Kostanay Regional Memorial Museum of Ybyray Altynsarin

The Kustanai Regional Memorial Museum of Ybyray Altynsarin is a cultural and educational institution that holds a special place in the history of education in Kazakhstan. It is dedicated to the study, promotion, and commemoration of the life and work of the outstanding educator, writer, and public figure Ybyray Altynsarin. The museum was opened on December 9, 1991, by the order of the Chairman of the State Committee for Culture of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Yergegali Rakhmadiyev, in honor of the 150th anniversary of the birth of the enlightener. This event became an important part of the state initiatives to immortalize the name of the great educator.

A special building was constructed for the museum, architecturally designed in the shape of a traditional Kazakh yurt. The project was created by the chief architect of the city of Kustanai, Khazhimurat Kushikov. The museum complex is located in the historical and architectural zone in the center of the city, next to a boarding school for gifted children, founded in 1884 on the initiative of Ybyray Altynsarin himself. The complex makes a significant contribution to the promotion of the enlightener's legacy.

The building of the memorial museum consists of two main parts. The first part is an exact reconstruction of the school opened by Ybyray Altynsarin, which houses a memorial classroom and administrative offices. The second part is a two-story exhibition hall in the shape of a yurt. Here, two permanent exhibitions operate: "Ybyray Altynsarin - The Teacher-Enlightener" and "The Creative Laboratory of the People's Writer of Kazakhstan Mariyam Hakimzhanova." The total area of the museum is 818.1 square meters.

Employees of the museum conducted extensive research and archival searches aimed at gathering materials about Altynsarin's life and work. Scientific expeditions were organized to the archives of the cities of Almaty, Omsk, Orsk, Orenburg, and St. Petersburg. Residents of the city and Kustanai region, as well as specialists in culture, education, and museum affairs, actively participated in these efforts.

One of the major public initiatives of the museum was the formation of the propaganda and educational delegation "The Agitation Train." It comprised poets, teachers, museum staff, and public figures. The delegation visited historical sites related to the life and activities of the enlightener and conducted a research expedition. The main goal was to establish a commemorative plaque on the building of the former Border Commission in the city of Orenburg, where the young Ybyray studied.

Today, the Kustanai Regional Memorial Museum of Ybyray Altynsarin is a unique scientific and cultural center that preserves the golden pages of the history of national pedagogy and widely introduces the public to the spiritual heritage of the great enlightener.