A Brief Introduction to Harsnerēn
Abstract
Harsnerēn, meaning ‘Language of the Bride’ in Armenian, was a gesture-based form of communication used by married women. Harsnerēn was used when communication was absolutely necessary, as restrictions were typically placed on the speech of married women. The fieldwork for this study was conducted in six villages in Armenia where the author of this article filmed and documented first-hand accounts of uses of Harsnerēn. Harsnerēn, while observed as a tradition of the past, allows for an examination of the relationship between language and power dynamics in intimate, familial, and social relationships in modern society.
Submitted: Jan. 11, 2022 | Accepted: March 23, 2022 | Published Oct. 28, 2022 | Language: en
Keywords Silence-keeping • Armenian • Harsnerēn • Sign language • Language • Women
Copyright © 2022 Carla Kekejian. This is an open-access work distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction is permitted, provided that the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. The license allows for commercial use. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
Permalink http://doi.org/10.30687/arm/9372-8175/2022/01/004