Munawwar Qari Abdurrashidkhan ogli (, , ; 1878 – 1931) was a prominent

Jadid The Jadid movement or Jadidism was an Turco-Islamic modernist political, religious, and cultural movement in the Russian Empire in the late 19th and early 20th century. They normally referred to themselves by the Tatar terms ''Taraqqiparvarlar ...

Russian Turkestan Russian Turkestan () was a colony of the Russian Empire, located in the western portion of the Central Asian region of Turkestan. Administered as a Krai or Governor-Generalship, it comprised the oasis region to the south of the Kazakh Steppe, b ...

. Like other Jadids, Munnawwar Qari worked as author, poet, teacher, journalist and in other occupations.

Life

Munawwar Qari was of an ethnic Uzbek origin. He was the youngest child in a family of Islamic scholars and received his education in

Tashkent Tashkent (), also known as Toshkent, is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Uzbekistan, largest city of Uzbekistan. It is the most populous city in Central Asia, with a population of more than 3 million people as of April 1, 2024. I ...

and

Bukhara Bukhara ( ) is the List of cities in Uzbekistan, seventh-largest city in Uzbekistan by population, with 280,187 residents . It is the capital of Bukhara Region. People have inhabited the region around Bukhara for at least five millennia, and t ...

. In 1901, he opened Tashkent's first Maktab to follow the

s' new method of teaching. He also wrote textbooks for use in schools and published literary works of other authors, while publishing and editing ''The Sun'', one of the first independent newspapers in Russian Turkestan.

Charles Kurzman Charles Kurzman (born 1963) is a professor of sociology at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill who specializes in Middle East and Islamic studies. Education and employment After completing his B.A. at Harvard University in 1986, he com ...

: ''Modernist Islam, 1840–1940. A Sourcebook'', New York 2002, p. 33. After the

Russian Revolution The Russian Revolution was a period of Political revolution (Trotskyism), political and social revolution, social change in Russian Empire, Russia, starting in 1917. This period saw Russia Dissolution of the Russian Empire, abolish its mona ...

, he continued working as a teacher, but was arrested and deported to a

Gulag The Gulag was a system of Labor camp, forced labor camps in the Soviet Union. The word ''Gulag'' originally referred only to the division of the Chronology of Soviet secret police agencies, Soviet secret police that was in charge of runnin ...

camp in 1925Adeeb Khalid: '' The Politics of Muslim Cultural Reform: Jadidism in Central Asia'', Berkeley 1998, p. 300. and shot in 1931 after being convicted for "counter-revolutionary activities". His grave can be found in Moscow's Yagankovo cemetery.Uzbek Soviet Encyclopedia, Tashkent-1978, Book checked 22 March 2016

Education

Since his father was left a young orphan, he received his initial education from his mother. He learned the science of recitation and Tajweed from his teacher Osman Domla, and memorized the

Qur'an The Quran, also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation directly from God ('' Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which consist of individual verses ('). Besides ...

. He studied at the Yunuskhan madrasa in

. In 1885-1890, he studied at the Mir-i-Arab madrasa in

, but did not finish his studies and returned to Tashkent to work as an imam and teacher. He continued his studies at the Eshonquli Dodxoh madrasa.

Scientific and political activity

In 1901, he opened a new-style school and developed a special curriculum and textbooks for these schools. He started teaching in 1903 when the new schools were established. For these schools, he wrote "Adibi Avval" ("First Writer," 1907), a textbook for learning the alphabet, and "Adibi Soniy" ("Second Writer," 1907). In these, "Himmatli Faqir" poem is included, and educational books were published several times. From 1904, he became involved in social, political, and cultural life. From 1906, he worked as a literary contributor for the "Oʻrta Osiyoning Umurguzorligi", and "Taraqqiy" newspapers. That year, he founded the "Xurshid" newspaper as an editor and a writer. In 1908, his collection "Sabzazor," "Yer Yuzi" (about geography), and "Tajvidal Qurʼon" (teaching the Quran) books were published and used as textbooks in new-style schools. He also managed the "Shuhrat" (1907), "Tujjor" (1907), and "Osiyo" (1908) newspapers and carried out the duties of a literary contributor. Later, he worked as the responsible editor in the "Sadoyi Turkiston" (1914-1915) newspaper, the confidential editor in "Al-Islah" journal (1915-1917), and as a responsible editor in the "Najot" and "Kengash" (1917) newspapers. He, along with intellectuals like Abdulla Avloniy, Nizomiddin Xoʻjayev, Muhammadjon Podshoxoʻjayev, Tavallo, Rustambek Yusufbekov, Shokirjon Rahimiy, co-founded the "Nashriyot" (Publishing) company in 1914 and the "Maktab" (School) company in 1916. Munawwar Qari was an organizer of various societies and associations. He was a founder, editor, head, and member of various societies, organizations, partnerships, and associations, such as "Jamiyati Imdodiya" (1909), "Turon" (1913), "Turkiston Kutubxonasi" (1914), "Umid" (1914), and "Koʻmak" (1921). During the government of the Shuro leaders, he was the head of the People's Enlightenment of the People's Educational Commission (1918), the head of Tashkent city's public education department, a delegate and a member of the East People's Congress (1920, Bukhara). He was the head of the BXSR Public Enlightenment and Waqf Department (1920-1921), the head of the

city's social education department (1921), a teacher at the Navoiy School and the Narimonov Pedagogical Technical Institute (1923-1925), a scientific worker at the museum in

