On November 28, 2025, the Kazakh National Women’s Teacher Training University hosted the international scientific and practical conference “Abzhan Kuryshzhanuly and Scientific Continuity: Preserving the Spiritual Legacy”, organized by the Institute of Philology and the Department of Theory and Methods of the Kazakh Language. The event was dedicated to the 95th anniversary of the renowned Turkologist, Doctor of Philological Sciences, Professor Abzhan Kuryshzhanuly.
At the opening ceremony, Acting Chair of the Board – Rector Sabit Suatai emphasized the importance of the event and wished the participants fruitful work:
“The name of Professor Abzhan Kuryshzhanuly is well known to Turkologists around the world. Since 2008, our university has held the ‘Kuryshzhanuly Readings’ conference for young scholars, within which the festival ‘Tübi bir türkimız’ is organized. I would like to express my gratitude for the support from Niğde Ömer Halisdemir University, Samarkand State University, I. Arabayev University, as well as all scholars who expressed a desire to take part in the conference.”
The conference was moderated by Professor Aigul Satbekova, Director of the Institute of Philology. The event brought together prominent scholars, public figures, and specialists from state language instruction centers from Kazakhstan, Turkey, Uzbekistan, and Kyrgyzstan. Among the participants were: Professor Halil Toksan (Gazi University, Turkey), Professor Erdoğan Şeşek (Nevşehir Hacı Bektaş Veli University, Turkey), Associate Professor Osman Kabadayı (Kırşehir Ahi Evran University, Turkey), Professor Yulai Shamiloglu (Nazarbayev University, Kazakhstan), Professor Anarkul Salkynbai (Al-Farabi KazNU), Professor Tynyshtyk Ermekova (QyzPU), and Director of the A. Baitursynuly Institute of Linguistics Anar Fazylzhanova. Participants discussed the personal and scholarly qualities of the professor, as well as his academic heritage and contributions to the field of Turkology. His daughter Aliya Kuryshzhan and granddaughter Dana Kuryshzhan also shared their memories of him.
The academic gathering opened with a musical and choreographic performance titled “Kokbori – menin uranym”, symbolizing the spiritual heritage of the Turkic people.
Important decisions were made as a result of the conference: in 2030, an expanded international scientific and practical conference will be held in honor of the 100th anniversary of Professor Abzhan Kuryshzhanuly; beginning in 2026, the “Kuryshzhanuly Readings” for young researchers will be organized annually; the professor’s works will be comprehensively studied; a separate scientific field, “Abzhan Studies,” will be formed; additionally, research in the field of Kipchak Studies will be carried out jointly with scholars of Turkic nations.
