An Armenian writer and national public figure of the early 19th century who mysteriously vanished in 1848 and was eventually presumed dead. He is an educator, poet and an advocate of modernization. Reputed as the father of modern Armenian literature, he is best remembered for his novel Wounds of Armenia. Written in 1841 and published posthumously in 1858, it was the first novel published in the modern Armenian language using Eastern Armenian based on the Yerevan dialect instead of Classical Armenian.

Abovian was far ahead of his time and virtually none of his works was published during his lifetime. Only after the establishment of the Armenian SSR was Abovian accorded the recognition and stature he merited. Abovian is regarded as one of the foremost figures not just in Armenian literature but Armenian history at large. Abovian's influence on Western Armenian literature was not as strong as it was on Eastern Armenian, particularly in its formative years.

Wounds of Armenia

The historical novel Wounds of Armenia  (written in 1841, first published in 1858) was the first Armenian secular novel dedicated to the fate of the Armenian people and its struggle for liberation in the period of Russo-Persian war of 1826–1828. The novel dealt with the suffering of Armenians under Persian occupation.The basic concept of the novel was the assertion of feelings of national merit, patriotismand hatred of oppressors. These themes had a profound influence over wide layers of Armenian society. The hero, Agassi, personifies the freedom-loving national spirit and its will to fight against the foreign conquerors. "Give away your life, but never give away your native lands", is his motto. The story begins with an abduction of an Armenian girl by a band of thugs sent by the Persian sardar that triggers an uprising led by Agassi.

Abovian saw in strengthening of the friendship of Russian and Armenian peoples a guarantee of the national, political and cultural revival of his native lands. However; when Abovian wrote the novel he was already disillusioned with Tsarist policies in Armenia, particularly with the implementation of Polozhenie (Statute) in 1836 which greatly reduced the political power of the Armenian Catholicos and the abolishment of the Armenian Oblast in 1840. In the novel, elements of romanticism and realism are interlaced while the narration is supplanted by lyrical retreats.

Other works

Abovian's poetry was filled with satire best expressed in The wine jug, in which he criticized Russian bureaucracy. Leisure entertainment was adapted by Abovian from notes he took in public gatherings. The work is a collection of fables in verse that chastise vice, injustice and moral degeneration.He wrote scientific and artistic non-fiction works such as the Discovery of America and Book of Stories.Abovian translated to the Armenian language the works of Homer, Goethe, Friedrich Schiller, Nikolay Karamzin, I. A. Krylov and others. He continued promoting secular and comprehensive (mental, moral, working, physical) training, school accessibility, free education for the indigent and equal education of boys and girls. Pedagogical compositions of Abovian include the book for reading Introduction to education (1838), a textbook of Russian grammar and an Armenian-language novel History of Tigran, or a moral manual for the Armenian children (printed in 1941). He was the first Armenian to study scientific ethnography: the way of life and customs of the peasants of the native settlements around Kanaker, inhabitants of Yerevan, and gathered and studied Armenian and Kurdish folklore.

Statues

Two prominent statues of Abovian stand in Yerevan. The concept of the first statue dates back to 1908 when a number of Armenian intellectuals in Russian Armenia decided to commemorate the 60th anniversary of Abovian's disappearance and raise funds for a statue. These included Alexander Shirvanzade, Hovhannes Tumanyan and Gevorg Bashinjagyan. By 1910 they had collected enough funds to order the statue. It was designed by M. Grigoryan and sculpted by Andreas Ter-Manukyan in Paris between 1910–13. The statue is 4.5 metres (15 ft) high and made of bronze on a granite pedestal. As a result of a misunderstanding the statue was only delivered to Yerevan in 1925 and first erected on Abovian street by the cinema Moscow in 1933 and then moved to the children's park on the banks of the Hrazdan river. In 1964, it found its permanent home by the Abovian house-museum in Kanaker.The second statue of Abovian in Yerevan was erected in Abovian square in 1950. The 9-metre (30 ft) high bronze statue was designed by Gevork Tamanian (son of Alexander Tamanian) and sculpted by Suren Stepanyan