Pavel Nikolaevich Zhukov (16.11.1948) – local historian, educator.

Pavel Nikolaevich was born in the village of Georgievka, Zharma district, Semey region. Ten days after his birth, the family moved to the city of Semey. Here, his mother taught mathematics at a vocational school, while his father got a job as a tin craftsman at the Third Five-Year Plan artel.

In 1966, after finishing school, he entered the history faculty of the university, dreaming of becoming an archaeologist. However, the family council decided that he should enroll in the physics-mathematics faculty of the pedagogical institute. His student years were very interesting: competitions between groups, a fencing club, and the "Talgar" mountaineering camp. After graduating from university, he was sent to the village of Glukhovka, and then called up for military service, serving in the radio-technical troops of the country's air defense. He returned home in December 1971. He was assigned to school No. 36. It was here that his inherited interest in photography from his father, and later in filmmaking, proved beneficial. Pavel Nikolaevich led a photography club and made electric guitars with the students.

In November 1975, Pavel Zhukov was hired by the Semey College of Light Industry, initially teaching physics, and later electrical engineering and computer science. He also organized a photography club at the college and took students on hikes. His parents instilled in Pavel a love for his native land, allowing him to express his feelings about his homeland "not by looking at paper," but from the heart. This was his first step into local history. Each hiking trip further proved how important it is to know one’s homeland and how little we still know about it.

The need to create an organization that would unite people who love their land, its history, and its people matured. On February 10, 2004, five like-minded individuals gathered in the building of the Communication Museum: the founder of the museum, Vladimir Ivanovich Lushnikov, Evgeny Alekseevich Titayev, Fyodor Vladimirovich Zanarov, Mikhail Mikhailovich Degtyarev, and Pavel Nikolaevich. They discussed the necessity of uniting the city's local historians. A year later, on February 19, 2005, the founding meeting of the local history society called "Priirtyshye" took place in the hall of the F.M. Dostoevsky Museum. At this meeting, Pavel Zhukov was elected the chairman of the society. However, it took another year for the public association to be officially registered, which occurred on May 10, 2006.

Round tables were held with history teachers from city schools, and local history readings named after Beloslyudov were conducted. Pavel Nikolaevich's materials were published in the magazine "Prostor." In 2012, all of his writings were compiled into a book titled "Sblizheniya."

He retired in November 2011. He had more opportunities to engage in his favorite activities, but due to health reasons, Pavel Zhukov stepped down as chairman of the society, although he did not stop engaging in local history.

The society began to hold "rapid exhibitions" and local history guest rooms. Following the model of "Notes of the Semipalatinsk Subdivision of IRGO," "Notes of Priirtyshye" also began to be published. Another very important direction of the society's activities is the preservation of our city's historical heritage.