Abstract
The scholarly work of the well-known scientist, writer, historian, and researcher Berqayir Amanshin in investigating Kazakh national history is analyzed in this paper. The work investigates Amanshin’s contributions to the study of the life and work of the poet Makhambet Ötemisūly, an outstanding figure in the history of Kazakh literature and historiography. The authors note that Amanshin’s work has also involved the use of archival materials in academic practice, has yielded new information about Makhambet’s biography and genealogy, clarified the time of the poet's demise, examined the earliest publications of the poet’s works, and analyzed textual and textological problems related to the national poet of Kazakhstan, Makhambet. Moreover, the authors perceive Amanshin’s achievements as the liberation of Makhambet's name from the typical ideological attitude of the Soviet period and the establishment of the image of this historical figure, hero, and artist. The examples of Amanshin’s books pertaining to the life of Makhambet, such as “Makhambet Tagdyry” (Fate of Makhambet) and “Makhambet jane Onyn Dauiri” (Makhambet and His Epoch) show the role played by Amanshin in the Makhambet studies.