Ara Sarafian, director of the London-based Gomidas Institute, will present a lecture titled “Van 1915: The Great Events of Vasbouragan” at 7:30 p.m., Friday, Feb. 23, in the University Business Center, Alice Peters Auditorium, Room 191. The free public presentation is part of the Spring Lecture Series of the Armenian Studies Program. “Van 1915: The Great Events of Vasbouragan” details what happened to Armenians in the Ottoman province of Van in 1915. Published in Yerevan in 1917, it remains one of the most important works on the Armenian Genocide. Author A-Do [a pseudonym for Hovhannes Ter Martirosian] describes key incidents in harrowing detail, pinpointing April 16, 1915, as the beginning of genocidal attacks against Armenians. A-Do’s book also covers the formation of a provisional Armenian government during the Russian occupation of this region, as well as the great exodus of Armenians to the Caucasus when the Russians withdrew. In his presentation at Fresno State, historian Sarafian will introduce A-Do’s work in its broader historiographical context, before focusing on some of the critical details at hand. His presentation will include photographs, maps, and diagrams that bring A-Do’s work alive. Sarafian is an Armenian historian specializing in the late Ottoman Empire and modern Turkey. He was a founding director of the Gomidas Institute and is its current director. “Van 1915: The Great Events of Vasbouragan” will be available for sale at the presentation. The Leon S. Peters Foundation is a co-sponsor of the event. Free parking is available in Fresno State Lots P5 and P6, near the University Business Center, Fresno State (parking code 273825 must be used at a kiosk to receive the free permit). INFO: Armenian Studies Program at 559.278.2669 or visit the website.