Baluan Sholak
Baluan Sholak | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | Nurmagambetov 11 December 1864 Karaotkel, Akmola Province, Russian Empire |
| Died | 1919 |
| Nationality | Kazakh |
| Occupation(s) | Composer, singer, poet, dombra player, dzhigit and wrestler |
Baluan Sholak (Kazakh: Балуан Шолақ, Baluan Şolaq; 1864–1919), was a Kazakh Turkic composer, singer, poet, dombra player, dzhigit and wrestler.
Biography[edit]
Baluan Sholak was born on 11 December 1864, in the village of Karaotkel near the Khan mountains in modern Akmola Province, Russian Empire, and was named Nurmagambet Baymyrzauly.[1] He was the son of a carpenter.[2] At a young age he lost his fingers in an accident when his right hand was burnt, and became known as Baluan Sholak, "Fingerless Fighter".[3]
He started fighting at the age of fourteen and gained a reputation as an invincible wrestler.[1] He also gained fame as a singer of Kazakh songs, composing and performing music by Birzhan Kozhagulova and Achan Seri, and as an akyn (poet-improviser). He travelled through Kokshetau, Karaotkel, Bayan-Aul, Irtysh, and Sarysu, staging performances with his ensemble of dombra players, singers, storytellers, jockeys and wrestlers.[2]
Some of his songs became very popular in Kazakhstan, including Галия (Galiya), dedicated to his beloved Galiya,[1] and Сентябрь (September). He was also an accomplished dzhigit (skilful horse rider), standing on the back of a galloping horse or riding under the horse's belly.[2]
At fairs, he could lift the weight of 816 kg.[1] On one occasion at the Koyandy Fair he battled a well-known fighter named Karen and broke several ribs.
Baluan Sholak remained popular with his countrymen and was respected and honoured wherever he went.[1] His songs are still heard today, and the Baluan Sholak Palace of Culture and Sports in Almaty, built in 1967 and seating 5000, is named in his honour.[2]
References[edit]
- ^ a b c d e Lyudmila Vykhodchenko. "Marking the 150th anniversary of Baluan Sholak's birth – Qazaqstan tarihy". e-history.kz. Retrieved 2022-07-09.
- ^ a b c d Тимур Амиров. "Певец и борец Балуан Шолак (The singer and fighter Baluan Sholak)" (in Russian). Neonomad. Archived from the original on 2012-09-05. Retrieved 2012-04-23.
- ^ "Kazakh names :: Kazakh culture and national traditions". OrexCA. Retrieved 2012-04-23.
External links[edit]
| International | |
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| National | |
- Kazakh male singers from the Russian Empire
- 19th-century male singers from the Russian Empire
- Dughlats
- Kazakhstani composers
- Male composers
- Kazakhstani poets
- Kazakhstani male sport wrestlers
- 1864 births
- 1919 deaths
- 20th-century Kazakhstani male singers
- Kazakh writers from the Russian Empire
- 19th-century writers from the Russian Empire
- 20th-century Kazakhstani writers
- People from Akmola Region
- Sportspeople from the Russian Empire
- Composers from the Russian Empire
- Poets from the Russian Empire
- Writers from the Russian Empire
- Singers from the Russian Empire
- Muslims from the Russian Empire