
Research Interest
Revolution of 1917, WW1 and WW2, Origins and meaning of Bolshevism, interplay and opposition between liberal and illiberal forms of modernity
Native of Kazakhstan, Mikhail Akulov defended his doctoral thesis in 2013 at Harvard University. That same year, he returned to Almaty to assume teaching, scholarly and administrative responsibilities at the Kazakh-British Technical University. Working first as chair of the Department of History and Social Science and then as dean of the General Education Faculty, he focused primarily on synchronizing liberal arts curriculum with key modern practices. From the Fall 2018 he joined the Department of History, Philosophy and Religious studies at the Nazarbayev University, where he is teaching courses on Eurasia’s complex history during the “Short twentieth century” (1914-1991).
Mikhail Akulov is convinced that a scholar – no matter how seemingly arcane his research might appear to a non-specialist – has an important role to play as a public figure. In line with this conviction, while in Almaty he was actively engaged in organizing discussion forums, art exhibitions, open lectures, etc. – in short, in creating spaces, where an exchange between experts, artists, civic activists and concerned audiences could take shape. He intends to continue working in that direction in Astana.
- Akulov M. “History. Introduction: Critical Appraisal” in in Critical Reader in Central Asian Studies, ed. Rico Isaacs. London: Routledge, expected date of publication Dec. 2021
- Akulov M., Chokobaeva A. “‘Savages’ and ‘Exploiters’: Exploring Anti-Colonial Violence in the Time of War and Revolution” in Studies in Ethnicities and Nationalism(SENA), forthcoming in Dec. 2021
- Akulov M. at al., ed. Stalinism in Kazakhstan: History, Memory, and Repression. Lexington Books, 2021
- Akulov M., “Paradoksy i povsednevnost’ vechnoi arkhaiki Moderna” in Bilgamesh, Center for the Rapprochement of Cultures under the Auspices of UNESCO, no. 3 (2020)
- Akulov M. et al., ed. Zhivaia pamat’: Stalinizm v Kazakhstane. Proshloe, pamiat’, preodolenie. Almaty: Daik-Press, 2019.
- Akulov M. “The Revolution Spent: A Commentary to Andrea Graziosi’s ‘A Century of 1917s’” in Harvard Ukrainian Studies, vol. 36, no. 1-2 (2019)
- Akulov M. “Eternal Futurostan: Myths, Fantasies and the Making of Astana in Post-Soviet Kazakhstan” in Theorizing Central Asian Politics: State, Ideology and Power, ed. Alessandro Frigerio and Rico Isaacs. Oxford, UK: Oxford Brookes U Press, 2019.
- Akulov M. “Playground of Violence: Mennonites and Makhnovites in the Time of War and Revolution and Civil War” in International Relations and Diplomacy, no. 7, 2015.
- Akulov M. “Charisma and ‘Politics of Proximity’ in the Time of Revolution and Civil War” in Otan Tarikhy, nr. 1, Spring 2014 (pp. 31-43)
Non-academic Credentials/Public Service
Selected Non-academic Publications and Interviews
- «Про динозавров» [“On Dinosaurs”], analytical journal Vlast’, May 2021; electronic link: https://vlast.kz/avtory/45008-pro-dinozavrov.html
- «Победить плохие идеи: как жить в мире, полном принципиальных разногласий» [“To Defeat Bad Ideas: Living in the World Full of Fundamental Disagreements”], analytical journal Vlast’, July 2020; electronic link: https://vlast.kz/avtory/40809-pobedit-plohie-idei.html
- «Наше общество равнодушно к истории» [“Our Society is Indifferent to History”], interview given to the The Steppe, Dec. 2019; electronic link: https://the-steppe.com/lyudi/istorik-doktor-ph-d-garvardskogo-universiteta-mihail-akulov-nashe-obshchestvo-ravnodushno-k-istorii
- «Революционный проект себя не исчерпал» [“The Revolutionary project has not exhausted itself”], interview dedicated to the centennial anniversary of the Civil War in Central Asia, analytical journal Vlast’, June 2018; electronic link: https://vlast.kz/civilwar/28488-revolucionnyj-proekt-seba-ne-iscerpal.html
- «Приказано зачистить» [“Cleansing records”], interview dedicated to 80-year anniversary of the Great Terror, analytical journal Vlast, May 2017; electronic link: https://vlast.kz/memorialday/23185-mihail-akulov-istorik-nasa-problema-ne-v-otsutstvii-dekommunizacii-a-v-obsem-provale-liberalnoj-idei.html
- «Квартирный вопрос и социальная справедливость» [“The Housing Problem and the Social Justice”], analytical journal Vlast’, Sept. 28, 2017; electronic link: https://vlast.kz/avtory/25005-kvartirnyj-vopros-i-socialnaa-spravedlivost.html
- «Post–Human. Гротеск и грядущее.» [“Post-Human. The Grotesque and the Future”], analytical journal Vlast’, Dec. 14, 2016; electronic link: https://vlast.kz/post-nachalo/20833-post-human-grotesk-i-gradusee.html
- «Любовь и Капитализм» [“Love and Capitalism”], article published in the internet analytical journal Vlast’, July 26, 2016; electronic link: https://vlast.kz/avtory/18523-lubov-i-kapitalizm.html
Totalitarian Phenomenon
Eurasian Revolutions, 1905-1979
History of the Soviet Union: Politics, Society, Culture