14 Facts About Iasyr Shivaza

Iasyr Shivaza, known as Xianma, was a Soviet poet, writer, linguist, translator, and social activist, known for his contributions to Dungan art and culture.

Iasyr Shivaza, sometimes spelled Yasir Shiwazi, Shivaza or Xianma, was of Dungan descent, as his family were from China's Shaanxi province, and moved to Kyrgyzstan in the early 1880s, after the defeat of the Dungan Rebellion.

Iasyr Shivaza wrote more than thirty works of literature, including collections of poems and short stories in Russian, Kyrgyz and Dungan.

Iasyr Shivaza translated classics of Soviet literature from Russian to Dungan, as well as works of Kyrgyz writers and poets into Dungan.

Iasyr Shivaza's works have been translated into other languages spoken by the various peoples of the USSR, some of which have been published abroad.

Iasyr Shivaza's parents and grandparents were born in China's Shaanxi province, and came to Kyrgyzstan from the Ili region in the early 1880s, after the defeat of the Dungan Rebellion and the return of the Yining area to China.

Iasyr Shivaza later mentioned that it was only by luck that he did not become a mullah, like the other three students who reached the graduation.

Iasyr Shivaza continued to write textbooks and to write poetry.

Iasyr Shivaza started translating Russian classics into the Dungan language with his translation of several Pushkin's poems being published in Frunze in 1937.

Iasyr Shivaza participated in the committees designing the new Dungan Cyrillic alphabet, which was eventually introduced in 1953.

Iasyr Shivaza was familiar with some of the modern Chinese literature, such as works of Lu Xun, but, since he never had the opportunity to learn Chinese characters, he read the translated Russian versions.

Iasyr Shivaza appears to make a botanical error mentioning a variety of chrysanthemum among spring flowers, even though in reality they bloom in the fall.

Iasyr Shivaza rendered a number of classical and modern works of Russian poetry into the Dungan language.

Iasyr Shivaza translated song lyrics by Lebedev-Kumach and prose works by Leo Tolstoy, Chekhov, and Maxim Gorky.