It has long been widely known, thanks to Ambassador Morgenthau’s 1918 memoir, that the Turkish government in 1915 tried to collect the life insurance benefits of the Armenians it had murdered. How many Armenians had life insurance? In what amount? What happened to the money? Hrayr S. Karagueuzian breaks important new ground by showing that tens of thousands of Armenians held life insurance policies worth well over twenty million 1915 dollars, that for the most part these policies remained unclaimed and unpaid (the designated beneficiaries having been murdered along with the policyholders), and that the insurance companies remain liable for payment of these benefits—a multibillion dollar proposition in the twenty-first century.

Armenians driven from their homes in 1915 left behind thousands of monuments of their civilization. The Turkish government is actively involved in the protection of cultural property, but it discriminates against Armenian monuments. Anahid Ugurlayan, an attorney, suggests practical measures to secure the protection of these monuments. Alongside her article we publish rare photographs of some important monuments, taken from the Gomidas Institute photo archives.

Armenians from all over the world have gradually made their way west and hundreds of thousand have now arrived at the western edge of the west. A large number of quickly evolving communities have emerged and are emerging in Southern California, challenging conventional notions of what it means to be an Armenian community. The situation barely has been described, much less studied. Ara Oshagan artfully describes it through a collection of twelve photographs.

We feature a report on the Armenia-Diaspora conference held in Yerevan in September 1999. One of the topics constantly raised at the conference but never discussed in any depth was that of dual nationality. Armenia is often called upon to allow diaspora Armenians to be naturalized in Armenia while maintaining their current nationalities as well. Aida B. Avanessian, an expert in private international law, addresses some of the objections that are often raised in response to this suggestion.

Without the support of the Friends of Armenian Forum, we simply would not be able to publish this journal. We are particularly grateful to Mr. Nejdeh H. Aslanian of Tehran, Iran, and Ms. Marilyn Melkonian of Washington, D.C., and to the Armen and Gloria Hampar Family Foundation for their generous support. We wish to thank, for their thoughtful gifts to the Gomidas Institute in support of Armenian Forum, Mr. Harut Barsamian, Mr. Michael Bobelian, Mr. Dick G. Dulgarian, Ms. Isgouhi Kassakhian, Mr. and Mrs. Ralph and Savey Tufenkian, V. Pailakian, Mr. Vartkes Tsouroukdissian, Ms. Elizabeth M. Akian, and Dr. Hovsep Fidanian.