Muhammed-Gabdulkhay Kurbangaliev

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Muhammed-Gabdulkhay Kurbangaliev (Bashkir: Мөхәмәтғәбделхәй Ҡорбанғәлиев, Russian: Мухамме́д-Габдулха́й Курбангали́ев, Japanese: ムハンマド・ガブドゥルハイ・クルバンガリー, 1889—1972) was a Bashkir religious leader, public and political figure in the early 20th century.

Life

Born in 1889 in the village of Mediak in Chelyabinsk province, Orenburg Governorate (these days in the Argayashsky District, Chelyabinsk Oblast, Russia) to the family of the religious leader of a local Islamic community; his father Gabidulla Kurbangaliev was the local Imam khatib and a religious teacher who had a number of followers (Murids).

Received instruction in the local

Participated in the White movement, became one of the leader of Bashkir military units within Kolchak’s army.

In the summer of 1919, he attempted to arrange a new All-Bashkir Congress in the city of

In October 1920, Kolchak's army with the affiliated Bashkir troops suffered a major defeat, surrendering the city of Chita to the Red Army. Muhammed Kurbangaliev emigrated to Manchuria, where he attempted to bring together the émigré Bashkir and Turkic-speaking communities, arrange for traditional Islamic religious practices among them, support native-language instruction, acting as an Imam and mudarris (teacher).

In 1924, moved to Japan, founded a Muslim community (mahallah called Islamiya) in Tokyo and became its religious leader. In 1927, opened a school for Japan's Muslims. In 1928, convened an all-Japan Muslims’ Congress. Opened print works which printed books in

In 1932-1936, founded a Muslim community in Manchukuo, a medrese in Mukden, a publication called ”Япон Мөхбире” (Yapon Möxbire “Japan’s Herald” in Turkic languages). Published the first-ever Quran in the Far East.

He developed relationships with Korean and Manchurian businessmen and established close personal relations with Japan's military leaders:

On May 12, 1938, he opened the mosque "Islamiya" in Tokyo and became Japan's first Mufti. Japan's Muslim émigré community was involved in the international politics and promoted Japan's expansion in South-East Asia, seeing this as a means to liberate their ethnic homelands from the Communist rule. However, Muhammed Kurbangaliev's activities came to impede Japan's coherent policy toward the Muslim communities in and outside of the country, and the country's authorities arranged for his "voluntary departure" for Dalian, Manchuria. One of the reasons for his loss of influence was his close association with the Imperial Way Faction which was purged after the February 26 Incident in 1936.^[1]

Muhammed Kurbangaliev advocated Islam's equal positions in Japan alongside other religions. In 1939, Japan's PM Hiranuma Kiichirō announced that Islam had equal rights in Japan with Buddhism and Christianity.

Arrest, imprisonment, later life

In 1945, when World War II ended, Muhammed Kurbangaliev was arrested by NKVD (the Soviet secret Police), condemned to 10 years’ imprisonment for "high treason". Served his sentence in Vladimir Central Prison until 1955.

After his release, he returned to his native region. He settled in a rural community near Chelyabinsk where he served as a Mullah until his death in 1972.

See also

• Islam in Japan

References

External links

• "The Kurbangalievs". Entry in Encyclopedia Bashkortostan (in Russian)
• Kurbangaliev, Mukhammed-Gabdulkhay. Entry in Chelyabinsk Encyclopedia (in Russian)
• Усманова Лариса. «Тюрко-татарская диаспора в Северо-Восточной Азии». //Larisa Usmanova. Turkic-Tatar expatriate community in North-East Asia. (in Russian)