Abai Kunanbaev

The great Kazakh poet, scientist and teacher Abai Kunanbaev was born on August 10, 1845in the Chingis Mountains near Semipalatinsk, a region in the south-east of Kazakhstan. Abai got his primary education at home and then he studied for five years in a religious school. It was there that the poet became interested in reading oriental classical literature. Alongside it, Abai started to learn the Russian language and culture. But he could not finish his training in town. His father brought him back to the country where he had to prepare for his future career as the chief of a big family.

When Abai was twenty eight he broke off his relations with his father. After that he devoted all the time to studying Russian classical literature and oriental poetic works. Abai began to write verses when he was twelve. Only some of them written in that period have been kept and can be read now. When he was thirty five Abai again came back to poetry. As in his youth he went on Writing poems singing them, but not in his original name. only in the summer of 1886 for the first time did Abai put his name under the poem “Summer”.

His personality was unique and unusual. Abai was not only a poet also a musician, philosopher, scientist and a public figure. His literary heritage is great. It consists of different verses, poems, translations and talks. Abai became the first Kazakh poet who translated the works of Russian and European literature into Kazakh language. Thanks to his retellings the most beautiful oriental classical poems became very popular among people in the steppe. They are “Shahname”, “Leily and Medzhnun”, “Ker-ogly” and others.

The main philosophical work of Abai in his “Book of Words”, which the poet had been Writing for eight years. This book represents the analysis of the Kazakh society in the second half of the nineteenth century. In these words Abai touched many ethic problems. The “Book of Words” is full of faith and hope that hard times will stay behind and the Kazakhs will take a better place among other people. “The beginning of humanity is love and fairness”.

They are everywhere and solve everything, theses words are basic in the outlook of the graet man. In his poems Abai glorified the beauty of his native land, the diligence and wisdom of his people. He called for them to struggle for their rights and literacy for all. His poems “Eskendyr”, “Masgut”, and “Legend about Asym” were the result of his original work with the Near East culture and poetry. Abai’s creative heritage also includes some musical pieces written by the poet to his own verses. Mainly they are melodies to his translations of Pushkin’s novel “Eugene Onegin”. These fragments became extremely popular among the Kazakh people.

As the founder of Kazakh classical literature, Abai became a spiritual leader of his people. The books written by him are still in use nowadays.