Abay and His Poetry According to Kudaybergen Jubanov

Abstract

Kudaybergen Jubanov (1899–1938) was one of Kazakhstan’s most prominent Turkologists and intellectuals in the early 20th century. Despite his short life of 38 years, cut short as a victim of Stalin’s red terror, he produced numerous scholarly works addressing the fundamental issues of the Kazakh language. Yet Jubanov was not solely a linguist; he also made important contributions to the study of Kazakh literature and its writers. Among his literary studies, the most significant is the article “Abay – The Classic of Kazakh Literature,” which focuses on Abay Kunanbayev, recognized as the founder of modern Kazakh literature. In this article, Jubanov analyzes the factors shaping Abay’s poetics, the sources that influenced him, and how he broke away from the Chagatai literary tradition to emerge as an original poet. Some of Jubanov’s evaluations reflect traces of the ideological discourse of the Soviet Union, shaped by the conditions of his era. This study discusses Jubanov’s approach to Abay Kunanbayev within the framework of literary criticism and examines the influence of Soviet literary norms on his interpretation.