Raphaël Chivot was born in France, and currently lives in Belgium. He has Armenian roots on his mother’s side, whose family comes from the region of Bursa in Turkey. We met Rafael in person at the AVC office in Yerevan in summer 2022. That was not his first visit to the homeland.
“I have been four times to Armenia, as a volunteer for a fintech start-up based at the American University of Armenia, as well as a tourist. My fondest memory is when I landed at Zvartnots for the first time. All the signs were written in Armenian, and I remember that I instantly felt at home,” he says․
Raphaël had a very limited understanding of Western Armenian. He decided to study Western Armenian on his own with AVC’s language course.
“I was looking for Armenian language classes online with a flexible study programme and I found AVC’s website. The reviews were good, and the teaching method looked attractive, as it was both rigorous and flexible, so I decided to apply. No regrets so far!
I have taken seven courses in Western Armenian in French. The fact that the courses were online, with the possibility to have private tutoring sessions with a teacher, was very appealing to me. So far, the courses have exceeded my expectations! My knowledge of Armenian has improved a lot and the variety of materials used in the lessons has made the learning experience very enjoyable. Finally, the environment is very supportive”.
Raphaël recommends the AVC courses to everyone who wishes to learn or improve their knowledge of Armenian. Currently he is enrolled in the advanced level and is interested in taking the AVC course in Armenian history. We also talked about his fondest memory of AVC:
“My visit to the AVC office in Yerevan last summer! It was so nice to be able to meet my teacher in person and visit the building”, says Raphaël.
“Rafael is a very energetic, patriotic young man. He is a smart and dedicated student. Always participates in online classes and group meetings organized by AVC with great enthusiasm. He has a great love for the Armenian language and Armenian culture”, says his online instructor Zepyur Kheblikian.
