ASTANA – In October, Kazakhstan celebrated the 130th anniversary of the iconic poet and writer Saken Seifullin, who deeply influenced Kazakh literature, played an important role in politics, and advocated mass education and social progress. His literary legacy focused on the upheavals in Kazakh society and the revolutionary changes he witnessed firsthand.

Saken Seifullin. Photo source: kazgazeta.kz

Seifullin was born on October 15, 1894 in the village of Nildy, located in today’s Karagandy Region. Education has been at the center of her life and activism from a young age. In 1908, he moved to Akmola (now Astana) and worked in various fields until 1913, teaching Russian to Kazakhs and Tatars at the local madrasah.

Basically educator

Seifullin was an active educator who had an outstanding goal of spreading education among the masses and believed strongly in the transformative nature of education.

Feeling the need to teach people something, Seifullin entered the teacher seminary in Omsk in 1913.

At the age of 20, Seifullin became co-leader of Omsk’s first youth organization, Birlik (Unity), and was involved in cultural and educational activities among his friends. He believed that teaching served as a gateway for young individuals to not only immerse themselves in culture but also reshape it to become independent thinkers.

The madrasa where Seifullin began his teaching career. Photo source: iie.kz

After returning to Akmola in 1917, Seifullin began his career as a youth leader and was elected chairman of the Akmola Cossack Committee. In the same year he founded the socio-political youth organization Zhas Kazak (Young Kazakh). In addition to these duties, he wrote articles and helped publish the Bolshevik newspaper called Tirşilik (Life). With the establishment of Soviet authority at the end of 1917, Seifullin was elected to the Council of Representatives and appointed People’s Commissar of Education.

In 1922, at the age of 28, Seifullin was appointed chairman of the Council of People’s Commissars of the Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic, the highest governing body in the region at the time.

This role was very important for Seifullin, who wanted to revive the historical identity of the Kazakh people and promote the Kazakh language. He was an ardent advocate of recognition of Kazakh as the state language and was instrumental in replacing the misnomer “Kyrgyz” with the rightful term “Kazakh”.

Throughout his political career, Seifullin supported Kazakh youth by opening schools, libraries and cultural clubs. He founded the Writers’ Union of Kazakhstan and served as an editor in the newspapers Adebiet Maidany (Literary Front) and Yenbekshi Kazakh (Working Kazakh), contributing to theoretical literature articles.

Poems and novels: Seifullin’s political life on the pages

His political career allowed one area of ​​life to enrich another (poetry and writing). His deep interest in political life later inspired one of his most famous novels, “The Thorny Road”, which describes the struggle of the Kazakh people during the chain of revolutionary events between 1916 and 1917.

In the novel, Seifullin explores the complex interplay between the lives of leaders of the White movement (a confederation of anti-communist forces) such as Kolchak and Annenkov, and the faith, endurance, and perseverance of Bolshevik figures such as Katchenko, Bachok, and Nurkin.

His deep interest in political life later inspired one of his most famous novels, “The Thorny Road”, which describes the struggle of the Kazakh people during the chain of revolutionary events between 1916 and 1917. Photo source: omsklib.ru

The novel offers a comprehensive depiction of the political and social landscape of Kazakhstan on the brink of revolution and the early years of Soviet rule; explores the various forces that have shaped the country’s course, progress and evolution.

Seifullin’s interest in poetry was equally influential.

The poem “Kokshetau” is perhaps one of Seifullin’s most complex works describing the beauty of the Burabai region. The poem was published in 1929 and was based on Kazakh folk tales and legends.

In this poem, Seifullin celebrates the picturesque landscapes of Kokshetau and connects them with the history of working people and their struggle for a better future. He points out the contradictions in the patriarchal feudal society and condemns Abylai Khan’s raids on peaceful Cossack villages.

Seifullin became one of the many victims of the mass Stalinist repressions targeting the intelligentsia in the late 1930s. He was arrested in 1938 for being a “bourgeois nationalist” and was executed in Almaty in February of that year. Seifullin was posthumously rehabilitated in 1957.

Seifullin’s museum in Astana

Astana is home to a private museum honoring Seifullin, located at 20 Auezov Street. Visiting this museum opens a window into Seifullin’s world of writing, poetry, and public service.

Seifullin’s museum in Astana. Photo source: astana.citypass.kz

The poet’s rare photographs, archive documents, paintings and personal belongings are exhibited in the museum spread over seven halls. Seifullin’s bedroom and closet, recreated piece by piece by the museum, are remarkable.

In one corner, visitors can see his personal belongings, such as suitcases from the 1930s and his son Ayan’s blanket; in another, his brother Majit Seifullin’s dombra (a traditional Kazakh instrument). There is also a bed in the room that he bought in Tashkent in 1926, when he married his second wife Gulbahram. There are also halls devoted to Seifullin’s state, pedagogical and literary activities.

Seifullin’s legacy in the museum owes much to Gulbahram, who meticulously preserved his belongings and documents.

The museum building itself has significant historical value for the city. It was built in 1846 to serve as a registry of goods purchased by the Akmola merchant Kazantsev. In 1920 it became the editorial office where Seifullin worked. It was officially opened as a museum in 1988.