Academic staff, Institute of Linguistics, Russian Academy of Sciences since 1989
Education
1971–1976 Institute of Asian and African Countries, M.V. Lomonosov Moscow State University, Department of History and Philology, specialising in Iranian philology.
Qualification: orientalist-philologist, translator (Iranian languages).
1977–1979 Postgraduate studies - Fellowship at the Leningrad Section of the Institute of Linguistics, USSR Academy of Sciences, Department of Indo-European Languages.
1979–1982 Postgraduate studies at the Institute of Linguistics, USSR Academy of Sciences, Iranian Languages’ Sector, specialising in Iranian languages. Supervisor: Dr Joy I. Edelman.
1983 PhD degree (kandidat filologicheskikh nauk) in Iranian languages at the Institute of Linguistics, USSR Academy of Sciences. Dissertation: “The History of Shughnani verb stems”.
Work Experience
1976-1989 Rudaki Institute of Language and Literature, Tajik SSR Academy of Sciences (Dushanbe), Department of Classical Literature and Department of Pamir Studies. Specialist areas: classical Persian and modern Tajik languages, Tajik language dialects, history of Iranian languages. Additional fieldwork in language data collection and documentation of unwritten Pamir languages.
Since 1989, academic staff, Institute of Linguistics, Russian Academy of Sciences (Researcher, Senior Researcher).
Additional Experience
1989-1992 Institute for Cultural Studies (Moscow).
1992-1995 Institute for National Education, Department of Ethno-Conflictology (Moscow).
Professional interests
Specialist areas: socio- and ethnolinguistic study of Tajik and Pamir languages, and minority languages of Iran. Field research in unwritten Pamir languages, modern Tajik language and its dialects, and northwestern Iranian languages. Compilation of vocabularies, electronic dictionaries and databases.
Main publications
More than 150 scholarly publications (several monographs and chapters in collective monographic works). Preparation of 12 electronic dictionaries and databases of Iranian languages. Translation into Russian of 11 books, as well as volumes of teaching materials (1-9 courses) on religious education (Ismailism) for secondary schools in Mountainous-Badakhshan Autonomous Region, Republic of Tajikistan. Editing of 10 scientific volumes. Contribution to the encyclopaedias “Languages of the World” (1999), “Languages of the Russian Federation and Neighbouring States” (section: Iranian languages) (2005), and to the preparation for publication of “Fundamentals of Iranian Linguistics” (2008). Compilation of the Index for V.I. Abaev’s “Historical and etymological dictionary of the Ossetian language” (1995).
Grants for scholarly research
Head of research project
- RHNF No 08-04-18015Е “Dictionary of the material and spiritual vocabulary of Pamir languages (Bartangi, Roshorvi, Sarykoli)”, 2008.
- RHNF No 08-04-12107В “Database. “Pamir languages (Shughni-Rushani group, Yazghulami, Wakhi, Ishkashimi; Tajik dialects)”, 2008-2010.
- RHNF No 09-04-18028Е “Dictionary of the material and spiritual vocabulary of Pamir languages (Yazghulami, Yaghnobi)”, 2009.
- RHNF No 12-04-18029Е “The significance of House/Home in the culture of Pamiri peoples”, 2012.
- Institute for Humanities, Academy of Sciences, Republic of Tajikistan and Aga Khan Foundation Cultural Centre, Badakhshan, Afghanistan. Field research grant: “Ethnolinguistic research in the Wakhan valley (Afghanistan)”. 2009-2011.
- Grant from the Endangered Languages Foundation (ELF), USA: “Sanglichi language”. 2011-2013.
- International project with the Institute of Ismaili Studies (IIS), London: The role of Russian scholars in the study of Ismailism. Bio-bibliographic list of scientists and their works. 2014-2016.
- International project with the Institute of Ismaili Studies (IIS), London: Discourse of Nasir Khusraw as the cultural code of Badakhshan. 2019-2021.
Conferences
More than 90 scholarly presentations. National and international conferences and symposia: “Readings in honour of the 100th anniversary of V.S. Rastorgueva. Institute of Linguistics, Russian Academy of Sciences” (2012-2021); “Language, Culture, Society” (2010-2021); Congress of Anthropologists and Ethnologists of Russia (2013, 2019, 2021); international fora on scholarly cooperation between Russia and Tajikistan/Badakhshan (2008-2020), Russia and Iran (2008-2019).
Participation in international congresses and conferences including: Association of the Study of Persianate Societies (ASPS 2000, 2013); World Congress for Middle Eastern Studies (WOCMES 2010); European Conference of Iranian Studies (ECIS 2003-2019); Foundation for Endangered Languages (FEL 2008, 2009); World Congress of the International Union of Anthropological and Ethnological Sciences “Issues of Language Endangerment” (ICAES 2008); International Sociological Association “Language and Society” (ISA 2014); International Conference on Iranian Linguistics (ICIL 2015, 2017).
Fieldwork
Head and participant in many linguistic fieldwork expeditions to areas of Tajik and Pamir language speakers: Badakhshan (1978-2019), Yaghnob, Iskandarkul (2004-2009) (Tajikistan); Badakhshan (Afghanistan) (2002; 2003; 2009; 2011; 2012); Gilgit, Hunza (Pakistan) (2011); Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR, China) (2007; 2010); also Iran (Caspian region: Gilan, Mazanderan, Gorgan; Talish, Semnan, Qom, Shiraz, Isfahan, Abyane, Yazd province, and some Iranian cities with ethnic minority communities) (2008-2015).
