05.06.2025


With the financial support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Norway, 110 years after the Armenian Genocide, the diary entries of Norwegian missionary Bodil Biørn were translated from Old Norwegian and published in book form. These documents have primary-source value for the study of the Armenian Genocide.

The presentation of the book titled "Memoirs of an Eyewitness: The Legacy of Bodil Katharine Biørn" took place at the Armenian Genocide Museum-Institute, attended by the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Kingdom of Norway to Armenia, Bergljot Hovland, the Honorary Consul of Norway in Armenia, historians from Armenia and abroad, among others.

The event opened with the presentation of the temporary exhibition "Documenting the Crime: Eyewitness Accounts of the Armenian Genocide", introducing a special section dedicated to Norwegian humanitarians. The exhibition includes thematic items, among them Bodil Biørn’s personal belongings.

The director of the Armenian Genocide Museum-Institute, Edita Gzoyan, welcomed the attendees. In her speech, she stated: “Bodil Biørn's life, work, and humanitarian mission resonate here today as a symbol of testimony, courage, and moral resilience. In defiance of authoritarian silence, Biørn chose to fight, to help the Armenians, and to document the crime.”

Edita Gzoyan expressed gratitude to Biørn’s grandson, who years ago donated his grandmother’s diaries, letters, and personal items to the museum. These now form an important part of the Armenian Genocide Museum’s collection, allowing the depth of the genocide to be presented through Biørn’s sincere and profoundly humanitarian perspective.

Later, the book's editor, Regina Galustyan, Ph.D. in History and senior researcher at the Museum-Institute, spoke about the significance of Biørn's work and legacy. She noted that the book includes the missionary’s complete handwritten diaries and memoirs. This eight-notebook collection spans the years 1905–1934. During her humanitarian mission in the Ottoman Empire, Biørn documented the life of the Armenian people and the unfolding genocide with exceptional clarity and compassion, leaving behind rich ethnographic, geographic, and historical information.

The last two notebooks (1927–1934) contain detailed descriptions of her work in Aleppo after the Armenian Genocide. These are accompanied by numerous photographs, precise records of Armenian children who survived the genocide, and other statistical data.