Armenian Schoolgirls in Kharberd

The photograph shows Armenian schoolgirls with their teacher in the town of Kharberd (Harput), Western Armenia.

Some of the girls stand, others sit on the floor, and many hold books and notebooks. They wear dark and striped dresses with white collars, and some have ribbons in their hair. Two adult women can also be seen among them.

At the beginning of the 20th century, Armenian schools were important centres not only of education but also of the preservation of national identity. Here girls received literacy and linguistic and cultural upbringing, forming a generation that was to carry on the memory and values of the people in the most difficult times.