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Mikhail Kalashnikov
Sign in to saveAlso known as Mikhail Timofeyevich Kalashnikov
Soviet and Russian small arms designer (1919–2013)
Mikhail Kalashnikov was a Soviet and Russian weapons designer best known for creating the AK-47 rifle, one of the most widely used firearms in the world. His design became historically significant because it was simple, reliable, and affordable to manufacture, making it influential in military and civilian contexts globally.
AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.
Wikidata facts
- Instance of
- human
- Given name
- Mikhail
- Gender
- male
- Citizenship
- Russia
- Place of birth
- Kurya
- Place of death
- Izhevsk
- Child
- Victor Kalashnikov
- Occupation
- bladesmith
- Political party
- United Russia
- Languages spoken
- Russian
- Native language
- Russian
- Religion
- Eastern Orthodox Church
- Notable work
- AKM
- Field of work
- small arms
- Conflict
- Eastern Front
- Military branch
- Russian Armed Forces
- Military rank
- Sergeant
- Image
- Michael Kalashnikov.jpg
- Number of children
- 4
- Work location
- Almaty
Show 11 more facts
- Commons category
- Mikhail Kalashnikov
- date of death
- 2013-12-23
- date of birth
- 1919-11-10
- place of burial
- Federal Military Memorial Cemetery
- cause of death
- pulmonary embolism
- manner of death
- natural causes
- member of
- Union of Writers of Russia
- allegiance
- Russia
- topic's main category
- Category:Mikhail Kalashnikov
- name in native language
- Михаил Тимофеевич Калашников
- start of work period
- 1938-00-00
Sources (8)
via Wikidata · CC0
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Encyclopedic overview
Mikhail Timofeyevich Kalashnikov (10 November 1919 – 23 December 2013) was a Soviet and Russian lieutenant general, inventor, military engineer, writer, and small arms designer. He is most famous for developing the AK-47 assault rifle and its improvements, the AKM and AK-74, as well as the RPK light machine gun and PK machine gun.
Kalashnikov was, according to himself, a self-taught tinkerer who combined innate mechanical skills with the study of weaponry to design arms that achieved battlefield ubiquity. Even though Kalashnikov felt sorrow at the weapons' uncontrolled distribution, he took pride in his inventions and in their reputation for reliability, emphasizing that his rifle is "a weapon of defense" and "not a weapon for offense".
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Mikhail Kalashnikov” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.
Gallery (7)
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