2026. no 3. Il’ya Zaytsev, Gulnara Seitvanieva

Unknown Letters of A.S. Ayvazov to V.A. Gordlevsky

Il’ya Zaytsev
Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences
Moscow, Russian Federation;

Gulnara Seitvanieva
Marjani Institute of History of the Tatarstan Academy of Sciences
Kazan, Russian Federation

Abstract. The article aims to introduce into scholarly circulation little-known sources related to the correspondence between the prominent Crimean Tatar public and cultural figure Asan Sabri Aivazov (1878–1938) and the renowned Orientalist and Turkologist Vladimir Alexandrovich Gordlevsky (1876–1956). Three letters written by A.S. Aivazov, dated 1910, 1924 and 1925 are published for the first time from the original autographs in Ottoman language. The letter from 1913 has also been identified, although it is not included in the present study. The article provides transliterations of the texts from the Arabic script and their translations into Russian. The publication is accompanied by an archaeographic description of the sources.
Drawing on a source-critical analysis of the letters, the authors comment on important issues raised in the correspondence. Based on the analysis of the letters, the study examines selected aspects of Aivazov’s life and work, particularly those related to his teaching, literary, and public activities. The correspondence allows us to trace the nature of his connections with the representative of Russian Turkology. Special attention is devoted to the author’s reflections on the reform of Turkic writing and language, which were further developed through his participation in discussions on the new alphabet and in the activities of the First All-Union Turkological Congress of 1926. The article also discusses information concerning a major scholarly work by A.S. Aivazov, the manuscript of which has not yet been located. The materials of the correspondence broaden our understanding of the intellectual legacy of this figure and his role in the cultural life of Crimean Tatar society during the first quarter of the twentieth century.

Keywords: A.S. Aivazov; V.A. Gordlevsky; epistolary sources; correspondence; Lazarev Institute of Oriental Languages; Turkological Congress; reform of the Turkic-Tatar writing system

For citation: Zaytsev I.V., Seitvanieva G.Yu. Unknown Letters of A.S. Ayvazov to V.A. Gordlevsky. Krymskoe istoricheskoe obozrenie=Crimean Historical Review. 2026, vol. 13, no. 3, pp. 140–161. https://doi.org/10.22378/kio.2026.3.140-161 (In Russian)

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Ilya V. Zaytsev – Dr. Sci. (History), Professor, Leading Researcher, Centre of Islamic Manuscripts, Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences (12, Rozhdestvenka Str., Moscow 107031, Russian Federation);ORCID: 0000-0002-9862-8511. E-mail: ilyaaugust@yandex.ru

Gulnara Yu. Seitvanieva – Freelance employee of the Crimean Scientific Center, Marjani Institute of History of the Tatarstan Academy of Sciences (7, Baturin Str., Kazan 420111, Russian Federation); ORCID: 0000-0002-0454-3235. E-mail: seitnargul@gmail.com

Received 05.06.2026

Accepted 02.07.2026