Jalil Mammadgulu oghlu Mammadguluzadeh was born on 22 February 1869 in Nakhchivan. He received his first education in a Mollakhana (ecclesiastical school) and then in a three-year Nakhchivan city school. In 1887 he graduated from the Transcaucasian Teachers Seminary (Gori Pedagogical Seminary), and in 1887-1897 he worked as a teacher in the villages of Ulukhanli in Iravan province, Bash-Norashen (now Jalilkend in Sharur district) and Nehram in Nakhchivan district. In 1889 he wrote his first work allegorical play “Tea Party”. During this period, he also wrote a number of short stories, the play “Raisins game” and the story “Stories of Danabash village”.

Since 1902 he began his journalistic activities in Iravan where he published his first articles in the newspaper “Caspian” under the headings “Iravan” and “From Iravan: from our correspondent”. From 1903 he worked in the editorial office of “Shargi-Rus” newspaper in Tiflis. This newspaper and its editor Mammadagha Shahtakhtli played an important role in his career and affected on his formation as a writer and journalist. At the invitation of M. Shahtakhtli he started to co-operate with “Shargi-Rus” (1903) and for the first time published in this newspaper his works “Mailbox”, “Raisins game”, many articles and translation works. On 26 November 1904, he was appointed temporary editor of “Shargi-Rus” newspaper. After the magazine’s demise, Mirza Jalil bought the printing house of the newspaper “Shargi Rus” together with Omar Faig Nemanzadeh and merchant Meshadi Alasqar Baghirov and formed the editorial-typography “Geyrat” (“Honour”) in 1905. The works he published during this period, devoted to the themes of revolution and freedom, expressed his different views and approaches, his in-depth study of human destinies on the background of socio-political events, and skilfully emphasised his literary skill. Under the influence of the events of 1905, he wrote “Mailbox”, “Usta Zeynal”, “Constitution in Iran”, “Russian Girl”, “Consul’s Wife”, “Gurbanali bey” and dozens of other stories, which became a novelty in the literature of the peoples of Azerbaijan and the whole Middle East. Such comedies as “Dead Men”, “My Mother’s Book”, “Gathering of Madmen”, “Kamancha” opened a new page in literature and were performed on the stage of theatres of Azerbaijan for a long time. The play “Dead Men” had success in theatres of Turkey, Russia and Iran, Central Asia and influenced the development of new literary scholars.

Jalil Mammadguluzadeh became the first who laid the foundations of satirical journalism for in Azerbaijan, as well as in the whole Turkic-Muslim world. In 1905, he began to seek permission to publish a satirical magazine. The first issue of “Molla Nasreddin” magazine was published on 7 April 1906. It played a colossal role in the history of Azerbaijani literature, culture, social thought and became a glorious page of Azerbaijani national press. Such talented poets, writers, publicists of that time as Mirza Alakbar Sabir, Nariman Narimanov, Abdurrahim bey Akhverdiyev, Mammad Said Ordubadi, Omar Faig Nemanzade, Ali Nazmi, Aligulu Hemkyusar and others were regular authors of the magazine. Jalil Mammadguluzadeh, the founder and ideological leader of “Molla Nasreddin” literary school, in his articles in “Molla Nasreddin” magazine covered all actual political and social problems of Azerbaijani life in the early twentieth century. Profound ideas of democracy and freedom propagated by the writer, his style of language ensured the magazine’s universal love and high reputation in the international arena. However, the tsarist government often brought him to court, organized searches in the “Geyrat” printing house and sometimes closed down the “Molla Nasreddin” magazine.

In 1914, due to the difficult situation caused by the First World War in the country and financial problems, J. Mammadguluzadeh was forced to suspend the activity of the magazine “Molla Nasreddin” for a while and resumed its operation in 1917.

During the times of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic J. Mammadguluzadeh mostly lived in the village of Kahrizli in Karabakh and was engaged in artistic creation.

In June 1920 Mirza Jalil moved with his family to Tabriz and in 1921 published 8 issues of “Molla Nasreddin” there. On 24 June 1921, at the invitation of the new government, he met with N. Narimanov, D. Bunyadzadeh and A. Garayev. During the meeting they discussed a number of issues and decided to start republishing “Molla Nasreddin”. Thus, 370 issues of “Molla Nasreddin” were published in Tiflis, 8 issues in Tabriz and 398 issues in Baku.