Samarkand Samarkand ( ; Uzbek language, Uzbek and Tajik language, Tajik: Самарқанд / Samarqand, ) is a city in southeastern Uzbekistan and among the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest continuously inhabited cities in Central As ...

, and a responsible secretary of the Tashkent-Fergana branch of the

Uzbekistan , image_flag = Flag of Uzbekistan.svg , image_coat = Emblem of Uzbekistan.svg , symbol_type = Emblem of Uzbekistan, Emblem , national_anthem = "State Anthem of Uzbekistan, State Anthem of the Republ ...

Antiquities Preservation Committee (1927-1928).

Published textbooks

* "Adibi avval" (1907) * "Adib us-soniy" (1907) * "Usuli hisob" (1911) * "Tarixi qavm turk" (1911) * "Tajvid" (1911) * "Havoyiji diniya" (1912) * "Tarixi anbiyo" (1912) * "Tarixi islomiya" (1912) * "Yer yuzi" (1916—1917) The textbook "Oʻzbekcha til saboqligi" (compiled in four parts by Shorasul Zunnun and Qayum Ramazon, 1925-1926) has been published several times. In 1914, a collection of poems by progressive Uzbek poets was published under the name "Sabzavor." Munawwar Qari Abdurrashidkhan was engaged not only in socio-pedagogical activities but also in literary creation. Throughout his activities, Munawwar Qari wasn't restricted to

pedagogy Pedagogy (), most commonly understood as the approach to teaching, is the theory and practice of learning, and how this process influences, and is influenced by, the social, political, and psychological development of learners. Pedagogy, taken ...

journalism Journalism is the production and distribution of reports on the interaction of events, facts, ideas, and people that are the "news of the day" and that informs society to at least some degree of accuracy. The word, a noun, applies to the journ ...

, editing, and literature but also engaged in political activities, which led to multiple detentions by the government. He advocated for the adoption of European trade and industry, the advancement of science, and the cultivation of spiritual enlightenment. He actively fought against the policies of the Khanates and the Emirate, which leaned towards

capitalism Capitalism is an economic system based on the private ownership of the means of production and their use for the purpose of obtaining profit. This socioeconomic system has developed historically through several stages and is defined by ...

. He led the Enlightenment of

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

organization and ideologically guided society, sects, and organizations such as "Turkiston" National Autonomy, "Ittihod va Taraqqiyot", "Milliy Ittihod", and "Nashri Ma'rifat". He was a proponent of conscience freedom and supported the idea of a worldly democratic state. This is why he supported the Turkestan Autonomy (1917) formed in the city of

Kokand Kokand ( ) is a city in Fergana Region in eastern Uzbekistan, at the southwestern edge of the Fergana Valley. Administratively, Kokand is a district-level city, that includes the urban-type settlement Muqimiy. The population of Kokand was ap ...

Family

He was born into an Uzbek noble family in the Darxon neighborhood of Shaykhantakhur district in

city. His father, Abdurashidxon Sotiboldixon, was a teacher, and his mother, Khosiyat, was the daughter of the teacher Xonxoʻja Shorahimxoʻja. He was the third son in the family. Munawwar Qari received his initial education from his parents and the neighborhood school. Additionally, his elder brothers, Aʼzamxon (1872-1919) and Muslimxon (1875-1954), also provided him with instruction.

Death

On 6 November 1929, Munawwar Qari was accused of unjust

nationalism Nationalism is an idea or movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, it presupposes the existence and tends to promote the interests of a particular nation, Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: Theory, I ...

and imprisoned. He was executed in Butirka prison in

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

and buried in Vagankova cemetery. He was officially rehabilitated in 1991.

Literature

* Adeeb Khalid: ' The Politics of Muslim Cultural Reform: Jadidism in Central Asia'', Berkeley 1998. *

: ''Modernist Islam, 1840–1940. A Sourcebook'', New York 2002, p. 227. * Edward Allworth: ''Central Asia. 120 Years of Russian Rule'', London 1989.

References

{{Authority control 1878 births 1931 deaths Jadids Muslim socialists People executed by the Soviet Union by firearm Recipients of the Order of Outstanding Merit Soviet journalists Soviet publishers (people) Soviet writers Soviet Muslims Uzbekistani journalists Uzbekistani publishers (people) Uzbekistani writers Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic people