Kazakhstan

Famous Kazakhstani People: Kazakhstani Artists, Scientists, Leaders, Musicians, Politicians and Athletes

Kazakhstan, one of the countries in the world with the largest population, has produced several notable citizens that specialize in different fields. With their exemplary work, they have been recognized inside and outside of Kazakhstan. Some of them have migrated and opted to live in other countries but they are still closely related to the land of their birth.

:: List of Famous People from Kazakhstan ::

Byrganym Sariyevna Aitimova
Byrganym Sariyevna Aitimova, born on February 26, 1953, served as the ambassador of Kazakhstan to the United Nations from the time she was appointed in 2007. During the same year, she was also appointed as the Minister of Education and Science until she was replaced by her successor, Zhaseit Tuymenbayev on the 10th of January. Aitomova also served as an ambassador of Kazakhstan to Italy and is currently in the Solomon Islands serving as Kazakhstan’s ambassador.

Gulzhana Karagusova
Gulzhana Karagusova was a member of Kazakhstan’s Majilis of Parliament from the Nur Otan party. She once served as a Minister of Labor and Social Protection in the Government of Kazakhstan in 2001. She has also been one of the most respected speakers in various economic forums in her country. She is very active in seeking legislation and increasing the benefits of the workforce.

Karagusova was also the one responsible for pushing forth a mandate to raise the pension rates from 3,000 to 12,000 (in tenge, local currency) monthly. State employees also benefited from an increase in salary through her efforts. In 2004, Karagusova, together with Human Right’s Ombudsman Bolat Baikadamov signed an agreement to emphasize the protection of the rights of citizens in terms of the economy, thus conforming to international standards. In 2006, Karagusova was also the politician who was responsible for opening more opportunities for foreigners to work in the country with the issuance of more work permits. She’s a forward thinker and looking for reciprocal opportunities to make Kazakhstan a mover and shaker in world economics.

Zhumabay Shayakhmetov
Zhumabay Shayakhmetov was one of the most renowned political figures of the Kazakh Soviet Communist group. He served as the first ever Secretary of the Communist Party of the Kazakh SSR from 1946-1954, a solid eight years of dedicated service. Before he became a politician, Shayakhmetov once worked as a first-rate agent, in charge of solving different crimes in the district of Cherlaksky, Omsk Oblast. And from 1938 to 1946, he worked his way up the political ladder starting off as a Third Secretary then First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Kazakh’s SSR. Shayakhmetov was also the first ethnic Kazakh to hold such a high position in the office. Between the years 1950 to 1954, he worked as Chairman of the Soviet of Nationalities.

Olzhas Suleimenov
Olzhas Suleimenov was known for three things: his poetic abilities, his involvement in Kazakh’s politics, and as a Soviet anti-nuclear activist. As a poet, Suleimenov received a number of different awards for his works. “AZ-i-IA” was his most influential work. It was published in 1975. Elitist poets in Russia though, gave his work a lot of criticisms. Because of this, he was charged with national chauvinism as well as glorifying feudal nomadic culture. In order to free him of the said charges, Dinmuhammad Konayev, then Kazakhstan Communist Party First Secretary, explained the contents and true meaning of his work. From 1961 to 1969, Suleimenov continued to write and some of his published works include Argamaki, Zemleya Poklonis’ Cheloveku, God Obez’iany and several others. As a politician, he gained popularity once again when he lead an international environmental movement in 1989 to close the nuclear sites in Nevada and one in Semipalatinsk Province, within his native Kazakhstan. After being Kazakhstan’s ambassador to Rome, is in now assigned in Paris as his country’s ambassador to the UNESCO.

Imangali Tasmagambetov
Imangali Tasmagambetov is Astana, Kazakhstan’s current Mayor. From 2004 to 2008 he served as a Mayor of Almaty. In 2002 until 2003, before he became the mayor of Almaty, Tasmagambetov served as the Prime Minister of Kazakhstan. He resigned from the said post just after a year when he found out about the falsification of positive votes during his term. Upon his resignation, all the members of his cabinet were also dismissed.

Marat Tazhin
Marat Tazhin is one of Kazakhstan’s most famous politicians. From 2007 to 2009 he served as the country’s Foreign Minister. He also served as a Secretary of the National Security Committee (NSC) before he became a Foreign Minister. In 2009, he became an advisor to President Nursultan Nazarbayev and secretary of the country’s Security Council.

He was an alumnus of the Almaty National Economic Institute and pursued post-graduate studies at the Kazakh State University where he became a lecturer. He spent his internship in London and became a department head of the Al-Farabi University in Kazakhstan’s former capital of Almaty. His work in economics, culture, education, science and social issues was recognized with the awarding of the Order of Kurmet. He is closely identified with President Nazarbayev, to whom he has provided assistance in writing a number of books.

Kassym-Jomart Tokayev
Kassym-Jomart Tokayev served as the Chairman of the Senate of Kazakhstan and has been doing so since September of 2007 when senators voted for him unanimously. From 2003 to 2007, Tokayev served as the Foreign Minister. He also became the Deputy Prime Minister between the years 1994 to 1999. Tokayev was also influential in taking part at the Global Summit in 2005, confirming the role of the United Nations as vitally important on all international issues. Tokayev visited countries like the United States of America and Germany while he was Foreign Minister to communicate about cooperation between Kazakhstan and other countries and to reciprocally help each other for the good of the greater majority within a global setting. He is now the Director General of the United Nations Office in Geneva, a position he holds since 2011.

Aman Tuleev
Aman Tuleev is Kemerovo Oblast’s governor. He ran for office as President of Russia in 1991, 1996, and 2000. Tuleev was a prominent politician during the 90s. He took part in the Communist Party of Russian Federation and was actively involved in the said group. In 1991, he was known for giving his support to the coup attempt led by GKChP or the State Committee on the State of Emergency. In 1992, he protested against the policies of Yegor Gaidar and as result decided to resign from his position as Chairman of the Kemerovo Oblast Regional Council. In 1999, rumors had it that Tuleev received a Russian baptism but he denied such allegations.

Daniyal Akhmetov
Daniyal Akhmetov was once the Minister of Defense and General of Kazakhstan’s Army. He was appointed for this post on January 10, 2007 by former Prime Minister Karim Massinov. Akhmetov served as Prime Minster for four years, from 2003 to 2007. Throughout the many years he served in the country, people developed a name that he is associated with. “The Terminator” has become his pet name for suppressing supporters of Ghalynzhan Zhaqiyanov, a former Governor in the country. On his second to the last year in office, he was heavily criticized for his overspending and for his poor administrative judgments. In 2007, without any clear reason, Akhmetov resigned from office on January 8. After he resigned, he was appointed by President Nursultan Nazarbayev as Acting Prime Minister. Two days after his appointment, he resigned once again upon the entry of the new administration. Finally in 2009, he was dismissed from his political duties.

Timur Bekmambetov
Timur Bekmambetov is a famous Russian director whose works have inspired the lives of a lot of people. He is also known for producing several films and acts as screenwriter to some masterpieces as well. Other than films, Bekmambetov has also been influential in producing various types of commercials. One of the most famous films that Bekmambetov directed was Night Watch that was released in 2004 and its sequel entitled the Day Watch released two years after, in 2006. In 2008, he directed an American film entitled Wanted and in 2012 directed the movie Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, also an American film. Bekmambetov became very famous between the years 1992 to 1997 when he directed a series of World History commercials. In 1994, he became the brainchild behind the Bazelevs group, a film production and advertising company.

In 1994, Bekamambetov released his first feature film entitled Peshavar Waltz that gave life to the war between Russia and Afghanistan. Its English counterpart was entitled Escape from Afghanistan and was released in 2002. He also directed a number of television series and one of this most popular works included the 8-part miniseries for television called Our ‘90s.

In 2006, both Bekamambetov’s films Night Watch (2004) and Day Watch (2006) became so successful that Fox Searchlight Pictures decided to buy its exclusive rights for copy and distribution around the world excluding Russia.

In 2011, he produced the film entitled The Darkest Hour, a science fiction thriller that was released under New Regency. He was also responsible for producing some of the newer Tim Burton films.

Rashid Nugmanov
Rashid Nugmanov was one of the most influential people when it comes to Kazakhstan’s entertainment. He is a film director and a political activist. He founded the cinema movement called the Kazakh New Wave.

