Iskakova Zaure Yerenovna

Al-Farabi Kazakh National University

Faculty of Oriental Studies

Department of Middle East and South Asia 

February 21, 2022 – International Mother Tongue Day (UNESCO)

On February 21, 2022, the International Poetry Festival "UNESCO International Mother Tongue Day" was held online. The Russian State University for the Humanities organized the festival (Moscow, Russia) in cooperation with al-Farabi KazNU.

The event aims to support the promotion of multilingual education as a means of improving intercultural communication and promoting cultural and linguistic diversity. Welcoming speeches were delivered by Ambassador of the People's Republic of Bangladesh to Russia, Mr. Kamrul Ahsan; Ambassador of the Republic of India to Uzbekistan Mr. Manish Prabhat; Director of the J. Nehru Cultural Center Dr. Usha Radhakrishna (Embassy of India in Russia); Director of the Russian House in Mumbai (Ruscooperation, Mumbai, India) Dr. Y.S. Remizova.

The geography of the festival was vast! Lecturers and students from RSUH (Faculty of International Relations, Political Science and Foreign Regional Studies), al-Farabi Kazakh National University (Faculty of Oriental Studies, Middle East and South Asia Department), Tashkent State University of Oriental Studies, Savitribai Phule University (Pune, Maharashtra, India), Institute of the State Language and Culture of the I. Arabaev Kyrgyz State University, Shivaji University (Kolhapur, Maharashtra, India), Kazan Federal University, Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda (Vadodara, Gujarat, India), St. Petersburg State University (St. Petersburg, Russia), M.V. Lomonosov Moscow State University ISAA (Russia, Moscow) attended the festival. Participants read poems in different languages, sang songs, prepared presentations. An online exhibition of creative works by 4th year students of the “Art Design” Training Center (RSUH) dedicated to Russian poets and writers was also organized.

From Oriental Studies Faculty, Rumi Paishambiyev (master's student) read Hafiz's ghazal in Persian, accompanied by a beautiful video with views of Iran; Mukhambet Diana (4th year student) sang an Arabic song; Telmanova Zhansaya (3rd year student, Indian Studies) sang the song "Ak bulak" to the accompaniment of dombra. The performances of our students caused a storm of applause and a lot of feedback in the event chat.

This is not our first joint event. This festival was organized for the second time. Last year, our students also took an active part in the festival and deservedly received high marks. In addition, Pushkin Days, yoga festivals, scientific conferences, etc. are traditional events organized jointly.

The online format of the festival made it possible to bring together participants from different countries located a thousand kilometers apart. The atmosphere of the holiday was very sincere, after the performances the participants exchanged opinions for a long time, thanked each other for the presented moments of joy. Old friends and colleagues were delighted to meet again and introduce their new students.