A trilingual commemorative album documenting the history and legacy of the Melkonian Educational Institute was officially presented at the Presidential Palace last week, in an event celebrating the memory, education and cultural heritage of Cyprus’ Armenian community.

The publication, released by the Press and Information Office (PIO) in Greek, Armenian and English, was co-organised by the education ministry and the office of the Armenian religious representative in parliament.

The nearly 400-page volume traces the 79-year history of the Melkonian Educational Institute, from its establishment in 1926 by philanthropist brothers Krikor and Garabed Melkonian as a refuge for orphans who survived the Armenian genocide, through its evolution into one of the world’s leading educational centres for the Armenian diaspora, until its closure in 2004.

Addressing the event, Education Minister Athena Michaelidou described the publication, which is illustrated with historic photos, as “an act of historical and moral duty” towards the Armenian people, their history and culture.

She said the Melkonian Institute represented a living testament to the Armenian community’s efforts to preserve its identity, language and cultural heritage, while also serving as a unique educational institution with international reach.

“The Melkonian is not only an educational institution with historical significance for the Armenian community, but also a living part of Cyprus’ own reality,” she said, adding that it reflected the deep ties of friendship and cooperation between Cypriots and Armenians, as well as the Armenian community’s longstanding contribution to the island.

PIO director Aliki Stylianou said the publication represented more than another government publication and was instead “an act of memory and honour”.

“The Melkonian was not simply a place of education,” she said. “It was a place where the traumatic experience of displacement was transformed into a force for hospitality and creation.”

She noted that the institute was founded at a time when thousands of survivors of the Armenian genocide were seeking safety and a new beginning, adding that the decision by the Melkonian brothers to establish the institution in Cyprus reflected the island’s long history as a place of coexistence, refuge and hope.

Armenian representative in parliament Vartkes Mahdessian described the publication as the culmination of a collective effort to document, in three languages, the history of one of the most important educational institutions of the Armenian community in Cyprus.

Aliki Stylianou
Vartkes Mahdessian

Athena Michaelidou

He recalled that the Melkonian Institute had been founded nearly a century ago to provide shelter and education to Armenian genocide orphans and had gone on to become a pan-Armenian centre of education and culture, playing a vital role in preserving Armenian language, history and identity.

Mahdessian also revealed that work on the commemorative volume began in March 2021, involving a five-member editorial committee, with contributions from former students, graduates and friends of the institute.

He said that while the educational mission of the Melkonian Institute had been interrupted by its closure in 2005, its memory and legacy remained alive, expressing hope that the institution might one day reopen and continue the mission envisioned by its founders.

The event also featured a presentation of the commemorative album by education inspector Antonia Loizou, who headed the editorial team, followed by a cultural programme including performances by the Surp Asdvadzadzin Youth Choir and the Sipan dance group of the Hamazkayin Armenian Educational and Cultural Society.

To view the publication go here