Three years ago, the name of Sachly Dursunova was given to the medical secondary vocational school in the city of Arkadag. Among people of the older generation, at least a considerable part of them, this name was surely familiar, thanks to the paintings and works of artists devoted to her, although not many can boast of knowing the details of her life and biography. For others, her name most likely evokes a sense of recognition, although, unfortunately, not everyone will be able to recall her achievements. And this, it seems, is not quite right.
As already noted, many people know Sachly Dursunova from the widely known painting “Daughter of Her Motherland,” dedicated to the famous Turkmen physician. Many years ago (in 1960), her portrait was painted by People’s Artist of Turkmenistan Yakup Annanurov. Throughout his creative career, the artist celebrated working people, educators, and his compatriots who brought goodness and knowledge into society.
Here is what the painter’s daughter, Maral Yakubovna Annanurova, says about the creation of the painting: “As I understand it, Sachly Dursunova’s fate could not fail to inspire my father to create a monumental image of a patriotic woman, his contemporary. They were people of the same generation, front-line veterans. Our families knew each other well. People’s Artist of the USSR Mukhamet Cherkezov and his wife Sachly Dursunova maintained the warmest friendly relations with our family. As for Dursunova’s portrait, my father always sought in his works not merely to show a portrait likeness, but to convey the beauty of the human soul and strength of spirit. That is exactly what happened, which is why the painting always and everywhere attracts the attention of admirers of the artistic genre. And the title of the painting, in my view — ‘Daughter of Her Motherland’ — emphasizes the collective and at the same time deeply personal image of a woman who devoted herself to serving her people. I would like to add that today this canvas is regularly displayed at thematic exhibitions, reminding new generations of the value of human heroism and professional duty.”
It seems fair and appropriate, especially for today’s young people, and indeed for everyone else as well, to recall — as stated in the Resolution of the Mejlis of Turkmenistan dated March 18, 2023, on naming the school in the city of Arkadag after her — the “...outstanding personality” of Sachly Dursunova.
For anyone who becomes closely acquainted with S. Dursunova’s biography, even a dry enumeration of her numerous titles and awards simultaneously evokes both surprise and admiration. She was the first Turkmen woman surgeon in Turkmenistan, a neurosurgeon and scholar, an Honored Physician of the Republic, a war veteran, a Guards Captain of the Medical Service, an “Honored Physician of Turkmenistan,” a professor, Doctor of Medical Sciences, and an academician of the Academy of Medical Sciences of the Turkmen SSR. She was also awarded the Order of Lenin, the Order of the Red Star, the Order of the Badge of Honor, the Medal “For Courage,” the Medal “For Battle Merit,” and the medals “For the Defence of Stalingrad” and “For the Capture of Königsberg.” The last of those listed are military decorations! And yet this was a fragile woman — not every representative of the stronger sex can boast such awards!
All of this is even more remarkable because it was the fate of one person, encompassing achievements that would have been enough for dozens of lifetimes. Awards and titles intended for an entire era became the biography of a single person. What inspires admiration is that this woman’s life was so heroic that within the framework of one destiny it managed to encompass recognition worthy of an entire generation.
In the Turkmen language, the female name Sachly (Saçly) literally means “long-haired” or “a woman with thick and beautiful hair.” It is of purely Turkic origin. In traditional Turkmen culture, long, thick, and well-groomed hair has always been regarded as one of the principal symbols of female beauty, health, and well-being. By giving their daughter this name, parents expressed the wish that the girl would grow up to be a true beauty with luxurious braids. And apparently, it was no coincidence that the image of Sachly was so attractive to artists. She combined the seemingly incompatible: feminine beauty and incredible strength of spirit.
Sachly was born in the village of Buzmeyin. Having been orphaned in childhood, she was raised in an orphanage. From 1932 to 1936, she studied at the Ashgabat Medical College and, distinguished by perseverance and talent, graduated with honors. In 1936, she entered the Turkmen State Medical Institute, after graduating from which she began working as a physician.
