Chuvash educator Ivan Yakovlev was born on April 25, 1848 in the inconspicuous village of Koshki-Novotimbaevo, in the Simbirsk province. He was the son of a poor peasant and was left without parents at a very early age. The orphaned child was adopted by the Chuvash Pakhomov family from the same village.
Early years
The boy was lucky to get an education, which in the future allowed him not only to start a career, but also to educate the population of the Volga region. In 1856, the boy went to study at a school in the neighboring village of Buinsky district.
Ivan Yakovlev got there thanks to an order issued by the specific department responsible for the education of orphans. The village school was completed in 1860. In it, Ivan Yakovlev became the best student. Natural abilities and talents allowed him to get into the district school of the provincial city of Simbirsk, and then to the local gymnasium.
Experiencing Chuvash culture
Yakovlev got into the class of land surveyors. After graduating from the gymnasium, he worked for four years in his speci alty in the Simbirsk specific office. Being a rural measurer, young Ivan Yakovlev traveled notonly native, but also neighboring Kazan and Samara provinces. Travel was not in vain. Visiting villages and getting to know the locals, the surveyor got to know better the life, culture and way of life of the Volga population, among which were Russians, Tatars, Chuvashs and Mordovians.
At the same time, the liberal ideas of the 60s had a strong influence on the worldview of the young Yakovlev. XIX century. Following these precepts, he came to the conclusion that the native Chuvash people needed education, familiarization with Russian culture, as well as literacy. In the Volga province, the level of its distribution was extremely low compared to the capital. Ivan Yakovlev believed that in order to improve the life of the Chuvash, it was not at all necessary to resort to bloody revolutions and social upheavals. Enough to enlighten the people and recreate their culture.
Teacher
To implement his plan, Yakovlev began to earn extra money as a tutor. However, this work was not his main occupation. The novice teacher began to spend money from lessons on organizing and maintaining his own private school for Chuvash children.
At this first stage, the main comrade and colleague of the educator was his fellow villager Alexei Rekeyev. He shared the ideas and hopes that Ivan Yakovlevich Yakovlev experienced. The biography of teachers showed that their desire to teach children from the hinterland was not just a momentary hobby of youth - they really dedicated their lives to this goal.
Supporters
Yakovlev received serious support from Ilya Ulyanov, an inspector of public schools in the Simbirsk province and Vladimir Lenin's father. His help contributed to the expansion of the young teacher's school. In 1870, Ivan Yakovlev graduated from the gymnasium, receiving a gold medal. After that, he went to continue his education at Kazan University. During his absence, Ilya Ulyanov took care of the Chuvash school. The inspector of public schools sent the student books, necessary literature and even money so that he could freely receive a speci alty.
At the university, Yakovlev met Nikolai Ilminsky, a professor and connoisseur of folklore. His detailed consultations made it possible to compile a new Chuvash alphabet, created on the basis of Slavic graphics. It has been long overdue for an update. The point was that the old alphabet, which used the Turkic Old Bulgarian language as the basis, was outdated, and it was used only by a small part of the population.
Primer publication
The appearance of a new Chuvash primer was not long in coming. The book was published in 1872. This primer and the stories written later by Ivan Yakovlevich Yakovlev became an important milestone for the development of the national culture of the Volga people. The enlightener's books quickly gained popularity and became truly popular. At the same time, the first two editions of the primer were published at the teacher's own expense. The enlightener's selfless decision was not surprising to those who knew him well.
A lot of effort, time andIvan Yakovlevich Yakovlev spent other resources on educating the masses. The biography of this person is amazing and bright, because before him no one made so much effort to help the development of the Chuvash culture. In the 70s, Yakovlev was helped by his youth and youthful enthusiasm, with which he took on any business.
Inspector of Chuvash schools
In 1875, the student graduated from Kazan University, receiving a diploma from the Faculty of History and Philology. Now, completely new possibilities have opened up before him. The young man became an inspector who monitored the state of the Chuvash schools in the Volga provinces. The place of his permanent residence was Simbirsk, where the center of the educational district was located.
It was then that the philologist and historian set to full strength for educational and pedagogical activities. It was full of anxieties, worries and dramatic confrontations with local officials. But at the same time, each public story of Ivan Yakovlev about the work of his whole life attracted many supporters to him. These were not just sympathetic people. Most of them were provincial nobles with money and influence. Largely thanks to them, the educator managed to stand at the head of the Simbirsk Chuvash school. This educational institution quickly turned into a local phenomenon. Future teachers received a speci alty at the school, who then began working in local small schools, helping Chuvash children get rid of illiteracy. For fifty years of work, the Simbirsk school has produced several thousand teachers. This isthe educational institution has become an important center of Chuvash culture and writing.
Literary activity
What exactly did Ivan Yakovlev do? The teacher's biography is an example of a constantly writing person. The Enlightener regularly published new teaching aids, textbooks, translated fiction, medical, agricultural and other literature into Chuvash. The stories of Ivan Yakovlevich Yakovlev for children were especially popular. They were published in the form of collections and anthologies, instantly distributed among the masses. In every Chuvash home where children were brought up, these books became desktop books.
Yakovlev's epistolary heritage occupies a separate place. The Enlightener corresponded with academicians, scientists, musicians, artists, journalists and publishers. For fifty years he wrote about two thousand large letters. Now all of them are of historical and cultural value. Thanks to them, it is possible to restore the picture of the Volga province of the late 19th - early 20th century. Ivan Yakovlev's letters and fairy tales have been reprinted more than once both in the Soviet and in the modern era.
Chuvash educator
The most important principle of the educator was his idea that the Chuvash culture should integrate with the Russian one and in no case come into conflict with it. Yakovlev believed that the interests of the peoples of the vast empire, and then the socialist state, could not be opposed. On the contrary, all nations, regardless of their ethnic and cultural differences, must embark on the path of unification and strengthening of ties between themselves.
This principle was best reflected in the teacher's activities related to the education of the Chuvash people. Yakovlev believed that this people should join Christianity, since it was religion that could become an important link between different ethnic groups. To do this, he himself translated some biblical works into the Chuvash language, including the Ps alter and the New Testament. For this, Ivan Yakovlevich once created a new alphabet based on the Cyrillic alphabet. In addition, he believed that it was necessary to acquaint the Russian population with the Chuvash realities - life, traditions and customs. The Enlightener continued to teach and write books until old age.
He died on October 23, 1930. Today, the memory of Ivan Yakovlev is honored throughout the entire Volga region, and especially among the Chuvash population.
