Yakov Agarunov

Yakov Mikhailovich Agarunov (; ; 25 April 1907 – 31 May 1992) was a Mountain Jew poet, playwright, political and public figure of Azerbaijan, author of the new Judeo-Tat alphabet. He wrote in Judeo-Tat.

Biography Agarunov was born into the family of a gardener. He studied at a traditional Jewish school from 1915 to 1919, and at the same time attended a Russian school.

In 1920, he became a Komsomol activist and took part in an amateur drama club. From 1924 to 1925, he translated Uzeyir Hajibeyov's play "Arshin Mal Alan" from Azerbaijani into Judeo-Tat.

From 1925 to 1928, Agarunov studied at the rabfak in Moscow and Baku. He graduated from the history department of the Baku Pedagogical Institute and the Higher Party School under the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks.

He compiled the Judeo-Tat–Russian and Russian–Judeo-Tat dictionaries, which comprised 8,000 words.

Agarunov wrote memoirs "Oil and Victory" (; Baku, 1991), "The Big Fate of a Small People" (; Moscow, 1995), "How Judeo-Tat Literature Was Created" . From 1974 to 1977, the almanac "The Soviet Motherland" published excerpts of his works in the Judeo-Tat language.

Notable works The poem "Dove" , 1920. The satirical comedy "King, Rabbi and the Rich Man" ; 1920. The play "Whose fault?" , alternatively titled "Tears of Joy" ; 1928. The poem "Mountain Girl" , 1928.

Selected publications Agarunov Ya. M. "The Big Fate of a Small People" About Mountain Jews: (Memoirs). Publishing house - Choro, 1995. 154 p. 2000 copies. – . Agarunov Ya. M. "Heroic deeds of Azerbaijani oilmen during the Great Patriotic War." Baku: publishing house - "Azerneshr", 1982. 107 p. 4000 copies. "Oil and Victory": (About the heroic accomplishments of Azerbaijani oilmen during the World War II.) Baku: publishing house - "Azerneshr", 1991. 166 p. 5000 copies. Agarunov Ya. M. "How the Judeo-Tat literature was created" // - "The Soviet Motherland". 1974–1977. (excerpts; in Judeo-Tat) Agarunov Ya. M., Agarunov M. Ya. "Large dictionary of the language of Mountain Jews". Book I. Juhuri-Russian dictionary; Book II. Russian-Juhuri dictionary. Pyatigorsk: publishing house - PERO "Geula"; RIA-KMV, 2010. 660 p. Agarunov Ya. M., Agarunov M. Ya. "Judeo-Tat-Russian dictionary". 9000 words. Jewish University in Moscow, 1997. 204 p.

Awards Order of Lenin Order of the Red Banner of Labour Order of the Badge of Honour Medal "For the Defence of the Caucasus" Medal "For Valiant Labour in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945" Jubilee Medal "Thirty Years of Victory in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945" Jubilee Medal "In Commemoration of the 100th Anniversary of the Birth of Vladimir Ilyich Lenin" Medal "Veteran of Labour" Badge "50 years in the CPSU" Personal pensioner of union significance