Sadriddin Ayni
(1878 - 1954)

Great writer, reformer, scholar, and public figure Sadriddin Said-Murodzoda (after 1896 his penname was "Ayni") until 1917 spent his life in Bukhara, Samarkand and surrounding cities. The creative work of Ayni had three principal directions: fiction, history, and scientific research. Ayni is known as a historian for his works: History of the Manghit Emirs of Bukhara and Materials on History of Revolution in Bukhara. The author participated in the events he described. Ayni created the historical works consistent with traditions of local historiograpy, but at the same time they had certain signs og literary innovations. Ayni's Memoirs, in which he reflected on the events of his life in Bukhara, are also of great value.

Ayni belonged to the left wing of the Jadid movement. He harshly criticized the conservative and out-of-date regime of the Bukhara Emirate through vivid word-painting of the Bukhara emirs (Muzaffar, Abdulahad and their courtiers) and descriptions of the hard situations of the common people.

Ayni's poetic and prose works reflected the classical and the enlightenment traditions in Tajik and Uzbek. His stories of Adina, Bukhara's Executioners, A Relative's Death, and novels, Slaves , Dahunda, and Memoirs are enormous accomplishments of both Tajik and Uzbek literature, in which Ayni became a founder of "Realism".

Useful links:

A Brief Note on Sadriddin Ayni's Life (by I.Bashiri)
Ayni's people (by I.Bashiri)