Zakir Sadíq ulı Rämiev (1859–1921, Tatar: Закир Садыйк улы Рәмиев , Russian: Закир Садыкович Рамеев, Zakir Ramiyev) who used the

pen name A pen name or nom-de-plume is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name. A pen name may be used to make the author's na ...

Därdemänd or Derdmend (Tatar: Дәрдмәнд, ) was a famous

Tatar Tatar may refer to: Peoples * Tatars, an umbrella term for different Turkic ethnic groups bearing the name "Tatar" * Volga Tatars, a people from the Volga-Ural region of western Russia * Crimean Tatars, a people from the Crimea peninsula by the B ...

poet, manufacturer and patron of arts. He was a founder of the

newspaper A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as poli ...

''Vakit'' (''Waqıt'') and the literary magazine ''Şura''. He is a major representative of classical

Tatar literature Tatar literature () consists of literature in the Tatar language, a Turkic language spoken in the Republic of Tatarstan in Russia. Tatar literature is a part of Tatar society and has been part of Tatar history since the existence of a Tatar ...

. Because he came from an

affluent Wealth is the abundance of valuable financial assets or physical possessions which can be converted into a form that can be used for transactions. This includes the core meaning as held in the originating Old English word , which is from an ...

family of the tzarist

regime In politics, a regime (also spelled régime) is a system of government that determines access to public office, and the extent of power held by officials. The two broad categories of regimes are democratic and autocratic. A key similarity acros ...

, he was persecuted by the Soviet administration and intentionally ignored as a poet, and his name and works were deleted from literary histories. His father was Muhammed Sadiq Rameev, the well-known gold-miner of the

Ural Mountains The Ural Mountains ( ),; , ; , or simply the Urals, are a mountain range in Eurasia that runs north–south mostly through Russia, from the coast of the Arctic Ocean to the river Ural (river), Ural and northwestern Kazakhstan.

Life

Zakir Ramiev was born on November 23, 1859, in the village of Zirgan, Meleuz in the

, today situated within the

autonomous republic An autonomous republic is a type of administrative division similar to a province or state. A significant number of autonomous republics can be found within the successor states of the Soviet Union, but the majority are located within Russia. Ma ...

Bashkortostan Bashkortostan, officially the Republic of Bashkortostan, sometimes also called Bashkiria, is a republic of Russia between the Volga river and the Ural Mountains in Eastern Europe. The republic borders Perm Krai to the north, Sverdlovsk Oblast ...

of the

Russian Federation Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

. When he was three, his family moved to the village of Yulik, Baimak. His father, initially a

merchant A merchant is a person who trades in goods produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Merchants have been known for as long as humans have engaged in trade and commerce. Merchants and merchant networks operated i ...

, amassed a great fortune after he got into gold-mining, and became one of the wealthiest persons in czarist Russia. Educated at first at home, Zakir then attended with his brother Shakir the madrasa in Mullakay (Mullakayevo) known since with that name. In 1880, when his studies were over, he lived for a time in

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

(

Constantinople Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...

), where he learned Turkish, got acquainted with

Turkish literature Turkish literature () comprises oral compositions and written texts in the Turkish language. The Ottoman form of Turkish, which forms the basis of much of the written corpus, was highly influenced by Persian and Arabic literature,Bertold Sp ...

and developed close ties with the Turkish literati. His keen interest in

literature Literature is any collection of Writing, written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially novels, Play (theatre), plays, and poetry, poems. It includes both print and Electroni ...

led him to translate

short stories A short story is a piece of prose fiction. It can typically be read in a single sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the old ...

from Turkish to Tatar and to write poetry. Unfortunately, except for ''Kargalılı Sibğatullah’a İthafen'' (In Dedication to Sibgatullah of Karga), none of the texts from this period are extant. His first poem to be published, "Days Long Past" (as the title would be in English) was inserted anonymously in the

novella A novella is a narrative prose fiction whose length is shorter than most novels, but longer than most novelettes and short stories. The English word ''novella'' derives from the Italian meaning a short story related to true (or apparently so) ...

"Asma," published in 1903 by Rıza Fahretdin (Reza Fahretdinov). The brothers Rameev were great

philanthropists Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives for the Public good (economics), public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private goo ...