After college, Nugmanov enrolled at the prestigious Moscow State Film Institute where he honed his talent for directing and cinematograpy. In 1998, he released his first ever film entitled Igla (The Needle) as part of the Golden Duke festival in Odessa. The movie’s central theme was drug addiction, a taboo in Kazakhstan during that time and it was said that Nugmanov was the one responsible for putting an end to that mentality. In 1999, Igla was released and it became an instant success with approximately 30 million viewers. The film won First Prize at the Nuremberg Film Festival under Kazakh New Wave category.

Some of the films he directed and produced include a modern adaptation of the 90s film Igla called Igla Remix which was released in 2010, Dikiy Vostok released in 1993, Zgga released in 1977, The Snow Band released in 1971 and many other titles.

Gulshat Omarova
Gulshat Omarova is one of the most famous directors, actors, and screenwriters in Kazakhstan. In 2004, Omarova was given a much-deserved recognition called the Alice Award for being the Best Female Director for her film entitled Shiza. The prestigious award was given to her by the Copenhagen International Film Festival.

Omarova’s humble beginnings in the entertainment industry commenced when she worked as television assistant from 1986 to 1988. After graduating from the Academy of Arts in Almaty she moved to the Netherlands to further her career. In 2001, she was finally given her break with a notable role in the film Shiza for which she received a number of prestigious awards.

In 2007, Omarova served as a second unit director to the film Mongol aka The Rise to Power of Genghis Khan. The film was nominated for an Oscar Award for Best Foreign Film. In 2008 she directed and wrote the story for the film entitled Baksy aka Native Dancer.

Altynai Asylmuratova
Altynai Asylmuratova was a popular prima ballerina in Kazakhstan. She danced under the Kirov Ballet/Mariinsky Theatre. She has been invited as guest artist for a number of different shows around the globe. After graduating from the Vaganova Choreographic Institute in 1978, Asylmuratova joined the Kirov Ballet. In 1982, she was promoted to Principal Dancer after four years of being in the corps de ballet.

Asylmuratova gained more popularity in Western countries because of her frequent visits and performances there. Her most notable performances include Swan Lake, Giselle, The Sleeping Beauty, Don Quixote, Romeo and Juliet, The Fire Bird, and Les Sylphides, to name a few.

In 1982, Asylmuratova starred in a documentary film that featured her life as she busily prepares for a starring role in Swan Lake. In the year 2000, Aslymuratova was appointed as Vaganova Choreographic Institute’s Artistic Director.

Abylkhan Kasteev
Abylkhan Kasteev was one of the most famous painters in Kazakhstan. He received several awards for his masterpieces including a notable recognition for being called the National Artist of Kazakh SSR as well as The Laureate of the Chokan Valikhanov State Premium of the Kazakh SSR. He was also given two Orders of Labor red flags as well as the Order of October Revolution.

Kasteev was most famous for his ability to paint using oil and watercolors. He painted thousands of works that are presently displayed in various locations including the State Tretyakov Gallery in Kazakhstan, the State Museum of East Nations Art, the Central Museum of USSR Revolution in Moscow and at the State Museum of Fine Arts of Kazakhstan.

Marat Bisengaliev
Marat Bisengaliev is a famous violinist in Kazakhstan. He served as director of the West Kazakhstan Philharmonic Orchestra and the TuranAlem Kazakhstan Philharmonic Orchestra. At present, Bisengaliev also serves as the head of the Uralsk International Violin Competition and the current director of India’s Symphony Orchestra.

In 1988, Bisengaliev was awarded at the Leipzig International Bach Competition. In 1991 he bagged the first prize at the Nicanor Zabaleta Competition that was held in Spain. In the same competition he was awarded the special virtuoso prize for giving the most outstanding performance as well.

The year 2000 ushered even more awards for Bisengaliev. During that year he received the Independent Platinum Tarlan Award together with the Medal of Honor Award given by the government of Kazakhstan.

He was also influential in creating a symphony called Zere as a response to the comedy film entitled Borat.

Alan Buribaev
Alan Buribaev, born in 1979, is a famous musical conductor in Kazakhstan. He is the son of the equally famous cellist and conductor (father) and pianist (mother). He studied at the Kazakh State Conservatory and took up courses in violin and conducting. He also studied conducting at the Uros Lajovic in Vienna. In 2001, Buribaev received a prize in the Lovro von Matacic Conducting Competition that was held in Zagreb and won another prize at the Antonio Pedrotti Competition in the same year.

