Ближний Восток и его соседи

g 34 h Professor Nikolay Dyakov: A Biographical Note Born on 18 June 1953 in St Petersburg, Russia Nikolay Dyakov became a student of the Faculty of Oriental Studies at the University of Leningrad (St Petersburg) in 1970. There he studied the Arabic language and history of the Arab countries. Upon his graduation in 1976 he began his post-graduate studies at the same Faculty, which in 1980 resulted in the award of the Candi- date of History (PhD) degree for a thesis entitled “The Young Algerians and Political Struggle in Algeria in the Late 19 th — Early 20 th Century”. Having completed his studies Nikolay Dyakov started his teaching and re- search activities at the University of St Petersburg; that has been often combined with research trips to the Middle East and NorthAfrica. In 1990 he was appointed Head of the Department of the Middle Eastern History. In 1995 he was awarded the Doctor of History (Habilitation) degree for a thesis entitled “The Muslim Brotherhoods in Maghreb at the Time of Foreign Expansion in the 16 th — Early 20 th Century”. In 1996 he became Professor of St Petersburg University. In 2020 he was created Distinguished Professor of St Petersburg University. In his research Nikolay Dyakov primarily focuses on Arab history with a particular emphasis on history, geography, ethnology, culture and religion of Maghreb. Professor Dyakov is one of the leading authorities in the Arab studies and his contribution has significantly advanced knowledge in this field. He published and co-authored 10 books and over 200 articles on Arab his- tory, in particular history and culture of Maghreb, the Arab-Russian relations, history of the Middle Eastern Studies and other related subjects.