Abai Qunanbaiuly

Abai Qunanbaiuly
Born	Abai (Ibrahim) Qunanbaiuly (1845-08-10)10 August 1845 Abay District, East Kazakhstan, Russian Empire
Died	6 July 1904(1904-07-06) (aged 58) Abay District, East Kazakhstan, Russian Empire
Occupation	Aqyn
Notable works	The Book of Words

Abai Qūnanbaiūly (Kazakh: Абай Құнанбайұлы [ɑˈbɑj qʊnɑmˌbɑjʊˈɫɤ] ^ⓘ; Russian: Абай Кунанбаев; 10 August [O.S. 29 July] 1845 – 6 July [O.S. 23 June] 1904) was a Kazakh poet, composer and Hanafi Maturidi theologian and philosopher. He was also a cultural reformer toward European and Russian cultures on the basis of enlightened Islam. Among Kazakhs, he is known simply as Abai.

Early life and education

Abai was born in Karauyl village in the Chingiz volost of Semipalatinsk uyezd of the Russian Empire (this is now in Abay District of East Kazakhstan). He was the son of Qunanbai and Uljan, his father's second wife. His family named him Ibrahim, as the family was Muslim, and he stuck with the name during the first few years of his life. Ibrahim first studied at a local madrasah (Islamic school) under Mullah Ahmed Ryza. During his early childhood under Ryza's tutelage, he received the nickname "Abai" (which means "careful"), a nickname that remained with him for the rest of his life. His father was wealthy enough to send Abai to a Russian secondary school in Semipalatinsk. There he read the writings of Mikhail Lermontov and Alexander Pushkin, which were influential to his own development as a writer. Moreover, he was fond of reading Persian poetry, including the Shahnameh and One Thousand and One Nights.

Contributions

Abai's main contribution to Kazakh culture and folklore lies in his poetry, which expresses great nationalism and grew out of Kazakh folk culture. Before him, most Kazakh poetry was oral, reflecting the nomadic habits of the people of the Kazakh steppes. During Abai's lifetime, however, a number of important socio-political and socio-economic changes occurred. Russian and Western influence continued to grow in Kazakhstan, resulting in greater educational opportunities and exposure to various philosophies, including Russian, Western, and Asian . Abai Qunanbaiuly immersed himself in the cultural and philosophical histories of these newly accessible regions. In this sense, Abai's creative poetry influenced the philosophical theological thinking of educated Kazakhs.

Legacy

Qunanbaiuly on a 2020 Russian stamp

The leaders of the Alash Orda movement regarded him as their inspiration and spiritual predecessor, drawing upon his ideas and example.

Contemporary Kazakh images of Abai generally depict him in full traditional dress holding a dombra (the Kazakh national instrument). Today, Kazakhs revere Abai as one of the first folk heroes to become part of the national consciousness of his people. Kazakh National Pedagogical University and one of the main avenues in the city of Almaty are named after Abai. There are also public schools named after him . Abai is featured on postal stamps from Kazakhstan, the Soviet Union, and India. The Kazakh city of Abay and the Abai Region are both named after him. Among Abai's students was his nephew, Shakarim Qudayberdiuli (1858–1931) ,a historian, philosopher, and poet.

Statue to Abai Qunanbaiuly in Sarajevo

Statues of him have been erected in many cities of Kazakhstan, as well as Ashgabat, Beijing, Moscow, New Delhi, Tehran, Berlin, Cairo, Istanbul, Antalya, Kyiv, Tashkent, Sarajevo, Bucharest and Budapest.

