TURKPA attended the 4th International Bakhshi Art Festival

On 26-28 April 2025, the TURKPA delegation led by Secretary General Mehmet Süreyya Er took part in the 4th International Bakhshi Art Festival, organized by the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Uzbekistan with the support of the Government of the Republic of Uzbekistan under the auspices of UNESCO and ICESCO, in Khiva, Uzbekistan. As part of the festival, the Second Forum of Turkic World Culture titled "Bakhshi Art in New Uzbekistan: Contemporary Research and Prospects" was held. The Forum was attended by the Minister of Culture of Uzbekistan Ozodbek Nazarbekov; the Minister of Culture of Azerbaijan Adil Karimli; the Secretary General of TURKPA Mehmet Süreyya Er; the Secretary General of TURKSOY Sultan Raev; the President of the Turkic Academy Shahin Mustafayev; the President of the Turkic Culture and Heritage Foundation Aktoty Raimkulova; the Deputy Minister of Culture of Kyrgyzstan Gulbara Abdykalykova; the President of the "Manas" National Academy Aziz Biymyrza uulu; the former Minister of Culture, Information, and Youth Policy of the Kyrgyz Republic, the People's Writer, playwright, statesman and public figure Kairat Imanaliev; the Director of the Chingiz Aitmatov Institute of Language and Literature of the National Academy of Sciences of the Kyrgyz Republic, academician Abdyldajan Akmataliev; and other cultural and academic figures. At the forum, more than 40 famous cultural figures and scholars from different countries studying the art of storytelling made presentations on various topics. Secretary General of TURKPA Mehmet Süreyya Er also delivered a speech at the opening ceremony of the Forum. In his speech, TURKPA Secretary General expressed gratitude to the host party for the invitation and excellent organization. Secretary General noted that the inclusion of the art of bakhshi in the UNESCO Representative List in 2019 reflected its global civilizational significance. He also emphasized that the festival would greatly contribute to the preservation and promotion of the bakhshi tradition, strengthen international cultural ties, and reinforce the unity of the Turkic world. On the same day, the grand opening ceremony of the 4th International Bakhshi Art Festival was held in Itchan Kala. The ceremony featured vibrant musical performances by renowned Uzbek artists and performers from the Khorezm region. On 27 April, an international competition among representatives of 12 foreign countries and Uzbekistan took place. The festival concluded with a closing ceremony and awards presentation for the winners on 28 April. As part of the festival program, the guests visited the Itchan Kala, the historic architectural heritage site of Khiva, designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1990. Secretary General Mehmet Süreyya Er was accompanied by the staff members of the TURKPA Secretariat Metin Albayrak and Takhmina Bakieva. The International Bakhshi Art Festival is organized in accordance with the Presidential Resolution and is held once every two years. In particular, the first festival was held in 2019 in Termez, the second in 2021 in Nukus, and the third in 2023 in Gulistan. The art of bakhshi was included in the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO, as an element of the intangible cultural heritage of Uzbekistan.