The Department of Russian Literature is one of the leading departments of Mirzo Ulugbek National University of Uzbekistan. From 1990 to 2001, the Department was headed by Professor A.Z. Vulis, Associate Professor P.P. Filippov, and Associate Professor K.R. Babadzhanova. From 2001 to 2011, the Department was headed by Doctor of Philology A.N. Davshan. From 2011 to 2013, the Head of the Department was Associate Professor A.V. Popov. From 2013 to 2016, the Department was headed by O.N. Gibraltar. Since 2017, the Department has been headed by Doctor of Philology, Professor S.E. Kamilova.

Head of the Department

S.E. Kamilova — Doctor of Philology, Professor. Specialist in contemporary Uzbek and Russian literature. Her research interests include comparative literary studies and translation studies. She is the author of translations of a number of literary works into Uzbek and Russian. She is also the author of textbooks, monographs, international and national scholarly articles, and an active participant in international conferences. The Department’s scholarly school of comparative literary studies and contemporary literature was established under the guidance of S.E. Kamilova. Kamilova S.E. is a participant in the international project Anthology of Literature of the CIS Countries. She is a member of the jury of the international Sheriyat Award, a member of the international community of the Institute of Translators, moderator of the International School of Translators, co-author of the annual international conference Vinogradov Readings, and a member of the editorial board of the journal Zvezda Vostoka.

Research Activities

Currently, the Department employs three Doctors of Philology (S.E. Kamilova, O.N. Gibraltar, E.M. Kaminskaya), six PhD holders (A.M. Baltaeva, A.N. Rotanov, F.M. Irkabaeva, O.B. Yuldasheva, A.Sh. Kurchastova, N.U. Yuldasheva), and ten associate professors, senior lecturers, and lecturers: N.Kh. Alimova, A.V. Korzun, R.M. Batyrova, N.R. Sultanova, M.V. Shin, V.A. Sukhanov, V.S. Matkurbanova, D.E. Rajabova, F.Dzh. Irkabaeva, and V.M. Goroshnikova.

The publication of monographs significantly strengthens the position of the republic’s literary studies school, shaping its priorities at the current stage of development. Over the past ten years, the following monographs have been published:

• S.E. Kamilova, The Contemporary Short Story: Content Vectors and Narrative Strategies;
• S.E. Kamilova, The Moral Code of the Individual in the Works of V. Rasputin and O. Yakubov;
• S.E. Kamilova, The Poetics of the Uzbek Short Story at the Turn of the 20th and 21st Centuries;
• O.N. Gibraltar, The Change of the System of Artistic Coordinates: From Prose to Drama;
• O.N. Gibraltar, A Systemic Approach to Higher Philological Education;
• O.N. Gibraltar, Current Issues in Literary Studies;
• E.M. Kaminskaya, The Poetics of S.P. Borodin’s Prose;
• E.M. Kaminskaya, The Poetics of S.P. Borodin’s Prose: Text. Context. Metatext;
• E.M. Kaminskaya, The Artistic World of Andrei Platonov’s Novellas (In the Writer’s Creative Laboratory);
• N.Kh. Alimova, The Poetics of American Prose of the Last Third of the 20th Century;
• N.Kh. Alimova, Cultural Interaction in Contemporary American Multicultural Short Prose;
• N.Kh. Alimova, The Poetics of the Contemporary American Short Story;
• A.M. Baltaeva, The Development of the Novella Genre in Russian-Language Literature of Uzbekistan;
• A.M. Baltaeva, Symbolic Images in Russian-Language Prose of Uzbekistan;
• A.N. Rotanov, Graphic Literature: The Artistic Language of the Visual Age. The Poetics and Reception of the Creolized Text;
• F.M. Irkabaeva, Guzel Yakhina’s Narrative Strategy;
• O.B. Yuldasheva, The Image of the East in Russian-Language Literature of Central Asia.

One of the Department’s priorities is work on dissertation research. The following doctoral dissertations in Philology have been prepared and defended:

• S.E. Kamilova, The Development of the Short Story Genre in Contemporary Russian and Uzbek Literature of the Late 20th and Early 21st Centuries;
• O.N. Gibraltar, The Representation of the Artistic Systems of M.A. Bulgakov, A.P. Platonov, and B.L. Pasternak in Contemporary Russian-Language Literature;
• E.M. Kaminskaya, The Poetics of S.P. Borodin’s Prose.

