THE SOVIET HISTORIOGRAPHY AND THE QUESTION OF KAZAKHSTAN’S HISTORY

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THE SOVIET HISTORIOGRAPHY AND
tance given to historians in Soviet society 287 played an important role
for choosing to study history. It was thought that historians filled
important positions in Soviet management levels started to appear
in people’s minds throughout society by the 1950s. 288 And, this belief
was still valid during the last period of the Soviet Union. 289
In practice, it was obvious that this understanding continued even
after the collapse of the Soviet Union. 290
brought me to the department of history.” See: “Пол векa служения исторической
нaуке”, интервю с Е Г. Гимпельсоном, Отечественнaя история.Московa 2001,
No. 4, p. 140. Or “I was born in a villager family. While we were children we listened
stories about Citizen Battle from our elderly and neighbours and these stories
awakened in me the desire to be a historian. I wanted to make research about the
lives and works of the heroes and politicians I listened.” Check: Пaвел Вaсильевич
Волобуев, Отечественнaя история, Московa 1997, No. 6, pp. 99-100.
287 We can see this importance from the awards that historian Pospelov, who
had been in high positions and took awards. When we look at his biography we
come across this: “Pospelov Petr Nikolaeviç (1898-1979) Soviet state and party
authority, historian, academician of USSR Sciences Academy, Hero of Socialist
Labor (1958). Member of Soviet Union Communist Party since 1916, Editor of Pravda
newspaper (1940-1949), Secretary of Communist Party Central Committee
(1953-1960), Director of Marxism-Leninism Institute (1949-1952 and 1961-1967
years), Member of Communist Party Central Committee (1939-1971), Candidate
for Membership of Communist Party Central Committee Administrative Board
(1957-1961), MP of Supreme Soviet of the USSR (1946-1966), He has works on
the history of Soviet Union Communist Party, he has taken USSR State Award
(1943), he has taken Golden Medal on behalf of USSR Sciences Academy Karl
Marx (1972)”. See: Поляков, Ю. А., “Штрихи к портрету (Воспоминaния о П. Н.
Поспелове)”, Отечественнaя история, Москвa1999, No. 5, p. 154.
288 “In 1950s Department of History was a trend department. There was such a
belief that the ones who graduated from this department would be party leader
of the provinces (the province would be governed by him). The ones who graduated
from the universities with a high degree would be placed in high positions in
Party Center, the worst ones would be lecturers in universities. In fact, this factor
affected my choice of history department. My aim was to become the prominent
person in our province and to eliminate the injustice made to my father. It was to
exile the ones who called me public enemy to Siberia because of my father’s exile
of Siberia.” See: Bünyatov, “Güzel İnsan, Büyük Alim”, p. 202.
289 When I submitted a petition to the History Department of Azerbaijan State
University in 1989, the above mentioned subject was among the ones who were
discussed mainly. Because of this the History Department was seen as a department
shown favor.
290 For example, the historians predominantly have had important places in ad-