Abai is featured on the Kazakhstani tenge, a subway station in Almaty is named after him, along with a street, a square, a theater, and numerous schools. In 1995, the 150th anniversary of Abai's birth, UNESCO marked the occasion with the "Year of Abai" event. In 1995, Kazakhfilm produced a film about Abai's life, titled 'Abai. Abai is also the subject of two novels and an opera by Mukhtar Auezov, prominent Kazakhstani writer. Another film , depicting the life of Abai's father, was made in December 2015, titled "Qunanbai". In 2016, the film 'Qunanbai' was selected for the 12th Kazan International Muslim Film Festival. Out of 700 films from various countries, only 60 were chosen for the official selection. In 2016, Abai Qunanbaiuly was nominated in the "proposed candidates" category of the national project «El Tulgasy» (Name of the Motherland) .The project's goal was to honor the most significant and renowned citizens of Kazakhstan, whose names are closely linked to the country's achievements. Over 350,000 people participated in this project, and Abai was secured fifth place in his category.

In 1995, Şair Abay Konanbay (English: Poet Abay Konanbay) Anatolian High School was opened in Sultangazi, Istanbul.

In 2020, the government of Kazakhstan announced plans to celebrate the 175th anniversary of his birthday throughout the year.

In 2020, the Park and memorial plaque in honor of Abai opened in Antalya, Turkey.

In March 2021, Abay Kunanbayoğlu Square was opened in Zeytinburnu, Istanbul.

In August 2021, a monument to Abai opened in Seoul, South Korea. Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev took part in the opening ceremony.

In October 2021, a monument dedicated to Abai was unveiled in Berlin, Germany.

In December 2021, a monument honoring Abai was unveiled in Paris, France, as part of a celebration of the 30th anniversary of Kazakhstan's independence.

On 30 December 2021, a monument to the great poet and educator Abai Kunanbaev was erected in Atyrau in front of the center of Abai.

On 29 April 2022, a monument created by a Georgia sculptor was opened in Tbilisi, the image of a Kazakh thinker and educator will always remind of the friendship of the two peoples. The avenue next to the square where the monument was erected will also bear the name of Abay Kunanbayev.

On 26 May 2022, a monument dedicated to the friendly relations between Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan was unveiled in Bishkek. The opening of the monument was attended by the President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and the President of Kyrgyzstan Sadyr Zhaparov

On 2 June 2022, a bust of Abai was installed in San martin Square in New Delhi.

On 21 March 2023, a monument to Abai Kunanbayev was unveiled in Taldykorgan. The architects of the monument is Akmyrza Rustembekov and Manarbek Dzhakipbayev. The sculptor is Mirlan Azmaganbetov.

Works

Abai also translated into Kazakh the works of Russian and European authors, often for the first time, making them accessible to a wider audience. Translations made by him include poems by Mikhail Lermontov, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Lord Byron, Ivan Krylov's Fables and Alexander Pushkin's Eugene Onegin.

Abai's major work is The Book of Words (қара сөздері, Qara sózderi), a theological and philosophical treatise combined with a collection of poems. In this work, he urges his fellow Kazakhs to embrace education, literacy, and strong moral values as a means to overcome poverty, oppression, and corruption. In Word Twenty Five, he discusses the importance of Russian culture, as a way for Kazakhs to be exposed to the world's cultural treasures.

Moscow protests in May 2012

Main article: 2011–13 Russian protests

Human rights activist Ildar Dadin with an "Occupy Abai" t-shirt in Moscow (2017)

On 9 May 2012, following two days of protests in Moscow after Vladimir Putin's inauguration for a third term as President of the Russian Federation, protesters set up camp near the monument to Abai Qunanbaiuly on Chistoprudny Boulevard in central Moscow, close to the Kazakhstani embassy. The statue quickly became a focal point for the protesters. The hashtag #OccupyAbai ranked among the top on Twitter for several days, largely due to Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny, who organized a meeting with his followers next to Abai Qunanbaiuly's monument in Moscow. Navalny referred to the statue as 'a monument to some unknown Kazakh,' which sparked controversy. This comment provoked a wave of indignation among ethnic Kazakhs, who hold Abai in high regard as a national figure. In response, Abai's poetry surged in popularity, reaching the top 10 in AppStore downloads.

External links

• Biography of Abay
• Site dedicated to Abay
• «Kara Sozder» (Book of Words) (in Kazakh)
• Poems by Abay (in Russian)
• IMDb page for the 1995 biopic