Kurban Said is a false name used by the author of the book Ali and Nino. The book was first published in 1937 in German by an Austrian publisher named E.P. Tal. The book has been translated into over 30 languages. People are not sure who the real author is.
Meaning of the pseudonym "Kurban Said"
In Azerbaijan, where the novel Ali and Nino is set, the word "Kurban" is pronounced "Gurban." The word comes from Semitic languages and means "sacrifice," a religious idea found in many Middle Eastern cultures. The word "Said" means "joyful" or "fortunate." However, in Azerbaijani, a Turkic language, adjectives come before the nouns they describe. This means the name should be written as "Said Kurban" to mean "joyful sacrifice" or "fortunate sacrifice." This is different from the novel’s story, which is not happy. A deep sadness is present throughout the book from start to finish.
Some people, including Orkhan Vazirov (1928–2010), the son of Yusif Vazir Chamanzaminli (possibly the author of Ali and Nino), believe the original name may have been "Kurban Seyid" or "Seyid Kurban." The word "Seyid" refers to someone who is a descendant of Mohammed, meaning a person of sacred heritage. Therefore, "Seyid Kurban" would mean "someone of sacred descent who has been sacrificed," which matches the theme of the novel. In Ali and Nino, the main character, Ali Khan, sacrifices himself for his dream of freedom for himself and his country. He dies while fighting against the Bolsheviks taking over his country in 1920. In Azerbaijani, both "Gurban" and "Seyid" can be used as first or last names.
Chamanzaminli's links to the pseudonym "Kurban Said"
Yusif Vazir Chamanzaminli was a "seyid," meaning he was said to be descended from the prophet Mohammed through both his parents. He also wrote a short story titled "Gurban."
He used the name "Gurban" when writing letters to Azerbaijani Soviet officials in 1925. At that time, he was asking for permission to return to his home country from Europe after working as a diplomat for the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic (ADR) government, which opposed the Bolsheviks. He understood that political tensions made him a possible target, as many ADR officials had been killed when the Bolsheviks took control. During this period, between 1925 and 1926, he likely left his manuscript Ali and Nino in Europe because it criticized the Bolshevik regime. Returning to Baku with the manuscript would have been dangerous, as the Bolsheviks had executed most officials from the previous government and punished anyone who opposed them.
In 1937, the Azerbaijan Writers Union was ordered by Stalin to remove anyone who did not support Soviet ideas. Chamanzaminli was accused of spreading "counter-revolutionary" ideas through the characters in his novels. He was arrested and sent to the GULag, where he died in 1943.
In some of his earliest works published in 1911, Chamanzaminli used the pseudonym "Ali Khan Chamanzaminli." This name is also used for the main character in his novel Ali and Nino.
Lev Nussimbaum and the pseudonym "Kurban Said"
Lev Nussimbaum, who wrote in German using the name Essad Bey, is also connected to the name "Kurban Said" and, by some people, to the book Ali and Nino.
When Lev Nussimbaum was in his early 30s, he began writing his autobiography after learning he might die from Buerger’s Disease. He titled it The Man Who Knew Nothing about Love (Der Mann, der von der Liebe nichts verstand) and signed it "Kurban Said." Although the book was never published, it was advertised in 1937 as if it had been released and was for sale. This was the same year that Ali and Nino appeared.
Tom Reiss, the author of The Orientalist, argues that if The Man Who Knew Nothing about Love was written by Lev Nussimbaum, then he might also have written Ali and Nino. He says that years of research showed Lev Nussimbaum’s statements about his own identity, such as his name, race, and nationality, were not always accurate. It is possible that Nussimbaum used the name "Kurban Said" because it was already being used by someone else.
Azerbaijan International says Essad Bey contributed some parts of Ali and Nino, especially the descriptions of folklore and legends. However, the original manuscript of Ali and Nino was written by the Azerbaijani author Yusif Vazir Chamanzaminli (1887–1942). The question is whether Lev Nussimbaum had the right to use the name "Kurban Said" and whether the name was originally his.
A problem with Der Mann is that it started as a partly true story about Lev Nussimbaum’s life but later became a fictional story about a character named "Dr. X" seeking revenge.
Dr. Wilfried Fuhrmann in Germany has published all six handwritten German notebooks of Der Mann. He says that notebooks 3 and 6 are most harmful to Essad Bey’s reputation. These pages contain mean and untrue statements, as well as extreme pride and arrogance.
