The congress the world was talking about: First International Congress on Ganira Pashayeva concludes with participation from 23 countries
By: MKT Correspondent in Turkey
The International Congress titled “Ganira Pashayeva and the Turkic World: Literature, Culture, Politics and the Ideal of Unity” successfully concluded after two days of an intensive scientific program. Dedicated to the name and intellectual legacy of Ganira Pashayeva, the event was the first international scientific congress devoted to Ganira Pashayeva and brought together more than 200 scientists, academics, researchers, poets, writers and cultural figures from 23 countries.
Organized online by the Union of Turkish Academics on 27–28 September 2026, the congress examined the life, ideas, literary and cultural legacy, and activities of Ganira Pashayeva — a prominent Azerbaijani politician, journalist, writer and devoted advocate of the Turkic world — from the perspectives of different academic disciplines.
As the first international scientific congress dedicated to Ganira Pashayeva, the event carried not only academic significance but also considerable cultural and historical importance. The congress provided an opportunity to document different aspects of Pashayeva’s multifaceted legacy through scholarly research and to examine her ideas concerning the Turkic world from the perspectives of researchers from different countries.
Participants from Azerbaijan, Türkiye, Australia, Germany, Algeria, England, India, Iran, Iraq, Sweden, Italy, Northern Cyprus, the Netherlands, North Macedonia, Kosovo, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Russia, Serbia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Greece took part in the congress. Over the course of two days, 201 papers were presented in seven parallel sessions held in five separate virtual halls.
The scientific program brought together a wide range of disciplines, including literature, culture, history, politics, international relations, education, sociology, economics, communication, women’s studies, technology and cultural heritage. In this way, Ganira Pashayeva’s legacy was examined not only through the lens of her political identity, but also through her multifaceted identities as a poet, writer, journalist, woman leader, cultural figure and advocate of the Turkic world.
The opening and closing programs of the congress were moderated by Prof. Dr. Vahap Tekin, Head of Department at Dokuz Eylül University. The opening program featured speeches by Assoc. Prof. Dr. İzzettin Ozpolat, President of the Union of Turkish Academics and President of the Congress; Reşat Majid, Vice President of the Azerbaijan Writers’ Union; Prof. Dr. Tarana Turan Rahimli, Chair of the Congress Organizing Committee and Vice President of the Union of Turkish Academics; Zeynel Beksach, Editor of Kosovo’s Türkçem magazine; Vugar Agayev, Editor of AjMedia; and Kemale Pashayeva, sister of Ganira Pashayeva.
One of the most emotional moments of the opening ceremony was the speech delivered by Ganira Pashayeva’s sister, Kemale Pashayeva. Kemale Pashayeva delivered her speech from Ganira Pashayeva’s graveside. Her deeply moving reflections on Ganira’s life, character and the values she left behind made a lasting impression on the congress participants.
Throughout the two-day scientific sessions, Ganira Pashayeva’s ideas concerning the Turkic world were examined from the perspectives of literature, culture, politics, diplomacy, women’s studies, history, education and international relations.
Issues of women, leadership and social identity occupied an important place in the congress. Ganira Pashayeva’s identity as a woman, her political and social activities, the role of women in public life, and women’s leadership in the Turkic world were examined through various academic disciplines.
Political unity, diplomacy, security and shared identity in the Turkic world were also among the major themes of the congress. Papers addressed parliamentary diplomacy, cultural diplomacy, regional security, collective identity and international cooperation, as well as Shusha, Karabakh, the South Caucasus, Turks living in Europe and relations among the Turkic states.
Literary and cultural studies constituted another major axis of the congress. Researchers examined themes of homeland, motherhood, women, history, identity and the idea of the Turkic world in Ganira Pashayeva’s poetry and works. The program also covered a broad cultural and literary spectrum, ranging from Dede Korkut and Ahiska tales to proverbs and idioms, and from Azerbaijani and Uzbek literature to Kazakh and Turkmen cultural heritage.
One of the notable features of the congress was the bringing together of classical Turkology and cultural studies with contemporary technological and social issues within the same scientific program. Current topics such as artificial intelligence in education, teaching Turkish as a foreign language, digital material production, online education, social media, digital diplomacy, information security, cybersecurity and technological sovereignty were also addressed by scholars.
The second day’s sessions covered Turkic languages and dialects, folklore, history, architecture and museology, as well as contemporary geopolitics in Central Asia, the Middle Corridor, water security, climate change, great-power competition and academic cooperation. Thus, the congress created a broad academic platform that examined the Turkic world not only in the context of history and culture, but also within the framework of today’s scientific, technological and international challenges.
The congress also attracted significant international media attention. News reports and interviews about the congress appeared in the press, on television, online news platforms and various media outlets in different countries. Reports about the congress were published in Azerbaijan, Türkiye, North Macedonia, Italy, Pakistan, Albania, Germany, Belgium, Japan, Kenya and many other countries, demonstrating the broad international interest generated by the event.
Following two days of an intensive scientific program, the closing session featured speeches by Assoc. Prof. Dr. İzzettin Ozpolat, President of the Congress; Prof. Dr. Tarana Turan Rahimli, Chair of the Congress Organizing Committee; Şemsettin Kuzeci, President of the Kirkuk Cultural Association; and Organizing Committee members Prof. Dr. Zehra Gencel Efe, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Minara Aliyeva, Dr. Bedri Shahin and Dr. Alsu Shamsutova.
During the closing ceremony, the recitation of “The Woman of Light”, a poem dedicated by Prof. Dr. Tarana Turan Rahimli to the memory of Ganira Pashayeva, added a deeply emotional dimension to the conclusion of the congress.
In the closing speeches, it was emphasized that this first international scientific congress on Ganira Pashayeva represents an important beginning in researching, documenting and transmitting her intellectual, literary and cultural legacy to future generations.
Bringing together more than 200 participants from 23 countries and 201 scientific papers under one academic umbrella, the congress became the first international scientific congress dedicated to Ganira Pashayeva and provided an important platform for examining her multifaceted legacy across different academic disciplines.
The congress concluded by demonstrating that Ganira Pashayeva’s ideas concerning the Turkic world are not merely a legacy of the past, but a multifaceted field that can continue to be explored through education, science, culture, literature, technology, academic cooperation and international relations.
The congress dedicated to Ganira Pashayeva thus concluded after two days of intensive academic exchange — a congress whose name, message and intellectual significance reached audiences far beyond its participants and drew attention from across the world.
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