Mirza Ibrahimov | |
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| Native name | Mirzə İbrahimov |
| Born | (1911-10-28)28 October 1911 Eyvaq, Persia |
| Died | 17 December 1993(1993-12-17) (aged 82) Baku, Azerbaijan |
| Resting place | Alley of Honor, Baku |
| Language | Azerbaijani |
| Years active | 1930–1993 |
Mirza Ibrahimov (Azerbaijani:Mirzə İbrahimov,Arabic::میرزا ابراهیموف; 28 October 1911 – 17 December 1993) was a Soviet Azerbaijani writer and politician.
Mirza Ibrahimov was born on 28 October 1911 in the village ofEyvaq near the city of Sarab, located in present-daySharabian Rural District, in Iran'sEast Azerbaijan province. In 1918, he migrated toBaku with his father and elder brother. Following the deaths of his mother and subsequently his father, he began working as a laborer in the villages ofBalakhani andZabrat at a young age to support himself. After the establishment of Soviet rule in Azerbaijan, he studied and worked at the Balakhani Factory-Plant School from 1926 to 1930. His literary activity began through his involvement in the workers' literary circle inZabrat, which marked the starting point of his engagement with creative writing.[1]
Mirza Ibrahimov's first published poem,Qazılan buruq (The Drilled Well), appeared in 1930 in the anthologyAprel alovları (April Flames). He continued publishing poems in periodicals and began writing critical essays, short stories, and journalistic pieces in the 1930s. In 1932, he visited theDonbas coal mines and Dnipropetrovsk industrial centers in Ukraine to study large-scale construction under the Five-Year Plans, later publishing the essay collectionGiqantlar ölkəsində (In the Land of Giants). After completing studies at the preparatory division of the Azerbaijan State Scientific Research Institute, he was appointed in 1933 to the political department of the Nakhchivan Machine-Tractor Station as editor of the newspaperSürət. His first play,Həyat (Life), was written during this time.[2]
From 1935 to 1937, he studied at the Leningrad-based Institute of Oriental Studies of theUSSR Academy of Sciences, where he defended a dissertation onJalil Mammadguluzadeh. In 1945, at age 34, he became one of the first elected full members of the newly establishedAzerbaijan Academy of Sciences and was actively engaged in research throughout his life. In 1942, he was appointed People's Commissar of Education of theAzerbaijan SSR and later served as Minister of Education (1942–1946), Director of the State Opera and Ballet Theater, and Head of the Art Affairs Department under the Council of People's Commissars.[3]
DuringWorld War II, he contributed to wartime propaganda through his writings and speeches in factories, rural areas, and military units. While in Southern Azerbaijan in 1941, he served as editor of the newspaperVətən yolunda (On the Path of the Homeland), and in 1942 participated in meetings with soldiers of the 416th Division in the Russian Far East.[3]
He authored numerous stories and novellas centered on Southern Azerbaijan, such asZəhra,Mələk,Qaçaq,Xosrov Ruzbeh, andPərvizin həyatı, as well as novels includingGələcək gün (1948),Böyük dayaq (1957), andPərvanə. His plays includeMadrid (1937),Məhəbbət (1941), and after a two-decade hiatus,Kəndçi qızı (The Peasant Girl, 1961) — awarded the Mirza Fatali Akhundov Prize —Yaxşı adam (A Good Man, 1963), andKözərən ocaqlar (Smoldering Fires, 1967), which focused on Nariman Narimanov.[1]
Ibrahimov translated major theatrical works into Azerbaijani, including Shakespeare'sKing Lear andTwelfth Night, Ostrovsky'sMad Money, Chekhov'sThree Sisters, and Molière'sDom Juan.
He played a major role in shaping national philological scholarship and advancing the status of the Azerbaijani language. His efforts culminated in the 1956 constitutional amendment recognizing Azerbaijani as a state language. His articleAzərbaycan dili dövlət idarələrində ("The Azerbaijani Language in State Institutions") emphasized the significance of the national question.[4]
He held numerous leadership roles: Chairman (1948–1954) and First Secretary (1965–1976) of the Azerbaijani Writers' Union, Secretary of the USSR Writers' Union Board (1965–1976), Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Azerbaijan SSR (1947–1950),[5] and Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of theAzerbaijan SSR (1954–1958). He participated in international congresses inHelsinki,Bangkok,Stockholm, and represented the USSR at UN committees, including the anti-apartheid session in New York (1978). From 1977, he chaired the Soviet Solidarity Committee with Asian and African countries, leading delegations to the U.S., U.K.,France,Egypt, and other nations.[3]
As Director of the Nizami Institute of Literature of theAzerbaijan Academy of Sciences, he oversaw the development of modern linguistic and literary research and contributed significantly to the three-volumeHistory of Azerbaijani Literature (1946–1954). He later headed the department of 19th-century Azerbaijani literature (1960–1970) and remained active in literary scholarship into the 1990s. His works were translated into the languages of many Soviet peoples and beyond. He was awarded the Order of Lenin three times, the Order of theOctober Revolution, and numerous other honors.[6]
Until the end of his life, he headed the Southern Azerbaijani Literature Department at the Nizami Institute. Ibrahimov died on 17 December 1993, in Baku and was buried in theAlley of Honor.
On 5 February 1996, a presidential decree was issued in the Republic of Azerbaijan to commemorate the memory of Mirza Ibrahimov, a prominent writer and public figure, and to honor his contributions to national culture and literature.[9]
Guliyev, J. B., ed. (1980). "Mirza İbrahimov".Azerbaijan Soviet Encyclopedia (in Azerbaijani). Vol. IV. Baku: Azerbaijan Soviet Encyclopedia Main Editorial Office. p. 361.
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