Berdakh

(pseudonym of Berdimurat, son of Kargabai). Born 1827; died 1900. Kara-Kalpak poet.

Berdakh was born into a poor family and studied in a maqtab. He was the author of lyrical, satirical, and didactic verses, as well as historical poems (The Genealogy, Aidos bii, Amangel’dy, Ernazar bii, and others). In the narrative poem The Petty Tyrant Tsar Berdakh depicted the people’s struggle against a despotic khan. The poet exalted labor as the basis of life and the source of man’s spiritual wealth. He ardently opposed social oppression and the oppression of women. Before the October Revolution, Berdakh’s works were disseminated by storytellers, poets, and readers.