Rasul Rza (real name Rasul Ibrahim oghlu Rzayev – az, Rəsul İbrahim oğlu Rzayev) (1910 – 1981 in

Baku Baku (, ; az, Bakı ) is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. Baku is located below sea level, which makes it the lowest lying national capital in the world a ...

), was an Azerbaijani writer,

Hero of Socialist Labour The Hero of Socialist Labour (russian: links=no, Герой Социалистического Труда, Geroy Sotsialisticheskogo Truda) was an honorific title in the Soviet Union and other Warsaw Pact countries from 1938 to 1991. It repre ...

(1980), People's Poet of Azerbaijan, Laureate of Soviet State Award and the Chairman of the Writers' Union of

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of th ...

. He was the husband of Azerbaijani writer

Nigar Rafibeyli Nigar Khudadat qizi Rafibeyli ( az, Nigar Xudadat qızı Rəfibəyli) (1913–1981, Baku) was an Azerbaijani writer and the Chairman of the Writers' Union of Azerbaijan. She was the mother of Anar Rzayev, novel and short-story writer, and wife of ...

and the father of writer

Anar Rzayev Anar Rasul oghlu Rzayev ( az, Anar Rəsul oğlu Rzayev), known as Anar (born 14 March 1938, Baku), is Azerbaijani writer, dramatist, film director, and the Chairman of the Writers' Union of Azerbaijan. Anar is primarily a novelist and short-sto ...

Life and writings

Rasul Rza was born Rasul Ibrahim oglu Rzayev on May 19, 1910 in Goychay. He studied in Transcaucasus Communist University, Azerbaijan Scientific Research Institute and Soviet Cinematography Institute. Rasul Rza was Chairman of

Writers' Union of Azerbaijan The Union of Azerbaijani Writers ( az, Azərbaycan Yazıçılar Birliyi) is the largest public organization of Azerbaijani writers, poets and publicists. It has over 1500 members at present. It was founded on June 13, 1934, when Azerbaijan was a ...

in 1939, minister of Azerbaijani Cinematography (1945–48), chief editor of the

Azerbaijani Soviet Encyclopedia The ''Azerbaijani Soviet Encyclopedia'' (in Azerbaijani: Azərbaycan Sovet Ensiklopediyası, Cyrillic: Азәрбајҹан Совет Енсиклопедијасы) is a ten volume universal encyclopedia published in Baku, Azerbaijan from 1976 ...

(1966–75), member of board of directors of

USSR Union of Writers The Union of Soviet Writers, USSR Union of Writers, or Soviet Union of Writers (russian: Союз писателей СССР, translit=Soyuz Sovetstikh Pisatelei) was a creative unions in the Soviet Union, creative union of professional writers ...

(from 1964). With start of his career he adopted a shortened name Rasul Rza. His first poem was called ''Bu gün'' (''Today''), published in

Tbilisi Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the Capital city, capital and the List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), largest city of Georgia (country), Georgia, lying on the ...

. His serious multidimensional writings began in the 1930s. During the

Great Patriotic War The Eastern Front of World War II was a theatre of conflict between the European Axis powers against the Soviet Union (USSR), Poland and other Allies, which encompassed Central Europe, Eastern Europe, Northeast Europe (Baltics), and Sout ...

, he published many novels calling for patriotic spirit. He also wrote a poem about

Lenin Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov. ( 1870 – 21 January 1924), better known as Vladimir Lenin,. was a Russian revolutionary, politician, and political theorist. He served as the first and founding head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 to 19 ...

. In the 60s, he began writing in more philosophical tone relating his novels to intellectual themes, analytical thinking, philosophical approach to daily life and so forth. The lyrical poems, dramas, proses he wrote hinted to sustained and subtle criticism of the Soviet regime, for which was banned to write for a period of time.Aesopian literary dimensions of Azerbaijani literature of the Soviet period. Maliheh S. Tyrrell, page 47
/ref> Additionally, he began composing songs to his poems. He died in

on April 1, 1981 and was buried in Fakhri Khiyaban. A commemoration ceremony was held in his honor in

Ankara Ankara ( , ; ), historically known as Ancyra and Angora, is the capital of Turkey. Located in the central part of Anatolia, the city has a population of 5.1 million in its urban center and over 5.7 million in Ankara Province, maki ...

in 2010. The writers of Azerbaijan started a Rasul Rza Foundation and present awards to successful writers. It is chaired by Fikrat Goja.

References

External links

Mark with depiction of Rasul Rza's portrait in honor of 90th anniversary
1910 births 1981 deaths People from Goychay District Azerbaijani writers Soviet writers Soviet translators Soviet dramatists and playwrights Azerbaijani translators Translators to Azerbaijani Azerbaijani atheists 20th-century Azerbaijani dramatists and playwrights Honored Art Workers of the Azerbaijan SSR {{Azerbaijan-translator-stub