Professor Amin Shagirov, a distinguished scholar, outstanding expert of Abkhazian-Adigheian languages, comparative-historical grammar, dialectology, etymology, comparative lexicology, Doctor of Philological Sciences, the Real Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences, former manager of the Sector of Caucasian languages, main scientific employee of the Institute of Linguistics of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Honorary Member of the Abkhazian Academy of Sciences, Honoured Scholar of the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic, main scholar of the Kabardino-Balkarian Institute of Humanitarian Researches has passed away on July 13, 2003 after short heavy illness.

Shagirov was born on January 8, 1930 in a little village Lesken II of the Urvan region. Upon finishing secondary school in 1974, continued his studies at the Faculty of Philology of Tbilisi State University, specializing in Caucasian languages.

After university he took a postgraduate course at the Institute of Linguistics of the Russian Academy of Sciences on the sector of Caucasian languages, specializing in Kabardian language. He combined study with work being teacher of Kabardian language in the State Institute of Theatre Art. In 1962-1963 Shagirov was administrative manager of the Sector of Caucasian languages of Institute of Linguistics of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

Shagirov defended the doctor's dissertation "The Basic questions of the synchronous and comparative analysis of the vocabulary of Adigheian languages" in 1970 in the Institute of Linguistics of the Georgian SSR. On January, 1980 Shagirov was awarded the title of Honoured Science Worker of the Kabardino-Balkaria Republic. In 1986-1988 on a post of the professor taught Kabardian language in B. Schukin Theatre School. In 1991 the rank of the professor was given to him. In the same year Shagirov became a Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences and then on April 1994 - the Valid Member of the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences. On October 1997 became the Honoured Member of the Abkhazian Academy of Sciences.

The scientific activity of Shagirov began in 1953 and was very fruitful. His works - "Sketches on comparative lexicology of the Adighe languages", "Etymological dictionary of Adighe (Cherkessian) languages", "Lexicology of the Adighe languages" and others made a solid contribution to linguistic science.

During many years Shagirov supervised the work of the Sector of Languages of the Karachay-Cherkessian Scientific-Research Institute. He was the scientific editor of the thematic collections of the institute.

The light memory of Amin Shagirov – a major scholar, teacher, distinguished linguist – will live forever in our hearts.