In 2003, Buribaev became the Principal Conductor of the Astana Symphony Orchestra, a post he held until 2007. Between the years 2004 to 2007 he also served as the General Musikdirektor of the Meiningen Theatre in Germany and became the Principal Conductor of the Norrköping Symphony Orchestra between 2007 and 2008. He went to the Netherlands between the years 2008 through 2009 where was appointed chief conductor of Het Barbants Orkest. Buribaev is set to conclude his chief conductorship of Het Barbants Orkets in 2012. From 2009 he was also serving as the principal conductor of the RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland. He was supposed to hold the position for three years, but it was recently extended for another two years, a contract that would expire when the season ends in 2015.

Bukhar-zhirau Kalmakanov
Bukhar-zhirau Kalmakanov, born in 1693 was once a poet at the court of the Middle Horde, one of the main administrative divisions in traditional Kazakhstan. He was a court poet for 70 years. He was most famous for providing entertainment through poetry and singing to the court. He also acted as one of the reigning Khan’s advisors. Thus, his poetic works focused on topics like politics, foreign policies, and the Khan’s life.

Jambyl Jabayev
Jambyl Jabayev was a traditional Kazakhstan folksinger who was born in 1846. As a young boy, Jambyl, whose name was derived from Mt. Jambyl learned to play the dombura. At the age of 14 he fled home and started to become more involved in singing and making music. Jabayev also wrote some pro-revolution and pro-Stalin poetry and songs that were circulated in the Soviet Union. However, rumor has it that the work attributed to Jabayev was not really his work and were works of other Russian poets more popularly called translators.

Eight months before he turned 100, Jabayev succumbed to old age. He was buried in a garden that he had cultivated on his own. The Jambyl Province, where the city of Taraz is located was named after him.

Shamshi Kaldayakov
Born on August 15, 1937, Shamshi Kaldaykov was a famous compose in Kazakhstan. He was the composer behind the song entitled My Kazakhstan that was first released in 1956. In 2006 the said song was adopted as the national anthem of the country after the lyrics was modified upon the behest of President Nursultan Nazarbayev.

Erik Kurmangaliev
Kazakhstan actor, opera singer, and leading public figure in Russia’s music scene Erik Kurmangaliev was born on December 31, 1959. He was quite active in the perestroika, a movement calling for reform inside the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.
Kurmangaliev’s career started in 1980 at the Leningrad Philharmonia. He had performed several times in the Second Symphony of Alfred Shnitke and Dr. Faust throughout his career. In the 90s, his team up with the director Roman Viktyuk enabled his career to reach its peak. He performed in the Russian language version of M. Butterfly by David Hwang. He made his last appearance on the film entitled Vocal Parallels. In 2007, Kurmangaliev died of liver complications.

Gabit Musirepov
Gabit Musirepov was born in March 1902. He was a Soviet Kazakh playwright, writer and author. One of his most notable works was his first libretto, the Kyz-Zhibek which he wrote for the Kazakh opera. His literary career took off with his first story about the events that took place during the Russian Civil War from 1918 until 1920. It was titled To the Abyss.

Musirepov was the President of the Kazakhstan Union of Writers at different times from 1956 to 1966. He was the secretary of the Union of Soviet Writers in 1959 and was a member of the Kazakhstan Academy of Sciences. Some of his other famous works include short stories like Pair of Lakes and Urgent; novels such as The Awakening of the Region published in 1953 and playwrights such as Amangeldi, Kozbye-Korpesh and Bayan-Sulu and Poet’s Tragedy.

Makhambet Otemisuly
Born in 1804, Makhambet Otemisuly was a poet and political figure at the same time. He gained popularity for his rebellious leadership activities against Russian colonialism. Because of the problems that took place after his rebellion, he became a wanted man and had to flee his country.

Makhambet’s poetry was closely linked to the literary traditions and the Kazakh culture of his beloved nation. He wrote poetry centered on themes like politics, where he openly criticized the Russian government as well as the reigning Khan. He also wrote general poetry centered on life and human existence.

Roza Rymbayeva
Roza Rymbayeva was a Soviet and Kazakh singer and was also the National Artist of the Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic in 1986. She also became one of USSR’s national artists. From 1976 to 1979, Rymbayeva was the soloist of the republic’s pop-youth band called Gulder, which translates to flowers in English. After her stint with the youth band Rymbayeva became a soloist for the Kazakhconcert, the country’s main Republican concert.

