Yeghern, the Armenian genocide. On the eve of the symbolic day that commemorates the most catastrophic crime in Armenian history, it is appropriate to revisit the meaning of “anniversary.”

We usually use “anniversary” in English for a date of foundation, a marriage, or a certain event, something that returns yearly (Latin anniversarius, from annus “year” and versus “turning”). The English word has its counterpart in Armenian, daretartz (տարեդարձ), which sounds like a calque: dari (տարի “year”) and tartz (դարձ “turning”).* However, this word is not an exact translation. It has one more and one less meaning than in English.

Indeed, both languages say amoosnootian daretartz (ամուսնութեան տարեդարձ) and “marriage anniversary,” as well as angakhootian daretartz (անկախութեան տարեդարձ) for “anniversary of independence.” However, while the Armenian language uses daretartz to mark the anniversary of the birth of someone who is alive, and hence we say yerchanig daretartz (երջանիկ տարեդարձ) or shunorhavor daretartz (շնորհաւոր տարեդարձ) to greet the person, the English language, as we all know, uses birthday and happy birthday.

There is a difference in birth, as there is a difference in death. It would sound ridiculous to call the 100th anniversary daretartz or “birthday.”  The Armenian language has a special word to commemorate the anniversaries of tragic events. Whether it is the death of millions or a single person, the word in that case is darelits (տարելից). It is another compound word, formed by dari and lits, the root of the verb ltsnel/letsnel (լցնել/լեցնել) “to fill.”

In conclusion, if you want to say “100th anniversary of the genocide,” it is tseghasbanootian haryooramea darelits (ցեղասպանութեան հարիւրամեայ տարելից). However, if you prefer to say “centennial” instead of “100th anniversary,” you can do it with one word: haryoorameag (հարիւրամեակ).

(*) Many compound words are linked by the connective a (ա): dari + a + tartz. In the cases when i and a come together in composition, it is a rule that they turn into e (ի + ա = ե), hence dariatartz becomes daretartz.

A Very Public Word

The Armenian word enthanoor (ընդհանուր) has quite a ubiquitous meaning. It is an adjective that usually means “general,” as it appears in the name of various Armenian organizations. For instance, such is the case of the Armenian General Athletic Union (Hay Marmnagrtagan Enthanoor Miootioon, Հայ Մարմնակրթական Ընդհանուր Միութիւն), usually known by its acronym ՀՄԸՄ (Homenetmen).

Now, we know that the English word general comes from the Latin generalis, meaning “relating to all, of a whole class, generic” (from genus “stock, kind”). The Armenian word enthanoor has a meaning quite close to Latin generalis, and it comes from Classical Armenian or krapar (Yeznik Koghbatsi used it in his Refutation of the Sects). Every Sunday, the faithful join to recite the Credo of the Armenian Apostolic Church, written in Classical Armenian, where it is said: “We also believe in only one, universal, and apostolic holy Church.” Here, the word for “universal” is enthanragan (ընդհանրական).

Now, the word enthanoor is actually a compound of an adverb and an adjective: ent + hanoor (ընդ + հանուր), where ent means “together, under” and hanoor (“all, every”). Literally, it would mean “altogether.” Ent is an adverb that did not enter modern usage, but hanoor has been used at times, and one can find it here and there, for instance in the expression hanoor martgootioone (հանուր մարդկութիւնը “the entire humankind”).

Hanoor, composed by the prefix han, more commonly used as ham (համ), which means “all,” and the familiar adverb oor (ուր “where”), is particularly interesting for its many derivations. For instance, the same as the English public (from the Latin publicus, meaning “of the people; general”), the Armenian language created the noun hanrootioon (հանրութիւն “public”) and the adjective hanrayin (հանրային “public”). Consequently, republic (from Latin res publica “public affair, the state”) became hanrabedootioon (հանրապետութիւն, which literally means “the state of all”).

Another example is omnibus, from the same Latin word that means “for all.” The English word came from the French voiture omnibus (“carriage for all”), which was probably the inspiration for the Armenian version: hanragark (հանրակառք “carriage, vehicle for all”).

In the end, here are a few more usual terms that come from the very prolific hanoor, despite being a word that has fallen from usage in colloquial language:

Hanrakidaran (հանրագիտարան “encyclopedia”)

Hanrahashiv (հանրահաշիւ “algebra”)

Hanrakve (հանրաքուէ “referendum”)

Hanrakoomar (հանրագումար “grand total”)