Gurgen Mahari

Armenian Author

Gurgen Mahari

Գուրգեն Մահարի

1903–1969

Armenian poet and novelist whose autobiographical prose preserves memories of Van, genocide, Soviet repression, and exile.
Memoir Novels Poetry Van Armenian Genocide Soviet repression

About Gurgen Mahari

Gurgen Mahari (1903–1969), born Gurgen Ajemian in Van, was an Armenian poet and prose writer. Orphaned by the Armenian Genocide, he later rebuilt his life in Soviet Armenia and became a prominent literary figure.

Mahari endured arrest, imprisonment, and long years of Siberian exile during Stalin’s purges. His major works—including Blooming Barbed Wire, Burning Orchards, and his autobiographical trilogy—combine lyricism, irony, memory, and testimony.

Books by Gurgen Mahari