Reflecting on the unity of people

Nikiforov Alexander Vladimirovich was born in 1950 in Namangan region of the Republic of Uzbekistan. The surrounding multicultural environment caused his inquisitive mind to search for answers to the questions: why do people differ from each other in appearance, lifestyle... etc. The Nikiforov family's move to Alma-Ata in 1956 did not help to get answers to the questions posed, because in the former capital of Kazakhstan there was a similar polyethnic and poly-confessional situation. Studying at school, and then entering the Faculty of Philosophy and Economics of KazSU gradually began to reveal this secret to him. The answers to the questions posed in childhood gradually began to be clothed in a scientific form and became the goal of his scientific search.

After graduating in 1975 from the Faculty of Philosophy and Economics of the Kazakh State University in Almaty, he was accepted as a teacher of the Department of Philosophy of the Peter and Paul Pedagogical Institute, transformed in 1994 into the North Kazakhstan State University. Over the years, A.V. Nikiforov has worked his way up from an ordinary teacher to professor of the Department of History and Socio-Humanitarian Disciplines, Doctor of Philosophy, professor. In 1987, he defended his PhD thesis on the topic "Genesis and evolution of eschato-chiliastic ideas of Seventh-day Adventists" in Leningrad. In 1996, in Almaty, Alexander Vladimirovich defended his doctoral dissertation "Parallels of the Bible and the Koran and problems of interethnic harmony of the peoples of Kazakhstan" in the specialty "Philosophy of religion".

Professor Nikiforov has published more than 100 scientific papers, the most famous of which are the monograph "The Bible and the Koran: Origins and parallels" and the book "The specifics of ethno–confessional relations in Northern Kazakhstan", and he co-authored the information and analytical handbook: "Religious Associations of the North Kazakhstan region: history and modernity". His works are written in the spirit of the ideas of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan N.A. Nazarbayev – Eurasianism and interethnic harmony. In his works, the religious scholar seeks to show the peoples of multi-ethnic and multi-confessional states that their customs, traditions, beliefs, and culture have more in common than differences. And therefore, at present, in ideological work, it is important to focus on the universal, moral principle, which is laid down in the ideological doctrines of various religions.

For achievements in the field of religious studies and teaching, A.V. Nikiforov was elected a corresponding member of the Academy of Social Sciences of the Republic of Kazakhstan in 1996, and in 2006 became a professor of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Kazakhstan and was repeatedly awarded Honorary Diplomas of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Ministry of Culture, Information and Public Consent of the Republic of Kazakhstan, as well as the Rectorate of the NKSU. In 2000, he was awarded the honorary title of "Excellent of Education of the Republic of Kazakhstan". In 2002, he was awarded by the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Kazakhstan with the Honorary Badge "For the Development of Science in the Republic of Kazakhstan", in 2012, the M. Kozybayev NKSU awarded Professor Nikiforov A.V. with the "Big Gold Medal" – Manash Kozybayev atyndagy Soltustik Kazakhstan memlekettik universitetinin damuyna koskan eren enbegi ushin", and in 2016, the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Kazakhstan awarded him the badge "Y. Altynsarin".

Professor Nikiforov supervises scientific student works, research of undergraduates, postgraduates and doctoral students. Under his leadership, 5 PhD theses were defended. In previous years, he was a member of the Academic Council for the defense of doctoral and Candidate dissertations at KazNPU named after Abay in Almaty. He has repeatedly opposed candidate and doctoral dissertations in the Academic Councils of Almaty, Moscow and Omsk. He also conducts a lot of public work in the city and the region and continues his creative scientific search.

Bitkova A., student of NKSU, IIL