Published on: 2026-05-29
Source: Novosibirsk State University –
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A series of events on the eve of the 120th anniversary of the birth of the first rector of Novosibirsk State University, the outstanding mathematician, academician Ilia Nestorovich Vekua, took place in his homeland in the Republic of Abkhazia. The jubilee date falls next year, but preparations for it have already begun in Abkhazia. The initiator of the events, held within the framework of the cooperation of NSU with the Abkhaz State University (AGU), was the export education department of NSU headed by Evgeniy Sagaidak. His initiative received support from the Center for People’s Diplomacy.
Commemorative events in the homeland of Ilya Nestorovich Vekua in the city of Gal were organized and held with active assistance from the administration of the Gali district of the Republic of Abkhazia. In the city park named after the academician, there was a solemn unveiling of a memorial plaque, and flowers were laid at his monument. The ceremony was attended by officials, district leaders, honored guests, and Gali schoolchildren.
—For schoolchildren of the Galsky District, the name Ilya Nestorovich Vekua is a symbol of purposefulness, aspiration for knowledge, and devotion to science. The academic was born in 1907 in the small village of Shelesheta, located near Gala, into a simple peasant family. From early childhood, the boy showed a great inclination towards exact sciences, was very curious, and possessed a logical mind. His parents fully supported their son’s pursuit of knowledge. It is said that in order for the boy to have the opportunity to study, his parents sold their cattle and spent the money received on his education.The villagers initially laughed at him and said: “Why all this? Do you think he will become a professor?” Years passed, and Ilya Nesterovich became not just a professor, but an academician. Every schoolchild in the Galsky district knows this story; it is passed down from mouth to mouth. Since Soviet times, a monument to the academician has stood in Gale, and the district residents cherish the memory of him as a hero who, thanks to talent and perseverance, managed to travel the path from a small village to academic heights. In his homeland, he is compared to the first great Russian scientist M.V. Lomonosov and they are very proud of their outstanding fellow countryman., — said the wounded museum attendant of the NGU history museum, present at the commemorative event, a senior lecturer at the NGU Humanities InstituteViktoria Vybornova.
Memorial events continued in the City House of Culture, where the conference “In the name of education and science: the legacy of Ilya Vekua” was held. Representatives of educational organizations, scientific circles, and the public spoke at it. The rector of NSU (2012–2025), academician of the RAS Mikhail Fedoruk, gave a lecture online. He spoke about an important stage in the biography of Ilya Nestorovich Vekua as the first rector of NSU, emphasizing his professional administrative, scientific, and organizational activities.
—Ilya I. Nestorovich Vekua’s role in the creation and establishment of the NSU was great and invaluable. He literally had to create a new type of university from scratch, a model of which did not and still does not exist in Russia. Being the first is always difficult, but he came to the position of rector of the newly formed NSU already as an established scientist, an academician of the USSR Academy of Sciences. The decree on the organization of the NSU was issued on January 9, 1958. It stipulated the construction of the university and the start of classes from September 1, 1959. Ilya Nestorovich Vekua was appointed acting rector of the NSU on November 17, 1958, and rector on April 9, 1959.The construction of the main building of NGU rested on its shoulders, and it was necessary to also recruit a staff of teachers including part-time employees from scientific research institutes of the Siberian Branch of the Academy of Sciences. Initially, classes were held in the school building, on the site where Gymnasium No. 3 now stands. The main building of NGU was completed on January 19, 1963, and already on December 27 of the same year, the first — special — graduation ceremony took place for students enrolled in NGU in 1959 from other universities across the country. At that time, 60 people received diplomas upon graduation. A quarter of them — three physicists and mathematicians — subsequently became academicians.In August 1963, a Soviet-American symposium on partial differential equations was held in the main building of MSU, which became the first major scientific meeting of mathematicians from the USSR and the USA.
It is very important that Ilya Nestorovich Vekua, with the support of the leadership of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, was able to obtain the right to hold entrance exams earlier, to combine positions at the Novosibirsk State University for leading scientists of the Department, to transfer students from other universities to the university, as well as to teach according to his own programs. The university is rightfully his brainchild — Ilya Nestorovich literally lived at NSU, so it was very difficult for him to leave the position of rector., — saidMikhail Fedoruk.Â
Next, Victoria Vybornova delivered a lecture titled “Ilya Nestorovich Vekua in Dialogue with the Ministry and the Academy of Sciences.” In her speech, she spoke about organizing the dialogue between the Ministry of Higher and Secondary Specialized Education of the USSR and the Siberian Branch of the Academy of Sciences, as well as the development of the Scientific Center of the Ural Branch as an independent institution within the framework of the influence of various organizations.
Conference participants familiarized themselves with the exhibition dedicated to the period of rectorship of I.N. Vekua (1959-1965) and the establishment of Novosibirsk State University. It was prepared and delivered to the Galsky district by representatives of NSU. The exposition showcased archival materials and 30 photographs, telling about various aspects of the life and activities of this outstanding scientist. The exhibition aroused great interest among participants of the commemorative events. It became a gift to the residents of the Galsky district from NSU.Representatives of the district administration have decided to make this exhibition permanent, and now all residents and guests of the city will be able to familiarize themselves with the exposition.
As part of the events in Gale, a meeting took place between the NSU delegation and the leadership of the Galsky district. Victoria Vybornova presented the head of the district administration, Konstantin Pilii, with a commemorative edition dedicated to the history of the founding of Novosibirsk State University. Later, the same gift was presented to the scientific library of Abaza State University.
A bright event in the series of commemorative events was a lecture in memory of Ilya Nestorovich Vekua at Abkhaz State University, delivered by Viktoria Vybornova. She told the students about the features and traditions of NGU, laid down by the first rector in the early years of the formation of the new-type university.
—At the time of the creation of NGU, Ilya Nestorovich Vekua possessed valuable experience accumulated by him in the university sphere during his work at Tbilisi State University and Moscow State University named after M.V. Lomonosov. Moreover, by nature, he was a creator. Knowledge of better university traditions and the ability to constructively build relationships within the academic center environment were indispensable for a leader of a new type of university, and Ilya Nestorovich possessed this knowledge, so only he was capable of solving the complex task of building the foundations of the university as part of the academic complex.He was able to communicate in one language with representatives of various institutions — party leadership, the system of public administration, the Ministry of Higher Education of the USSR, and the Academy of Sciences. The innovation consisted in the fact that the educational process at NGU was based on involving scientists from academic institutes in teaching activities. They became the core teaching staff of a new type of university. An important role in the learning process was played by the organization of early involvement of students in research activities through arranging internships and their direct participation in the work of the institutes of the Siberian Branch of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR., — saidVictoria Vybornova.
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