Ayimkhan Turymbetovna Shamuratova ( Karakalpak: Айымхан Турымбет қызы Шамуратова, 1917–1993) was a Karakalpak theater actress, singer (

mezzo-soprano A mezzo-soprano (, ), or mezzo ( ), is a type of classical music, classical female singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the soprano and the contralto voice types. The mezzo-soprano's vocal range usually extends from the A bel ...

) and public figure. She was the only Karakalpak woman to be awarded the title

People's Artist of the USSR People's Artist of the USSR, also sometimes translated as National Artist of the USSR, was an honorary title granted to artists of the Soviet Union. The term is confusingly used to translate two Russian language titles: Народный арти ...

(1968).

Early life

Ayimkhan Shamuratova was born on 10 June (or 5 June or 10 October) 1917 in Kanlykol (now the center of Kanlykol district in

Karakalpakstan Karakalpakstan, officially the Republic of Karakalpakstan, is an autonomous republic and part of Uzbekistan. It spans the northwestern portion of Uzbekistan. Its capital is Nukus (' / ). Karakalpakstan has an area of , and has a population of a ...

) (or Kungrad) in a poor family.

Career

Starting in 1932, she performed in the troupe of Kungrad and later in Turtkul theater, where she debuted in one-act plays of the pioneers of Karakalpak theater, Abdiraman Otepov and Seyfulgabit Mazhitov. From 1934 to 1939, 1949 to 1951, and 1955 to 1988 she was an actress at Karakalpak Theater of Musical Drama and Comedy. К. С. Stanislavsky (now named after Berdakh) in

Nukus Nukus ( / / ; / / ) is the sixth-largest city in Uzbekistan and the capital of the autonomous Republic of Karakalpakstan. The population of Nukus as of 1 January 2022 was 329,100. The Amu Darya river passes west of the city. Administratively, ...

. She played more than 100 leading roles in plays of Karakalpak, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Russian, Uzbek, Azerbaijani and other dramatists. In 1939 she enrolled at

Moscow Conservatory The Moscow Conservatory, also officially Tchaikovsky Moscow State Conservatory () is a higher musical educational institution located in Moscow, Russia. It grants undergraduate and graduate degrees in musical performance and musical research. Th ...

. From 1939 to 1949 and 1951 to 1955, Ayimkhan was a soloist at the Karakalpak Philharmony named after Berdakh and worked at radio. Ayimkhan also performed as a concert singer. Her repertoire included folk, ritual, folklore, lyrical and modern songs, musical arrangements of folk tunes "Bozatau", "Ariuhan", "Sorghol", "Aksungul" by her mentors bakhsy E. Kospulatov, composers A. Halimov, J. Shamuratov, A. Sultanovat and many others. She participated in concert groups at the fronts of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Ayimkhan wrote a memoir called ''My Life Is Theater.'' She became a member of the

CPSU The Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU),. Abbreviated in Russian as КПСС, ''KPSS''. at some points known as the Russian Communist Party (RCP), All-Union Communist Party and Bolshevik Party, and sometimes referred to as the Soviet ...

in 1957. She served as Deputy of the Supreme Soviet of Karakalpak ASSR of the 4th and 7th convocations. She died on 29 May, 1993 (31 May) in

. The classic Karakalpak poet Ibrayim Yusupov dedicated to her the poem "The Fate of an Actress".

Personal life

Ayimkhan married famous Karakalpak writer and translator Amet Shamuratov. They had seven children: six daughters Gulistan, Gulzhahan, Zoya, Zulfiya, Ayimgul, Ziyada and one son Berdakh. She was widowed soon.

Recognition

* People's Artist of the Karakalpak ASSR (1940) * People's Artist of the Uzbek SSR (1950) *

(1968) * Two

Order of the Red Banner of Labor The Order of the Red Banner of Labour () was an order of the Soviet Union established to honour great deeds and services to the Soviet state and society in the fields of production, science, culture, literature, the arts, education, sports ...

(including 18 March 1959) *

Order of the Badge of Honor The Order of the Badge of Honour () was a civilian award of the Soviet Union. It was established on 25 November 1935, and was conferred on citizens of the USSR for outstanding achievements in sports, production, scientific research and socia ...

(6 December 1951) *

Order of Outstanding Merit The Order of Outstanding Merit ( Uzbek: ''Buyuk xizmatlari uchun'') is an order that is currently awarded by the Republic of Uzbekistan. Design The Order of Outstanding Merit is made from 925 probe silver alloy plated with 0.25 micron thick gol ...

(23 August 2004) * medals * Certificates of Merit of the Supreme Soviets of Uzbekistan and Karakalpakstan.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shamuratova, Ayimkhan 1917 births 1993 deaths People from Nukus Recipients of the Order of Outstanding Merit