Sergei Chavain

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Čavajn

Sergei Chavain, also spelled Čavajn [ʧɑˈwɑɪn] (Mari: Сергей Чавайн; 6 October 1888-1942) was a Mari poet and playwright.

He was born as Grigoriev Sergei Grigorievich (Russian: Григо́рьев Серге́й Григо́рьевич ) in modern Mari El.

It's known that the first literary poem, written in Mari language was Oto (Ото - The Grove) by Sergei Chavain in 1905.

In 1908 he graduated Kazan Teachers' Seminary. His first play was The Wild Duck in 1912, the satire, inspirited by bureaucrats of Tsar's government. After the October Revolution Chavain wrote several plays for the first Mari mobile theatre, such as The Autonomy (1920), The Sun rises, the Storm-clouds disappear (1921). Those plays were inspirited by revolution and civil war.

Later he wrote for Mari theatre studio. That period plays were Jamblat's Bridge (1927), comedy The Hundred Roubles Bride-money (1927), musical dram The Bee-Garden (1928), Kugujar (1929) - a play devoted to 1905 Russian revolution, The Live Water - to formation of kolkhozs, The Timber Mill (1930) - to collectivization, Marii Company (1934) - to battle of Kazan (1918) by White Army, Akpatyr (1935) - to Mari participation in Pugachev war. The Light of the Coin (1936) was a comedy written after Mari popular beliefs.

As writer he is known with his novells One can hear the Noise of the Forest, about 1905 Russian Revolution and Elnet about the life of pre-revolutionaru Mari village.

Chavain also translated to Mari several Russian classical plays.

A victim of Stalinist repression during the "struggle with bourgeois nationalism", he was posthumously rehabilitated.

The State prize of Mari El is named after Chavain.