Photo by the press service of the Embassy of Kazakhstan in Russia.
More than 500 festive events were held in the country; book exhibitions, contests and competitions, seminars and trainings, chess tournaments, flash mobs, concerts and sports competitions were held in honour of the poet. On the eve of the national holiday, a 65-metre digital portrait of the poet was illuminated on the Ferris wheel in Astana.
“A turning point in the history of national culture”
Abai Day became an official holiday in Kazakhstan in 2020. In 2022, the Abay region was created, which occupies part of the territory of the East Kazakhstan region. The region borders Russia to the north and shares a border with China to the southeast.
The founder of Kazakh literature was born near the town of Semey, studied at a madrasah and, in addition to theology, studied Arabic and Persian literature, the works of Ferdowsi, Nizami, Saadi, Hafiz. Abai was interested not only in poetry, but also in music, which he wrote based on his own poems. During his life, the poet wrote about 200 poems, several poems and 56 poetic translations, mainly from Russian. He translated the works of Pushkin, Lermontov, Krylov. In one of the chapters of the journalistic and philosophical “Words of Edification”, the educator addresses his fellow tribesmen with an appeal to send their children to Russian schools, because speaking Russian will allow them to become attached to European cultures.
Photo by the press service of the Embassy of Kazakhstan in Russia.
Kazakh literary critic Sauytbek Abdrakhmanov believes that the year 1887, when Abai translated Eugene Onegin into Kazakh, became a turning point in the history of national culture. Today, Abai’s own work has been translated into 60 languages of the world.
Abai’s main work in the prose genre is the aforementioned “Words of Edification”: 45 parables and philosophical sketches in which the thinker analyzes questions of metaphysics, ethics, national character and worldview, morality and legal consciousness.
Today, 18,586 people in Kazakhstan bear the name Abai. Monuments and busts of the poet have been erected in almost every city in the country, and flowers were laid at the feet of each one on the day of the holiday. Outside Kazakhstan, monuments to the poet can be found from Paris to Seoul. For example, on Chistoprudny Boulevard in Moscow. In 2007, a bust of Abai appeared in Tehran. In 2011, a bust of the thinker was unveiled in the capital of Azerbaijan; it is located in the building of Baku State University, where the Abai Center is also located. In 2013, a monument to Abai was unveiled in Tashkent. In 2014, a bust of the poet appeared in Beijing, and in the same year a monument to him was erected in the capital of Hungary. In October 2016, busts of Abai were installed in Rennes, France, and in the capital of Egypt. The park and the memorial plaque for Abai can be seen in Antalya, Turkey. In 2020, a monument to the national poet of Kazakhstan was unveiled in Sarajevo. In the same year, a bust of Abai was unveiled in Ankara, where one of the avenues is named after the poet. A bust of the poet can also be found in Geneva. In 2021, the Abai monument and square appeared in Istanbul and Kharkiv, where there is a triptych depicting the Ukrainian poet Grigory Skovoroda and the Azerbaijani philosopher Myrza Fatali Akhundov. In August 2021, the President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev took part in the unveiling ceremony of the bronze bust of Abai in Seoul, a project of the monument developed in Kazakhstan.
In the same year, a monument to the Kazakh thinker appeared in Berlin on Abai Street, not far from the Kazakh embassy. In 2021, a bust of the poet was installed in Paris. In 2022, a monument to Abai by a Georgian sculptor was installed on one of the squares in Tbilisi. Previously, a street in the capital of Georgia was named after the poet. In May 2022, a monument to Abai appeared in Bishkek; the unveiling ceremony was attended by the presidents of Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. In the same year, a bust of the poet was unveiled in the capital of India.
Photo by the press service of the Embassy of Kazakhstan in Russia.
“A bond that unites Russians and Kazakhs”
In Moscow, on Chistoprudny Boulevard, near the monument to Abai Kunanbayev, representatives of the Kazakh Cultural Autonomy of Moscow, with the assistance of the Embassy of Kazakhstan in Russia, organized an action. Local residents, diplomats, students and graduates of local universities, as well as Kazakh compatriots in Moscow laid flowers at the monument to the great Abai.
An impromptu concert was held. Participants sang, read Pushkin’s works translated into Kazakh, and played kyui on the dombra.
The editor-in-chief of the publishing house “Khudozhestvennaya Literatura”, vice-president of the Academy of Russian Literature Georgy Pryakhin, is surprised by the fact that Abai undoubtedly exalted his people with the depth of his thought. But at the same time, he did not kneel before the people. In “Words of Edification” Abai admires the people, but clearly points out what exactly the people should “add” and what needs to be re-educated. According to the Russian writer, this is what many Russian thinkers lack.
“As we speak about the upcoming anniversary of Abai’s birth, our publishing house will publish the fundamental work of his closest student Shakarim with a foreword by President Tokayev. For the first time, the most complete collection of Shakarim’s scientific works, his fiction, poems and reflections, in tune with the thought of his elder brother, will be published in Russian. I believe that this two-volume book will be a great contribution to the treasury of thought of the two steppe titans and to the treasury of our common Eurasian culture,” says Georgy Pryakhin.
Kazakh writer Madi Raimov believes that the spiritual heritage of Abai Kunanbayev plays an important role in modern Russian-Kazakhstan relations and has a significant impact on the cultural, educational and humanitarian aspects of interaction between the two countries.
“Abai’s contribution as a philosopher, poet and educator can be divided into several aspects. Among them, the most important are cultural diplomacy and modern interpretations and adaptations,” says Madi Raimov. “Abai’s works are studied and appreciated not only in Kazakhstan, but also in Russia. Through translations of his works into Russian, cultural exchange between countries is enriched, which helps to strengthen mutual respect and understanding. Abai’s work continues to inspire contemporary art, literature and culture in both Kazakhstan and Russia. Adaptations of his works on stage, in film and in literature contribute to the dissemination of his ideas in modern society, strengthening spiritual ties between the peoples of the two countries.”
Photo by the press service of the Embassy of Kazakhstan in Russia.
Kazakh children’s writer and scriptwriter Zaure Turekhan believes that literature and culture in general have always united people because they are understandable to all people on the planet.
“We have the same joys, the same sorrows. It doesn’t matter if you are Kazakh or Russian, the problems of society, family problems, and personal problems are the same for everyone. Abai is one of the greatest thinkers not only of his time, but his humanistic approach is still relevant today. His work is distinguished by the desire to help a thinking person find his way in the confusing labyrinth of life with the help of morality, decency, fidelity to word and deed. I think that this is the bond that unites modern Russian and Kazakh readers,” the writer concludes.