The rich creative heritage of Jalil Mammadguluzadeh and his magazine “Molla Nasreddin” had a strong influence on the development of literary and social thought, revolutionary-democratic movement in the Near and Middle East, especially in Iran and Turkey.

The years 1921-1923 are a bright period of Jalil Mammadguluzadeh’s public activity. In 1924, Jalil Mammadguluzadeh was elected a member of the committee for the development of the New Alphabet and the Central Commission on Terminology, in 1926 he was elected a member of the organising committee for the celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Azerbaijani press, as well as the Society for the Survey and Study of Azerbaijan. At the V Congress of Soviets of Azerbaijan at the suggestion of Hamid Sultanov J. Mammadguluzadeh was elected a candidate to the Central Executive Committee of Azerbaijan (26 March 1927). In addition to the CEC meetings in Baku, he also participated in mobile meetings held in Khankendi and Lankaran, participated in the preparation of some resolutions and recommendations.

In 1922, he was appointed temporary editor of the newspaper “Yeni Yol” (“New Way”) and joined the active struggle for a new alphabet. Jalil Mammadguluzadeh was elected as a member of the committee for the development of the New Alphabet and in 1924 went on a business trip to Crimea, Orenburg, Tashkent, Ufa and Kazan to popularise it. S. Aghamali oghlu was the leader of the business trip.

The stories written by J. Mammadguluzadeh in these years reflected the processes that took place in the 20s and 30s, the observed contradictions and the specifics of the new era.

Jalil Mammadguluzadeh was also engaged in translation activities. He translated Leo Tolstoy’s work “Work, Death, and Sickness” (“Shargi-Rus”, 21 January 1904, No. 7), the story “Spouse” by Khanzadeh (“Shargi-Rus”, 30 May, 2 June, 1904, Nos. 63-64) from Russian, an excerpt of Zeynalabdin Maraghali’s novel “Ibrahim Bey’s Travelogue” (“Molla Nasreddin", 1906, No. 17) from Persian into Azerbaijani.

Prominent writer-dramaturge, publicist, public figure Jalil Mammadguluzadeh died on 4 January 1932 in Baku and was buried in the Alley of Honor.

Recommended literature:

1. Həbibbəyli, İsa Əkbər oğlu. Cəlil Məmmədquluzadə : mühiti və müasirləri: monoqrafiya / İ. Ə. Həbibbəyli ; elmi red. Y. İ. Axundlu. - Təkmilləşdirilmiş II nəşri. - Naxçıvan : Əcəmi NPB, 2009. - 424 s.
2. Həbibbəyli, İsa Əkbər oğlu. Cəlil Məmmədquluzadə : tanıtma kitabı / İ. Ə. Həbibbəyli ; elmi red. İ. Cəfərli = Jalil Mammadguluzadah : the Book of Introduction / I. A. Habibbeyli ; ed. G. Guliyeva = Djalil Mammedgoulouzadé : livre de présentation / I. A. Habibbeyli ; réd. A. Mammadova = Джалил Мамедкулизаде : книга ознакомления / И. А. Габиббейли ; науч. ред. Г. Гурбанлы. - Naxçıvan : Əcəmi NPB, 2009. - 170 s.
3. Əliyeva, Afaq Mirzə qızı. Cəlil Məmmədquluzadə irsinin nəşri məsələləri / A. M. Əliyeva ; red. M. M. Adilov ; AMEA M. Füzuli adına Əlyazmalar İnstitutu. - Bakı : Elm və təhsil, 2012. - 172 s.
4. Əliyeva, Afaq Mirzə qızı. Cəlil Məmmədquluzadə (Molla Nəsrəddin) arxivinin təsviri / A. M. Əliyeva ; red. M. M. Adilov ; AMEA M. Füzuli adına Əlyazmalar İnstitutu. - Bakı : Nurlan, 2011. - 328 s.
5. Cəlil Məmmədquluzadə ensiklopediyası / Anar [et al.] ; red. heyəti: Anar [et al.]. - Bakı : Şərq-Qərb, 2008. - 320 s.