Gulsaira Momunova, in Kyrgyz: Гүлсайра Момунова (30 December 1937 – 12 August 2020) was a Kyrgyz journalist, translator and poet. In 2011, she was given the title 'People's Poet of Kyrgyzstan'.
Momunova was born on 30 December 1937, in the village of Ken-Aral (Кен-Арал [ru]) in the Bakay-Ata District of Kyrgyzstan.[1] She graduated from school in Talas in 1955, and then, in 1960, from the Mayakovsky Women's Institute.[2] She began work in 1961 as a journalist for the newspaper Советтик Кыргызстан (Soviet Kyrgyzstan), where she worked until 1969. From 1971 she worked as deputy editor for Кыргызстан (Kyrgyzstan).[3] From 1973 until her retirement in 1993 she was editor of the magazine Кыргызстан аялдары (Women of Kyrgyzstan).[1][3]
In 1964, Momunova published her first collection of poetry entitled Тилек [Wish].[1] She wrote twenty collections of poetry during her career, two of which were translated to Russian.[1][3] Her poetry is known for its folk style.[4] In 1971 she became of member of the Kyrgyz National Writers' Union.[3] In 1973 she made the first Kyrgyz translation of the Russian author I. Zhakanov's short story Returned Song.[1]
Momunova died from kidney disease linked to COVID-19 complications in Bishkek, on 12 August 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic in Kyrgyzstan.[5] She was buried on 13 August, in the Ala-Archinsky cemetery.[6]
In 2013, Momunova's 75th birthday was marked by an exhibition of her works at the National Library of Kyrgyzstan.[4]
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