IN MEMORY OF ZHABAYKHAN MUBARAKOVICH ABDILDIN

Abstract

On December 3, 2025, Zhabaykhan Mubarakovich Abdildin passed away at the age of 93. He was a philosopher, specialist in dialectics and epistemology, founder of the Kazakh school of dialectics and dialectical logic, Doctor of Philosophy, Academician of the National Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Kazakhstan, and a man of broad education and active civic engagement.

Having connected his life with philosophy since the 1960s, Zhabaykhan Abdildin became a brilliant symbol of the development of a distinctive philosophical school in Kazakhstan and an esteemed authority in the global space of philosophy. He was an active participant in world philosophical congresses since 1968.

Abdildin's creative biography can be divided into three periods. The first, from 1959 to 1998, was spent in Almaty, where he worked at the Institute of Philosophy and Law of the Academy of Sciences. This period marked his development as a scholar and the leader of a scientific school of dialectical logic. The second, 1998-2007, was associated with Astana and his work as a deputy on the committees of the Parliament and the Senate of the Republic of Kazakhstan. This was a period of political and civic activism, including work on the commission for the rehabilitation of prominent Kazakh figures repressed in the 1920s and 1930s. The third, from 2007-2025, was associated with the Department of Philosophy at the L.N. Gumilyov Eurasian National University. During this period, the complete works of Zhabaykhan Mubarakovich in 25 volumes were published. It was at this department that he established the international conferences  named Current Issues of Modern Philosophy" (2008, 2013, 2018, 2023) and "Ilyenkov Readings. Philosophy and Culture" (2011).

In memory of Zhabaykhan Mubarakovich Abdildin, we publish again an interview conducted on the eve of his 85th birthday in 2018 by his colleagues from the Department of Philosophy at the L.N. Gumilyov Eurasian National University Kulshat Medeuova, Ulbolsyn Sandybaeva, and Dinara Ryskulbekova.