Rymbayeva’s repertoire includes not only Kazakh songs but also the works of modern foreign artists she had collaborated with. She’s on the 25th year of her career in the music industry and is organizing jubilee concerts to commemorate her anniversary.

Rymbayeva has received a number of awards including receiving the first prize in the republican contest of initiative in 1975; a 1976 Lenin Komsomol award and several Grand Prix awards in Song Contests as well as various other awards.

Nurbol Zhumaskaliyev
Nurbol Zhumaskaliyev, born on May 11, 1981 is a forward and an attacking midfielder currently playing for FC Tobol. He is the team’s captain and he has also scored seven goals in European competitions. He started his youth career at age 11 when he joined the Namys club of Almaty. His senior career began at FC Akzhayik in 1998 where he made 13 appearances. By the following season he had joined FC Zhetysu. He made 24 appearances for the club before he transferred to FC Tobol from 2000 to 2010, scoring 127 goals in 300 appearances. He had a brief stint with Astana’s Lokomotiv in 2011, contributing 10 goals to the team during his 31 appearances. He came back to FC Tobol at the start of the 2012 season. He had been selected to play in the national team in 2001. He has been capped 54 times, and has made six goals for the national team and has received international player recognition. He has been awarded the Best Player of the Year award in 2003, 2005 and 2010.

Darmen Sadvakasov
Darmen Sadvakasov is a well renowned Kazakhstani chess grandmaster. He was born on April 28, 1979. He received the International Master title in 1995 and received the Grandmaster title in 1998 after winning in the World Junior Championship. He won first place in 2004 at Copenhagen and in 2007 tied the first to eighth spot with Hikaru Nakamura and other chess masters in the Miami Open.

In 2003, he won several matches against Viktor Korchnoi, the oldest and still active chess grandmaster from Russia. Sadvakasov had also won games in 2004 against Anatoly Karpov, a Russian chess grandmaster and former Chess World Champion.

Arman Chilmanov
Arman Chilmanov is a Kazakhstani taekwondo athlete. He was the controversial athlete who stirred up the taekwondo competition during the Olympics in 2008. Chilmanov competed against Ángel Matos of Cuba at the +80-kilogram bronze medal match. He was actually behind Matos in the second round. It was inopportune that Matos suffered an injury to his toe and had to ask for an injury timeout. However, the injury timeout expired and since Matos was still unable to perform, Chilmanov was declared winner. The resulting fiasco due to the unsportsmanlike behavior of Matos caused him to be banned for life. Chilmanov said that he was happy with his win because it was already obvious that Matos would not be able to compete even after the injury timeout because his toe was already broken.

Shoukhrat Mitalipov
Although now a citizen of the United States, Shoukhrat Mitalipov was born in Almaty, Kazakhstan and is of Uighur ethnicity. Dr. Mitalipov is an associate scientist and researcher at the National Primate Research Center in Oregon, which is part of the Oregon Health and Science University. He made headlines in 2012 when it was announced that they were able to clone primates and he was the first scientist to achieve that feat. The U.S. Clinical Tests Commission gave him the license to conduct experiments using human embryos and eggs in 2010, which was a first in medical history. He is the co-author and the lead of the research for the mixed-embryo monkeys.

Evgeni Viktorovich Nabokov
Professional ice hockey goaltender Evgeni Nabokov was born in Ust-Kamenogorsk on July 25, 1975. He is a Kazakhstani Russian ice hockey player that is currently with the New York islanders in the NHL. His father was a very well-known goaltended in Kazakhstan and it was due to his father’s fame that the head coach of the San Jose Sharks scouted him without seeing him play. Before he joined his current team, Nabokov had stints with several hockey clubs in Kazakhstan and the United States, including Torpedo Ust-Kamenogorsk, HC Dynamo Moscow, Kentucky Thoroughblades, Cleveland Lumberjacks, San Jose Sharks, Metallurg Magnitogorsk and SKA St. Petersburg.

He is well known for his skill to challenge goal shooters and his excellent positioning abilities. To this date he remains the first goaltender in the history of the NHL to create a powerplay goal, meaning he was able to score a goal from a shot he himself made. That was way back in 2002. He reached a milestone in January 2012 by recording his 300th career win.

:: References ::
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Kazakhs
http://en.tengrinews.kz/opinion/230/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evgeni_Nabokov