The III International Scientific Symposium titled “Islamic Scholars from Mawarannahr to Anatolia: Turkistan at the Confluence of Knowledge and Wisdom” has commenced at our university. The symposium was jointly organized by our university, the Faculty of Theology of Ankara Yıldırım Beyazıt University, and the Association for the History of Hadith.
The major academic gathering has brought together researchers in theology, religious studies, philosophy, history, and the humanities from Kazakhstan, Türkiye, Azerbaijan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Bangladesh, the United States, Albania, Jordan, Bulgaria, Tunisia, and Libya.
The symposium aims to explore the scholarly and spiritual heritage of prominent Islamic scholars from Mawarannahr and Turkistan, examine their contributions to world civilization, and strengthen ties among scholars of the Turkic world.
It should be noted that the symposium aligns with the initiatives of President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev to preserve historical and cultural heritage, promote spiritual values, and strengthen cooperation among the Turkic states. At the informal summit of the Organization of Turkic States held in Turkistan on 15 May 2026, the President announced the decision to establish the Centre for Turkic Civilization and proposed utilizing our university’s academic and research potential in its activities.
In this context, the international symposium will serve as an important academic platform for promoting Turkistan’s scholarly and spiritual heritage internationally and studying the shared values of Turkic-Islamic civilization.
Opening the symposium, Rector Zhanar Temirbekova said:
“The fact that today’s academic gathering is being held in Turkistan is particularly significant. Turkistan is the spiritual capital of the Turkic world, a sacred place where knowledge and scholarship, culture and spirituality have converged for centuries. The scholarly and spiritual tradition that originated in this region is a shared value of the entire Turkic world.
The participation of scholars from 12 countries in today’s symposium demonstrates the international interest in our common scholarly heritage.
It is important to us that such academic gatherings produce tangible results. We believe they will lead to collaborative research, new scholarly publications, and stronger cooperation between universities. May our symposium be productive, and may the tradition of knowledge and wisdom originating in Turkistan continue through new scholarly inquiry.”
The Rector also spoke about the activities of the Faculty of Theology, established in 2021, and the development of education and research in religious studies, theology, and philosophy.
She also outlined initiatives aimed at conducting comprehensive research into the legacy of Khoja Ahmed Yassawi, widely disseminating research findings, and strengthening international academic cooperation. Future plans include implementing joint research projects with ICESCO, establishing a special scholarship to support young scholars studying Yassawi’s legacy, and expanding the network of Yassawi research centres abroad. She emphasized that transforming Turkistan into a major international centre for Yassawi studies remains one of the principal objectives.
Rector’s Representative Peyami Battal then congratulated the participants on the opening of the symposium.
“This year, significant initiatives have been launched and extensive work is being carried out to study the legacies of Al-Farabi and Khoja Ahmed Yassawi. I would like to thank President of the Republic of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev for supporting efforts to promote the heritage of Khoja Ahmed Yassawi, the spiritual mentor of the Turkic world, and other distinguished scholars.
I also express my gratitude to our university’s Faculty of Theology, Ankara Yıldırım Beyazıt University, and all the departments and colleagues who contributed to organizing today’s symposium at such a high level,” he said.
To promote wider awareness of Yassawi’s teachings, Peyami Battal proposed establishing dedicated student clubs and associations. He emphasized that the great thinker’s legacy is a shared spiritual value belonging not only to the Turkic peoples but to all humanity.
Professor Mehmet Emin Özafşar of the Faculty of Theology at Ankara University, Chairman of the Association for the History of Hadith, and Professor Ferhat Gökçe of Ankara Yıldırım Beyazıt University, Chairman of the Symposium Organizing Committee, also delivered welcoming remarks and congratulated the participants.
The symposium continued with plenary and parallel sessions. Scholars will discuss Islamic philosophy in Turkistan and Al-Farabi’s legacy, Khoja Ahmed Yassawi’s teachings of hikmet (wisdom), hadith scholarship in Mawarannahr, Islamic jurisprudence, the Maturidi worldview, and issues related to knowledge, morality, and spiritual values in Turkic-Islamic civilization.
KZ
TR
EN
RU