For example, Essad Bey suggested that women who commit adultery should be tied to a wild cat and thrown into the Bosphorus or buried in the desert to be eaten by wild dogs. At the time, Nussimbaum was going through a difficult divorce with his wife, Erika Loewendahl. However, Ali and Nino, which was published in 1937, tells a very different story. In that book, Ali Khan truly loves Nino and tries to help her grow and stay healthy. The two stories are so different that it is hard to believe they were written by the same person.
In his final will, signed on July 27, 1941, Essad Bey wrote his name as "Essad Bey, also known as Leo Nussimbaum and Lev Nussenbaum." He did not mention "Kurban Said" at all. This will was signed about a year before his death on August 27, 1942, and four years after Ali and Nino was published in 1937.
Vacca's claims to the pseudonym "Kurban Said"
Bello Vacca, an Italian man born in Tripoli, used the name Ahmed Giamil Vacca-Mazzara and also claimed to be Kurban Said. In the early 1970s, he visited Baron Omar Rolf Ehrenfels, the husband of Elfriede Ehrenfels, who had registered the book Ali and Nino with German officials. Vacca introduced himself by saying, "Kurban Said, It's me!" The Ehrenfels family were surprised by his claim.
In 1975, Vacca wrote to the British publisher Hutchinson, stating that he, as Kurban Said, had worked with Essad Bey on several books, including Jihad (Sacred Way) and Kaloglan: From Samarkand to Tangiers. Vacca was a friend of Essad Bey and also his drug dealer. He was expelled from Egypt in 1938 for selling drugs and smuggling weapons. Vacca arranged and paid for Essad Bey’s Muslim-style gravestone with a carved turban, which now marks Essad Bey’s burial site in Positano, Italy.
In 1944, two years after Essad Bey’s death, Vacca arranged the first Italian translation of Ali and Nino. However, in a tribute he wrote for Essad Bey in 1942, Vacca had already used the title Ali and Nino. In the 1944 Italian edition, he changed the title to Ali Khan and listed Essad Bey as the author instead of Kurban Said. Vacca also altered the name of Ali’s love interest, "Nino Kipiani," to "Erica Kipiani," based on the name of Lev Nussimbaum’s ex-wife, Erika Loewendahl.
Vacca claimed to be related to Essad Bey through four generations of family, suggesting he was the only living heir to Essad Bey’s wealth. This became clear in letters Vacca sent to Omar Rolf Ehrenfels, asking for help in contacting Hutchinson Publishers in London. Vacca said Hutchinson had not paid Essad Bey for a biography about Reza Shah and wanted to claim the money. He told Ehrenfels he had documents proving their family connection.
Vacca's explanation of the meaning of name "Kurban Said"
Vacca said that the name "Kurban Said" was created by accident because of a misunderstanding. This became a private joke between him and Essad Bey. According to Vacca, the event happened in Turkey during the religious Muslim festival called Kurban Bayrami, which is celebrated every year to honor God’s mercy for giving Abraham a ram instead of his son Ismayil.
Vacca described the event as follows: In 1936, in a lecture hall at the National Library of Istanbul (Old City), he and Essad Bey had planned to work together for four days on the book Ali and Nino. When Vacca arrived, Essad Bey was speaking with someone else. Vacca greeted them both with the phrase "Kurban Said," which he explained means "Happy Kurban Holiday."
Vacca continued: The person Essad Bey was talking to was a foreign tourist. The tourist misunderstood the custom and thought Vacca was introducing himself as "Kurban Said." The tourist then smiled and said, "Nice to meet you, Mr. Kurban Said." After this, Essad Bey began jokingly calling Vacca "Kurban Said." Later, when Essad Bey needed a pseudonym for the novel, he asked Vacca if he could use the name, and Vacca agreed.
However, others have questioned Vacca’s story. For example, Azerbaijan International points out that, culturally, Vacca’s claims are not supported. There is no greeting called "Kurban Said" or "Gurban Said" in any country that celebrates this holiday, including Turkey, Azerbaijan, Iran, or other Turkic-speaking or Islamic countries in Central Asia or Arabic-speaking regions. Since Kurban Bayrami is the largest holiday in Turkey, all libraries would have been closed during this time. Additionally, there is no proof, other than Vacca’s account, that Essad Bey ever went to Istanbul to work on the novel. No other witness has claimed that Vacca was involved in editing Ali and Nino.
Das Mädchen vom Goldenen Horn
In the year 1938, a second book titled Das Mädchen vom Goldenen Horn was published using the name Kurban Said.