The National Association for Armenian Studies and Research (NAASR) was established in 1955 by a group of sixty Armenian Americans and academics who wished to advance Armenian Studies in the United States. In the decades since its creation, NAASR has achieved far-reaching results in fostering Armenian studies, research, and publication on a permanent, scholarly, and objective basis. Prior to NAASR's establishment, permanent programs in Armenian Studies in the U.S. were a dream held by a few individuals; through NAASR's own efforts and the impetus it has provided to others, that dream has become a reality.

Through NAASR’s fund-raising efforts the first two endowed chairs in Armenian Studies in the United States were established at Harvard University in 1959 and at the University of California at Los Angeles in 1965. NAASR has also supported Armenian Studies programs at a number of other American universities, among them Columbia University, University of Massachusetts at Boston and at Amherst, Wayne State University, Tufts University, California State University at Fresno, University of Connecticut, University of California, Berkeley, and Bentley University.

It is the only nationwide organization dedicated to the advancement of Armenian studies and culture through America’s foremost institutions of higher education and through a multifaceted program in support of research, scholarship, and publications.

Please use the navigation tabs at the top to learn more about NAASR and its activities.