Sona Van
{{Short description|Armenian poet (born 1952)}}
{{Infobox writer
| name = Sona Van
| image =
| alt = The Armenian American poet Sona Van
| occupation = Poet
| birth_date = 1952
| birth_place = Yerevan, Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic
| notable_works = Libretto for the Desert
| birth_name = Sona Ter-Hovhannisyan
}}
Sona Anushavani Ter-Hovhannisyan ({{Langx|hy|Սոնա Անուշավանի Տեր-Հովհաննիսյան}}; born 1952), best known by the pen name Sona Van ({{Langx|hy|Սոնա Վան|label=none}}), is an Armenian American poet. She is recognized for her work addressing the Armenian genocide.
Biography
Sona Van was born Sona Ter-Hovhannisyan in Yerevan, Armenia, in 1952.{{Cite web|date=2017-08-21|title=Sona Van: The Art of Poetry|url=http://diversionsla.com/sona-van-the-art-of-poetry/|access-date=2021-04-05|website=Diversions LA}}{{Cite book|last1=Van|first1=Sona|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JPfIzAEACAAJ|title=Libretto for the Desert|last2=Pozniak|first2=Beata|date=2019-12-21|publisher=Discordia Global Media|isbn=978-1-951234-03-4|language=en}}{{Cite book|last=Mkrtchyan|first=Samvel|url=https://issuu.com/jassamvel/docs/new_armenian_poetry_v2/68|title=The Anthology of Armenian Poets|publisher=S&H Project|year=2013|edition=2}}{{Cite web|last=Sedrakyan|first=Lilit|date=2013-12-10|title=Poet Sona Van awarded Movses Khorenatsi Medal|url=https://en.armradio.am/2013/12/10/poet-sona-van-awarded-movses-khorenatsi-medal/|access-date=2021-04-05|website=Public Radio of Armenia|language=en-US}} Her grandparents and parents had at one point been forced to leave Armenia due to the Armenian Genocide.{{Cite web|date=2019-09-05|title=Sona Van's 'Libretto for the Desert' is Now Available Online|url=https://asbarez.com/184927/sona-vans-libretto-for-the-desert-is-now-available-online/|access-date=2021-04-05|website=Asbarez|language=en-US}} Van formally trained as a doctor at Yerevan State Medical University, and she also holds a master's degree in psychology.{{Cite web|title=Սոնա Վան|url=https://avproduction.am/?ln=am&page=person&id=2441|access-date=2021-04-05|website=AV Production|language=Armenian}}
In 1978, she moved to the United States, settling in California. In the United States, she worked as a doctor and psychologist while also pursuing a poetry career. Her first collection, Rays of Light, was published in 1996. In 2006, she founded the literary journal Narcissus with the poet and playwright {{Interlanguage link|Vahan Vardanyan|hy|Վահան Վարդանյան (բանաստեղծ)}}, and she has served as editor in chief of the publication since 2013.
Her work frequently discusses the violence of the Armenian Genocide, aiming to raise awareness of the genocide in the English-speaking world.
Van has published at least four poetry collections, including Parallel Sleeplessness (2010).{{Cite web|date=2010-06-23|title=Minister Hranush Hakobyan Awards Certificate of RA Diaspora Ministry to Sona Van|url=https://armenpress.am/eng/news/608896.html|access-date=2021-04-05|website=Armenpress|language=en}} Libretto for the Desert, a poetry collection that deals specifically with the genocide, is her best-known work, and it has been translated into 23 languages.{{Cite web|title=LIBRETTO FOR THE DESERT by Sona Van Shushan Avagyan Trans Read by Beata Pozniak {{!}} Audiobook Review|url=http://www.audiofilemagazine.com/reviews/read/157146/libretto-for-the-desert-by-sona-van-shushan-avagyan-trans-read-by-beata-pozniak/|access-date=2021-04-05|website=AudioFile Magazine|language=en}}{{Cite web|date=2017-10-19|title=Woman against War: Sona Van translated in Russian|url=https://www.1lurer.am/en/2017/10/19/Woman-against-War-Sona-Van-translated-in-Russian/73664|access-date=2021-04-05|website=1 News|language=en}} Her work was also included in the 2017 anthology of 25 contemporary Armenian poets Armenia’s Heart: Poems … and Nothing More.{{Cite web|last=Mirak-Weissbach|first=Muriel|date=2017-05-18|title=Armenia's Heart: Poems … and Nothing More|url=https://mirrorspectator.com/2017/05/18/armenias-heart-poems-and-nothing-more/|access-date=2021-04-05|website=The Armenian Mirror-Spectator|language=en-US}}
She has been the recipient of HOMER - The European Medal of Poetry and Art. In 2019, she received the International Maria Konopnicka Prize alongside Beata Poźniak, an actress who has produced recordings of Van's work. She has also received a gold medal from the {{Interlanguage link|Ministry of Culture of Armenia|hy|Հայաստանի մշակույթի նախարարություն}}, as well as the Movses Khorenatsi medal.