Abdulla Qahhor

Abdulla Qahhor
Абдулла Қаҳҳор
A commemorative Uzbek stamp made in honor of Abdulla Qahhor's 100th birthday
A commemorative Uzbek stamp made in honor of Abdulla Qahhor's 100th birthday
BornAbdulla Qahhorov
(1907-09-17)September 17, 1907
Kokand, Fergana Oblast, Russian Empire
DiedMay 24, 1968(1968-05-24) (aged 60)
Moscow, Soviet Union
OccupationNovelist, short story writer, poet, playwright, and literary translator
Literary movementRealism
Notable awards

Abdulla Qahhor[a] (September 17, 1907 – May 24, 1968) was a Soviet and Uzbek novelist, short story writer, poet, playwright, and literary translator. He is best remembered as the author of the 1951 novel Qoʻshchinor chiroqlari (The Lights of Qoʻshchinor) and the 1958 novella Sinchalak.

Qahhor is considered to be one of the best Uzbek writers of the 20th century, and has been called the "Chekhov" of Uzbeks.[1][2] He received the prestigious Stalin Prize in 1952,[3] and became a National Writer of the Uzbek SSR in 1967.[4] In 2000, Qahhor was posthumously awarded the Order of Outstanding Merit (Uzbek: Buyuk xizmatlari uchun), one of independent Uzbekistan's most prestigious awards.

Life

Abdulla Qahhor was born on 17 September 1907 in Kokand.[5][b] According to some sources, his father was a blacksmith.[7] According to other sources, his father was a shoemaker,[8] or, alternatively, his family were farmers.[9]

In 1930, Qahhor entered the pedagogical faculty of Central Asia State University, graduating in 1934.[5][10] He became a member of the Communist Party in 1952.[11] From 1954 to 1956, he was the Chairman of the Union of Writers of the Uzbek SSR.[12]

In the early years of his work, Qahhor was very good friends with Sharof Rashidov, but the two had a falling out after Rashidov did not like some of the contents of Qahhor's novel Qoʻshchinor and insisted that it be modified. The novel was later re-developed into Qoʻshchinor chiroqlari.[13][14]

Qahhor died in Moscow on 24 May 1968 at the age of 60 and was buried in Tashkent.[11][15]

Works

An Uzbek stamp issued in recognition of Abdulla Qahhor's play Shohi soʻzana (Silk Suzani) (1950)

Abdulla Qahhor started his writing career in 1924 by writing short stories. He began publishing his work in 1925[16] and went on to work as a writer for many different Uzbek-language periodicals, such as Qizil Oʻzbekiston (Red Uzbekistan), Mushtum (Fist), Yangi Farg‘ona (New Ferghana)[17] under many different pseudonyms and pen names, including Norin shilpiq, Sarimsoq, E-Boy, Erkaboy, Gina, Gulyor, Mavlono Kufur, and Nish.

From 1934 to 1937, he worked as secretary of the Sovet adabiyoti (Soviet Literature) magazine, and from 1938 to 1950, he worked as an editor and translator at the State Publishing House of Uzbekistan.[8]

His first poem, "Oy kuyganda" ("When the Moon Burns"), was published in Mushtum in 1924.[18] Following the release of his first story, "Boshsiz odam" ("The Headless Man") (1929),[19] Qahhor concentrated on prose writing. His first book, Qishloq hukmi ostida (Under the Rule of the Village), was published in 1932.[20] His first collection of stories, Olam yasharadi (The World Becomes Young), was published in 1933.[11]

Qahhor's stories "Asror bobo" ("Grandpa Asror"), "Dardaqdan chiqqan qahramon" ("A Hero from Dardaq"), "Kampirlar sim qoqdi" ("Old Women Rang"), "Xotinlar" ("Women"), and "Oltin yulduz" ("The Golden Star") depict the courage of Uzbek soldiers and the hard work of Uzbek workers during the Soviet-German war against Nazi Germany and its allies.[21]

Qahhor's other novels and stories include Sarob (Mirage) (1935),[22] Oʻgʻri (The Thief)[23] (1936), Bemor (The Patient) (1936),[24] Qoʻshchinor chiroqlari (The Lights of Qoʻshchinor) (1951),[25] Oʻtmishdan ertaklar (Stories from the Past) (1965),[25] Muhabbat (Love) (1968),[11] Mahalla (Neighborhood),[26] Millatchilar (Nationalists),[27] and others. He is also known for his plays Shohi soʻzana (Silk Suzani) (1950),[25] Ogʻriq tishlar (Hurting Teeth) (1954),[28] Tobutdan tovush (A Sound from the Coffin) (1962),[29] and Ayajonlarim (My Dear Mothers) (1967).[28]

