Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences

On June 29, Academician Isa Habibbeyli, President of the Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences (ANAS), delivered a comprehensive presentation at the plenary session entitled “The Turkic World as One Family: The Activities of International Turkic Cooperation Organizations for Common Goals,” held within the framework of the “Week of the Turkic World” dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the First Turkological Congress at the Heydar Aliyev Center. In his address, he highlighted the historical significance of this landmark anniversary and shared his views on its contemporary relevance and future prospects.

Academician Habibbeyli noted that the Decree signed by President Ilham Aliyev on October 22, 2025, on the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the First Turkological Congress is a vivid expression of the great respect and high appreciation shown by the Azerbaijani state for the legacy of the Congress, which has become an indelible and unforgettable milestone in the development of the entire Turkic world. He emphasized that the Decree also represents strong support for the advancement of modern Turkological scholarship and the strengthening of unity among the brotherly Turkic peoples.

The President of ANAS pointed out that the First Turkological Congress, held in 1926, addressed not only scientific and Turkological issues, but also raised questions concerning the integration of the Turkic world, its future unity, as well as the development of social, spiritual, and cultural relations among Turkic peoples.

In his presentation, Academician Habibbeyli also referred to the legacy of the prominent historical figures of the Congress. He noted that Academician Sergey Oldenburg, who delivered a report at the First Turkological Congress, emphasized the importance of conducting country studies on the Turkic peoples. According to him, the concept of “country studies” proposed by Oldenburg did not correspond to today's narrow understanding of local or regional studies; rather, it embraced the geographical integrity and spiritual significance of the greater Turkic world.

Academician Isa Habibbeyli stressed that valuable scholarly works on the Turkic world, ancient Turkic monuments, and prominent historical figures had been published even before the First Turkological Congress. However, nearly all of these studies were presented either within the framework of Orientalism in Western academic circles or as fragmented individual research within the Turkic world.

“One of the greatest contributions of the First Turkological Congress to the history of humanity, and one of its most significant legacies for the present day, was the unification and establishment of the rich heritage of the Turkic world under the single, independent, and systematic field of scholarship known as ‘Turkology.’ For the first time, the Congress presented a comprehensive system and model of Turkological studies to the international academic community. The historic gathering was not confined to linguistic issues; it also extensively discussed literature, folklore studies, shared history, ethnography, art studies, cultural history, unified terminology, and alphabet-related issues, reaching important common conclusions in these fields.”

Academician Isa Habibbeyli also spoke about the practical outcomes of the close partnership established between ANAS and the academies of sciences of the brotherly Turkic republics. Referring first to Azerbaijani-Uzbek scientific cooperation, he noted that fundamental research has been conducted on the legacy of the great thinker Alisher Navoi. He emphasized that Azerbaijan has become one of the world's leading centres of Navoi studies, with a scholarly tradition capable of standing alongside that of Uzbekistan.

The Academician further stated that similarly dynamic and high-level cooperation has been established with the scientific community of Turkmenistan. He highlighted the extensive research conducted in Azerbaijan on the literary heritage of the Turkmen classical poet Magtymguly Pyragy, noting that the volume of studies published by ANAS and other academic institutions across the country is in no way inferior to the corresponding publications of the Academy of Sciences of Turkmenistan.

The President of ANAS also noted that joint scientific projects with the brotherly Kyrgyz Republic have been successfully implemented. He stated that collaborative research dedicated to the rich legacy of the world-renowned writer Chingiz Aitmatov has already resulted in numerous fundamental scholarly publications.

Academician Isa Habibbeyli identified one of the foremost priorities for the coming period as raising scientific cooperation with the Organization of Turkic States and its affiliated institutions to a more institutional and dynamic framework.

Concluding his speech, the President of ANAS stressed that the existence of such influential international organizations, which today study the Turkic world on a global scale, promote its rich heritage, evaluate scientific projects, and, most importantly, strengthen ties among the brotherly Turkic peoples, represents the realization of the highest aspirations and noble ideals of the participants and visionary architects of the First Turkological Congress held in Baku in 1926.

Translation by Gulhane Aghayeva, Department of Public Relations, Press, and Information, Presidium of ANAS.

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