In recent years, the Department has focused on training young researchers. Under the supervision of Doctor of Philology, Professor S.E. Kamilova, the following dissertations for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Philology have been prepared and defended:

• A.V. Yekabsons, Time and Space in Contemporary Russian Drama of the 20th–21st Centuries;
• A.M. Baltaeva, The Development of the Novella Genre in Russian-Language Literature of Uzbekistan;
• Sh.N. Berdieva, The Specificity of Non-Fiction in Contemporary Literature (Based on Russian, Uzbek, and Belarusian Prose);
• Kh.Sh. Kuchkarova, The Poetics of Minor Genres in the Works of F. Kholer;
• A.R. Fattakhova, The Works of Alisa Ganieva in the Context of Contemporary Russian Literature;
• A.N. Rotanov, The Representation of the Graphic Novel in Contemporary Russian Literature;
• V.I. Pulatova, The Typology of the Dystopian Genre in Contemporary British Literature;
• M.S. Fayzieva, Character Types in the Short Story in British Literature at the Turn of the 20th and 21st Centuries;
• F.M. Irkabaeva, The Works of Guzel Yakhina in the Context of Contemporary Russian Literature;
• N.U. Yuldasheva, The Poetics of Ildar Abuzarov’s Works;
• A.Sh. Kurchastova, The Transformation of the Family Saga Genre in Contemporary Russian Literature.

Under the supervision of Doctor of Philology, Professor O.N. Gibraltar, O.B. Yuldasheva prepared and defended a PhD dissertation in Philology entitled The Reception of the Image of the East in Russian-Language Literature of Central Asia.

Under the supervision of Doctor of Philology, Associate Professor E.M. Kaminskaya, N.A. Khaydarova prepared and defended a PhD dissertation in Philology entitled The Dynamics of the Conceptual Sphere in the Works of V.G. Yan.

The Department of Russian Literary Studies organizes annual international and national conferences and round tables, including the Tashkent Literary Studies Forum, Young Philology of Uzbekistan, Poetry Beyond Borders, and others.

Within the framework of the Department’s scientific and theoretical seminar, trainee lecturers present reports on their individual research topics:

• V.A. Sukhanov — A Conceptual Model for Describing Urban Space in Literary Studies;
• V.S. Matkurbanova — Folklore Tradition as a Literary Studies Problem;
• M.V. Shin — The Authorial Style of A.B. Salnikov;
• N.R. Sultanova — Imagology as a Tool for Studying National Character in Fiction;
• R.M. Batyrova — The Material World in Narine Abgaryan’s Novel Three Apples Fell from the Sky;
• A.V. Korzun — The Image of the Lyrical Hero in A. Kan’s Novella Gentle Rain;
• D.E. Rajabova — The Specificity of the Chronotope in Andrey Volos’s Novel Khuramabad;
• A.A. Usmanova — Persona Beyond Verifiability by V. Otroshenko;
• F.Dzh. Irkabaeva — The Poetics of the Short Story Genre in Philological Scholarship.

International Cooperation

The Department of Russian Literary Studies has concluded international agreements with leading foreign universities, including the University of West Bohemia in Plzeň (Czech Republic), Lomonosov Moscow State University, the M.V. Lomonosov Northern Arctic Federal University, the Pushkin State Russian Language Institute (Russia), and others.

Department faculty members actively participate in international conferences, undertake research internships, and deliver lectures at leading foreign universities. Doctor of Philology, Professor S.E. Kamilova and PhD, Associate Professor A.M. Baltaeva completed research internships at the University of West Bohemia in Plzeň (Czech Republic) and delivered lectures there.

Professor S.E. Kamilova also delivered lectures at the University of Malta (Malta). PhD A.N. Rotanov was an invited lecturer in the Master’s programme at the Institute of Philology and Intercultural Communication of Kazan Federal University (Russia) and a speaker at international professional development courses of the Testing Centre at Saint Petersburg State University (Russia).

Lecturer V.A. Sukhanov completed a research internship at the Pushkin State Russian Language Institute in Moscow, Russian Federation. Lecturer R.M. Batyrova completed professional development training and an internship entitled Russian Language and Literature at School and University: Specifics of Teaching Bilinguals and Non-Native Speakers in Saint Petersburg, Russian Federation.

Professor S.E. Kamilova and Lecturer D.E. Rajabova participated in the V Kostomarov Forum international conference in Moscow, Russian Federation. Professor S.E. Kamilova and Associate Professor N.Kh. Alimova participated in the Linguafest 2025 international festival at Sorbonne University in France.

Associate Professor N.Kh. Alimova participated in the Uzbekistan Culture Week in Berlin and delivered lectures at Humboldt University of Berlin from 18 to 26 October 2024, Germany. She also participated in the International Literature Festival in Vienna, Austria, and the Uzbek Language and Literature Week in Zurich, Switzerland, from 14 to 24 November 2025.

Lecturer M.V. Shin participated in the Future Leaders Conference international conference held in Incheon, Republic of Korea, from 25 to 31 May 2025.

Acting Associate Professor A.N. Rotanov participated in the international conference Russian Language and Literature in the Countries of Central Asia in Dushanbe, Republic of Tajikistan.

Academic Work

The Department of Russian Literary Studies provides academic support for the Bachelor’s degree programme 60230100 – Philology and Language Teaching (Russian Language), offered in full-time and part-time formats, as well as the Master’s degree programme 70230502 – Literary Studies (Russian Literature), offered in full-time and part-time formats.