Original: Social Democrat Hunchakian Party It was founded in 1887 by Avetis Nazarbekian , Mariam Vardanian , Gevorg Gharadjian , Ruben Khan-Azat , Christopher Ohanian , Gabriel Kafian and Manuel Manuelian , a group of college students in Geneva , Switzerland , with the goal to gain Armenia 's independence from the Ottoman Empire , which is part of Armenian national liberation movement Lebanon a Country Study By Federal Research Division - Page 185 .
Simplified: Its name , taken from its newspaper Hunchak , means '' Bell '' in English , and is taken by party members to represent '' awakening , enlightenment , and freedom . ''