Paruyr Sevak

Paruyr Sevak (; January 24, 1924 – June 17, 1971) was an Armenian poet, translator and literary critic. A major figure in Soviet Armenia during the Khrushchev Thaw, Sevak and his works remain widely popular in Armenia today. He is considered one of the greatest Armenian poets of the 20th century.

Early career Sevak was born Paruyr Ghazaryan in the village of Chanakhchi (now Zangakatun), Armenian SSR, Soviet Union to Rafael and Anahit Soghomonyan on January 24, 1924. His ancestors had migrated to Chanakhchi, a remote, mountainous village, from the village of Havtvan in Salmast (Salmas), Iran in 1828. In 1939, he became a student at the philological faculty of Yerevan State University. He graduated in 1945. The same year he started his postgraduate studies in Armenian literature at the Abeghyan Institute of Literature of the Armenian SSR Academy of Sciences, which lasted until 1948. In 1951, Sevak went to Moscow to study at the Gorky Institute of World Literature.

From 1966 to 1971, Sevak served as secretary on the Board of the Writers Union of Armenia. In 1967, he became a doctor of philology after his dissertation defense. In 1968, Sevak was elected to the Supreme Soviet of the Armenian SSR. His wife, Nelly Menagharishvili, also died in the car crash.

Sevak was buried in the backyard of his home, in Zangakatun, which later became a museum open to the public. One of the main streets of Yerevan's Kanaker-Zeytun District is named after him. School #123 of Yerevan is also named after Sevak. In 1984, Levon Mkrtchyan directed the film Paruyr Sevak for Armenfilm. On 2018, the third series of Dram banknotes were printed, featuring Sevak on the 1000 Dram note.

Publications (1948) Anmahnerë hramayum en ( (The immortals command)) (1953) Anhasht mtermut’yun ( (Irreconcilable intimacy)) (1954) Siro chanaparh ( (Path of love)) (1969) Yeghits’i luys ( (Let there be light) (1971) Dzer tsanot’nerë ( (Your acquaintances)) (1972–1976) Yerkeri zhoghovatsu vets’ hatorov ( (Collected works in six volumes)) (1982–1983) Yerker: zhoghovatsu yerek’ hatorov ( (Collected works in three volumes))

Translations into English Selected Poems. Translated with an introduction by Garig Basmadjian. Jerusalem: St. James Press, 1973. Paruyr Sevak's Poetry: Select Translations from Armenian. Translated by Jack Aslanian. Yerevan: VMV-Print, 2011. The Incessant Bell-tower. Translated by Svetlana Vardanian. Yerevan: Limush Press, 2015 (2nd revised ed.: 2017).