And if Sachly Dursunova’s formation in medicine began at the medical school, which she graduated from with honors, her development as a physician and surgeon took place at the university under the guidance of professors who laid the foundations of clinical medicine and the surgical school in Turkmenistan. Her teachers were Professor Boris Leonidovich Smirnov, Professor Mikhail Izrailevich Mostkovy, and Professor Ivan Filippovich Berezin.
Smirnov himself was an outstanding surgeon, neurosurgeon, neurologist, and academician of the Academy of Sciences of the Turkmen SSR. From 1939, he headed the clinical disciplines at the institute and taught student Dursunova the fundamentals of operative surgery and clinical thinking. It was within the walls of the institute that she became a student and follower of Professor Smirnov, mastering under his guidance the highly complex specialties of neurology and neurosurgery.
In 1941, S. Dursunova graduated from the medical institute, receiving her diploma literally on the eve of the war. Without much hesitation, in 1942 she volunteered for the front and joined the active army as a military physician and surgeon. She was directly at the front line and in frontline evacuation hospitals. Under constant shelling and bombing, she performed extremely complex operations lasting many hours, saving the lives of thousands of wounded soldiers and commanders. Working at the limits of human capabilities, she demonstrated composure and sangfroid, returning soldiers to service and preserving hope for those who had suffered the most severe injuries.
Once, near Königsberg, she performed a critical operation on a Turkmen soldier who had been wounded in the abdomen and gave him her own blood for a direct transfusion, accomplishing a personal feat of heroism. The young soldier had suffered an extremely severe wound, and there was practically no chance of saving him. Having discovered that she and the wounded man had the same blood type, Sachly Dursunova decided to perform a direct transfusion during the operation itself, risking her own life to save her fellow countryman. The operation was successful, and the soldier’s life was saved.
After the war, S. Dursunova was actively engaged in teaching, scientific research, and medical work. For many years, she taught at the Turkmen State Medical Institute. In the mid-1950s, the Ashgabat Research Institute of Epidemiology and Hygiene was named after her. She conducted research in the field of surgery, defended her dissertation, and published a number of scientific works that were of important practical significance for regional medicine. She trained and educated more than one generation of Turkmen physicians and surgeons, passing on to them her frontline experience and high standards of medical ethics. She made a key contribution to the development of epidemiology, parasitology, and the fight against infectious diseases in the region. She authored important works on combating infectious diseases, in particular cutaneous leishmaniasis and parasitic diseases, and in 1972 received the degree of Doctor of Medical Sciences. She was awarded the title of “Honored Physician of Turkmenistan.”
Later, she headed the regional medical institute of the Academy of Medical Sciences of the USSR. And in peacetime, Sachly Dursunova devoted all her diligence and labor to protecting people’s health. Captain of the Medical Service Sachly Dursunova was awarded the academic degree of Candidate of Medical Sciences in 1955 and Doctor of Medical Sciences in 1972 for her significant scientific contribution to the fight against an infectious disease widespread in Central Asia in the mid-20th century and known as pendinka and cutaneous leishmaniasis, which is transmitted through mosquito bites, as well as for the results of the scientific work she conducted at the Institute of Epidemiology and Hygiene in Ashgabat.
Sachly Dursunova served as Scientific Secretary of the Department of Biological Sciences of the Academy of Sciences of the Turkmen SSR, and in 1992 she was officially elected an academician of medicine of the Academy of Sciences of Turkmenistan.
Together with the legendary film and theatre actor M. Cherkezov, Sachly Dursunova raised a daughter, Anna, who devoted her life to art, and a son, Batyr, who followed in his mother’s footsteps, graduated from medical school, and became a physician. Today, her grandchildren are already proud of their great grandmother, carefully preserve her legacy, and share stories about her life. The path travelled by Sachly Dursunova is a source of pride for the people, while her noble deeds are a worthy example for our happy young generation.
And the painting dedicated to the famous Turkmen physician, “Daughter of Her Motherland,” created by the outstanding People’s Artist of Turkmenistan Yakup Annanurov, continues its educational mission.
I can only add that Sachly Dursunova is much more than simply a woman physician. She became a true legend of Turkmen medicine. Her life and work became a symbol of compassion, courage, and professional duty.