Qahhor translated the works of many Russian writers, such as Leo Tolstoy, Alexander Pushkin, Anton Chekhov, and Nikolai Gogol into the Uzbek language.[11] In particular, he translated The Captain's Daughter of Pushkin,[30] Marriage and The Government Inspector of Gogol,[31] and, together with his wife Kibriyo Qahhorova, War and Peace of Leo Tolstoy.[32] While his translations have been widely praised by many authors and critics,[33] some of his earlier translations were criticized for incorrectly conveying the meaning of texts.[31]

Influence and legacy

During the Soviet era, Qahhor's works were quite popular in the Baltics.[34] He also influenced numerous Uzbek writers, including Oʻtkir Hoshimov,[35] Erkin Vohidov,[36] and Abdulla Oripov.[37] There is a house-museum dedicated to his memory that was founded in 1987.[25][38]

Archives show that he issued denunciations of other Uzbek writers to Soviet authorities.[39]

Awards

Notes

  1. ^ Uzbek: Abdulla Qahhor, Абдулла Қаҳҳор; Russian: Абдулла Каххар, romanized: Abdulla Kakhkhar.
  2. ^ Some sources claim that he was born in what is now the Asht District of Tajikistan.[6]

References

Citations

  1. ^ Ergasheva, Nigina (23 August 2007). "For Abdulla Kahhar's 100th anniversary". Uzbeksitan Today. Archived from the original on 20 March 2011. Retrieved 3 February 2012.
  2. ^ "The Abdulla Kahhar Museum". Retrieved 3 February 2012.
  3. ^ "Abdulla Qahhor". Ensiklopedik lugʻat (in Uzbek). Vol. 1. Toshkent: Oʻzbek sovet ensiklopediyasi. 1988. pp. 5–6. 5-89890-002-0.
  4. ^ "Abdulla Qahhor (1907-1968)". Ziyouz (in Uzbek). Retrieved 16 September 2014.
  5. ^ a b Abdumavlyanov 1966, p. 181.
  6. ^ Sodiq 2006, p. 140.
  7. ^ Писатели советского Узбекистана [Writers of Soviet Uzbekistan] (in Russian). Государственное издательство художественной литературы УзССР. 1959. pp. 83–85.
  8. ^ a b Совет адабиёти: хрестоматия: ўрта мактабнинг мактабнинг 10-синфи учун [Soviet Literature: Chrestomathy: For the 10th Frade of Secondary School] (in Uzbek). O‘zSSR davlat o‘quv-pedagogika nashriyoti. 1955. p. 557.
  9. ^ Абдулла Қаҳҳор. Vol. 1. UzSSR davlat badiiy adabiyot nashriyoti. 1957.
  10. ^ Surkov, Aleksey (1966). "Каххар, Абдулла". Краткая литературная энциклопедия. Vol. 3. Moscow: Sovetskaya entsiklopedia. p. 455.
  11. ^ a b c d e "Каххар, Абдулла" [Kakhkhar Abdulla]. Большая советская энциклопедия (in Russian). Vol. 11 (3 ed.). Moscow: Great Soviet Encyclopedia Publishing House. 1973. p. 548.
  12. ^ Klimovich 1959, p. 532.
  13. ^ Abdusamatov, Hafiz (25 June 1996). "Низо эмас, мурувват". Milliy tiklanish (in Uzbek). p. 4.
  14. ^ Ўзбек тили ва адабиёти масалалари [Issues of Uzbek Language and Literature] (in Uzbek). O‘zbekiston SSR fanlar akademiyasi nashriyoti. 1961. p. 22.
  15. ^ "Абдулла Қаҳҳор" [Abdulla Qahhor]. Sovet Oʻzbekistoni (in Uzbek). 26 May 1968. p. 3.
  16. ^ Surkov 1966, p. 455.
  17. ^ "Буюк уста" [Great master]. Lenin bayragy. 9 September 1967. p. 2.
  18. ^ Sodiq 2006, p. 141.
  19. ^ Vladimirova 1977, p. 88.
  20. ^ Abdusamatov 1985, p. 25.
  21. ^ Normatov 2007, p. 30.
  22. ^ Mirvaliyev 1993, p. 57.
  23. ^ Sodiq 2006, p. 143.
  24. ^ Abdusamatov 1985, p. 32.
  25. ^ a b c d Тошкент: энциклопедия [Tashkent: encyclopedia] (in Uzbek). "O‘zbekiston Milliy Entsiklopediyasi" Davlat Ilmiy Nashriyoti. 2009. p. 32.
