October 2, Mangystau, Kazakhstan. Today, the city of Aktau hosted the international scientific conference “Heritage of the Turkic World”, jointly organized by the Turkic Academy and the Mangystau Regional Administration.
The event brought together President of the Turkic Academy Shahin Mustafayev, Deputy Akim of Mangystau Region Tilegen Abishev, Kazakhstan’s representative to TURKSOY Nyshankul Karatayeva, Chief Coordinator of the TURKSOY Museums Union Javid Movsumlu, as well as leading scholars from Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Türkiye, and Uzbekistan.
The conference program covered a wide range of disciplines, including history, archaeology, ethnography, ethnology, local studies, epigraphy, research on petroglyphs and tamgas, as well as issues related to the preservation of historical and cultural heritage, the development of tourism, and the protection of monuments.
Opening the plenary session, President of the Turkic Academy Shahin Mustafayev emphasized the special importance of Mangystau for the entire Turkic world and presented the results of the Academy’s research project “Necropolises and Tamgas of the Oghuz-Kipchak Era in Mangystau.” The project was carried out with the participation of scholars from Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan.
“The project was implemented in two phases, during which nearly one thousand monuments were documented and detailed graphic drawings of hundreds of sites were produced. Of particular interest is the similarity between the identified tamgas and the symbols of Turkic peoples across Eurasia, as well as the ancient Turkic signs recorded in Chinese sources. These studies open new horizons in understanding the history, migrations, and cultural heritage of the Turkic peoples, while making a significant contribution to the preservation and promotion of Mangystau’s rich historical and cultural legacy,” noted Mustafayev.
As part of the event, the Turkic Academy also presented a special scholarly volume prepared on the basis of the comprehensive research, along with a documentary film produced during the scientific expedition.
