Chokan Chingisovich Valikhanov

Chokan Chingisovich VALIKHANOV (November 1835 — April 1865) was a Russian scholar of Kazakh nationality.

The nickname Chokan was given to him by his mother, while his given name was Mukhammed-Khanafiya. He studied in his native region of Koshmurun at a Kazakh school, and later graduated from the Siberian Cadet Corps in Omsk (1847—1853). He participated in expeditions to Dzhungaria, Lake Issyk-Kul, Kuldja, and Kashgar (1856—1858).

While in St. Petersburg (1860—1861), he participated in the activities of the Russian Geographical Society, attended lectures at the university, worked in the General Staff, and simultaneously processed the rich historical, ethnographic, and geographical material he had collected. He died at a young age due to illness.

Ch. Valikhanov on "Manas"

"Manas" is an encyclopedic collection of all Kyrgyz myths, fairy tales, and legends, brought to one time and grouped around one figure - the hero Manas... The way of life, character, geography, religious and medical knowledge of the Kyrgyz, and their international relations found expression in this vast epic.

In 1856, Ch. Valikhanov was the first among European scholars to record individual fragments of the epic "Manas," related to the description of the death of Kökötöy-khan and his memorials (this excerpt was translated into Russian by him). His essays on the Kyrgyz, Kyrgyzstan, and other regions of Central Asia hold immense scientific importance.

It is significant that the life and scientific activity of Chokan Valikhanov heralded the emergence of scholars from Central Asia who studied and created in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kazan, and other centers of European scholarship.