  26. ^ Ўзбек совет адабиëти тарикҳи (in Uzbek). Vol. 3. O‘zbekiston SSR "Fan" nashriëti. 1972. p. 97.
  27. ^ Узбекский язык и литература (in Uzbek). Fan. 1978. p. 98.
  28. ^ a b Normatov 2007, p. 79.
  29. ^ Sodiq 2006, p. 147.
  30. ^ Rasuli, Masud (1974). Братства щедрые плоды (in Russian). Izd-vo lit-ry i iskusstva. p. 38.
  31. ^ a b Vladimirova, Ninel; Kasymov, S. (16 December 1953). "Переводы произведений русских классиков на узбекский язык". Pravda Vostoka (in Russian). No. 295. pp. 3–4.
  32. ^ Ўзбек тили ва адабиёти (in Uzbek). Fan. 1976. p. 52.
  33. ^ Salomov 1961.
  34. ^ Sharafiddinov 2001, p. 112.
  35. ^ Mamatova, Dilobar (20 December 2021). "Башарият учун ўлмас мерос қолдирган адиб". O‘zbekiston Milliy axborot agentligi (in Uzbek).
  36. ^ Vohidov, Erkin (27 January 2007). "Адиб сабофи". Toshkent haqiqati (in Uzbek). p. 2.
  37. ^ "Забардаст сўз санъаткори". Toshkent oqshomi (in Uzbek). 23 March 2023. p. 3.
  38. ^ Ochilov, Nuriddin (18 May 2023). "Вазир ва ҳокимларга бегона манзиллар". Jamiyat (in Uzbek). p. 3.
  39. ^ Khalid, Adeeb (2015). Making Uzbekistan: Nation, Empire, and Revolution in the Early USSR. Cornell University Press. ISBN 978-1-5017-0134-4.
  40. ^ "в. Драматургии" [v. Dramatists] (PDF). Sovetskoe iskusstvo (in Russian). 15 March 1952. p. 2.
  41. ^ "Указ Президиума Верховного Совета СССР О награждении орденами и медалями работников литературы и искусства Узбекской ССР" [Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR On awarding orders and medals to workers of literature and art of the Uzbek SSR] (PDF). Sovetskoe Iskusstvo (in Russian). 8 December 1951. p. 1.
  42. ^ "СССР Олий Совети Президиумининг Фармони Ёзувчи Абдулла Қаҳҳорни Меҳнат Қизил Байроқ ордени билан мукофотлаш тўғрисида" [Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR On Awarding Writer Abdulla Qahor with the Order of the Red Banner of Labor]. Qizil Oʻzbekiston (in Uzbek). 19 September 1957. p. 1.
  43. ^ "СССР Олий Совети Президиумининг Фармони Ёзувчи Абдулла Қаҳҳорни Меҳнат Қизил Байроқ ордени билан мукофотлаш тўғрисида" [Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR on awarding writer Abdulla Qahor with the Order of the Red Banner of Labor]. Sovet Oʻzbekistoni (in Uzbek). No. 212. 9 September 1967. p. 1.
  44. ^ "Указ Президиума Верховного Совета СССР О награждении советский писателей" [Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR On awarding Soviet writers]. Pravda Vostoka (in Russian). 2 February 1939. p. 3.
  45. ^ "Абдулла Қаҳҳоровга «Ўзбекистон ССР Ҳалқ Ёзувчиси фахрий унвони бериш тўғрисида»" ["On awarding the honorary title of People's Writer of the Uzbekistan SSR" to Abdulla Qahhorov]. Sovet Oʻzbekistoni (in Uzbek). 9 September 1967. p. 1.
  46. ^ "Ҳамза Ҳакимзода номидаги мукофотлар" [Awards named after Hamza Hakimzoda]. Sovet Oʻzbekistoni (in Uzbek). No. 255. 6 November 1966. p. 1.
  47. ^ "Указ Президента Республики Узбекистан О награждении мастеров литературы и искусства, внесших огромный вклад в развитие узбекской национальной культуры" [Decree of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan On awarding masters of literature and art who have made a significant contribution to the development of Uzbek national culture]. Pravda Vostoka (in Russian). 26 August 2000. p. 1.

Sources