. They financed the building of over 100

mosques A mosque ( ), also called a masjid ( ), is a place of worship for Muslims. The term usually refers to a covered building, but can be any place where Islamic prayers are performed; such as an outdoor courtyard. Originally, mosques were simple p ...

and acted as

sponsors Sponsor or sponsorship may refer to a person or organization with some role (especially one of responsibility) regarding another person or organisation: *Sponsor (commercial), supporter of an event, activity, or person *Sponsor (legislative), a per ...

in a variety of fields. They started publishing in

Orenburg Orenburg (, ), formerly known as Chkalov (1938–1957), is the administrative center of Orenburg Oblast, Russia. It lies in Eastern Europe, along the banks of the Ural River, being approximately southeast of Moscow. Orenburg is close to the ...

the weekly '' Vakit'' (Time) in 1906 and the literary journal ''Şura'' (Council) in 1908 and allowed Tatar authors promoting democracy and progressive ideas to publish in these two publications. Derdmend himself had over forty poems published in the two periodicals during the period 1906-1912. After 1913 his works did not appear in

periodicals Periodical literature (singularly called a periodical publication or simply a periodical) consists of Publication, published works that appear in new releases on a regular schedule (''issues'' or ''numbers'', often numerically divided into annu ...

. Zakir Rameev was also a deputat at the

Duma A duma () is a Russian assembly with advisory or legislative functions. The term ''boyar duma'' is used to refer to advisory councils in Russia from the 10th to 17th centuries. Starting in the 18th century, city dumas were formed across Russia ...

. After the October 1917 Revolution he chose to remain in his native land. At first, he continued to live in Orenburg but then moved to

Orsk Orsk () is the second largest city in Orenburg Oblast, Russia, located on the steppe about southeast of the southern tip of the Ural Mountains. The city straddles the Ural River. Population: It lies adjacent to the Kazakhstan–Russia border. ...

with his family. As all his fortune had been confiscated he lived under very difficult conditions. He nevertheless went on writing and busying himself with literature. His legendary murmuring in French while walking in the Ural Mountains that startled the villagers so much must date from this period. When he died on 9 October 1921 in

, he left behind more than ten works of prose, and over a thousand verses of poetry. Unlike his brother Shakir who married many times, he had only one wife. The computing scientist Bashir Rameev was his grandson.

Works

After he died, his poems were published in a number of books. His poetry,

lyrical Lyrical may refer to: *Lyrics, or words in songs * Lyrical dance, a style of dancing *Emotional, expressing strong feelings *Lyric poetry Modern lyric poetry is a formal type of poetry which expresses personal emotions or feelings, typically ...

and

philosophical Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

, reveals a profound intellectuality and a high level of general culture. As the simplistic literary taste of Soviet ideology is being gradually discarded, believe experts, his poems are apt to serve as examples guiding all poets and authors in their creative endeavor in the post-Soviet period, whether they be Tatars or Turks in general. Derdmend was commemorated in December 2009 on the 150th anniversary of his birth by a one-day conference at the National Museum and a gala night at the opera in Ufa, the capital of

. Attended by scholars and members of the Rameev family, the

commemoration Commemoration may refer to: *Commemoration (Anglicanism), a religious observance in Churches of the Anglican Communion *Commemoration (liturgy), insertion in one liturgy of portions of another *Memorialization *"Commemoration", a song by the 3rd a ...

ended by various other ceremonies in Yulik and Zirgen.

Family

Zakir Ramiev's son was mining engineer Iskandar Rameev. His grandson was

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

inventor and scientist Bashir Rameev.

References

Notes

* Габдрахман, Гариф-хаджи. ''Шейх Габдуллах ишан Мулаккайский''. Уфа: Центральное духовное управление мусульман России, Российский исламский университет, 2012.

External links

Poems of Därdemänd
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ramiev, Zakir 1859 births 1921 deaths People from Bashkortostan People from Sterlitamaksky Uyezd Tatar people from the Russian Empire Members of the 1st State Duma of the Russian Empire Tatar poets Poets from the Russian Empire Muslims from the Russian Empire