On April 17, Nazarbayev University hosted the annual research conference “Zhas Galym – VIII,” dedicated to the 160th anniversary of Alikhan Bokeikhanov, a prominent leader of the Alash movement. The event was organized by the Department of Kazakh Language and Turkic Studies with the support of the university administration.
The conference aims to advance academic Kazakh within the scientific community, promote its use among young people, and strengthen integration and collaboration among students from universities across Kazakhstan. This year, the event brought together 128 students representing 25 higher education institutions nationwide.
The conference opened with remarks by Professor Uli Schamiloglu, Chair of the Department of Kazakh Language and Turkic Studies.
“We hold deep respect for the Kazakh language and are committed to enhancing its status and prestige, particularly by developing it as a language of science. With this goal in mind, we launched this conference in 2019. I am confident that our efforts have made a meaningful contribution to Kazakhstan’s development. A telling example involves one of our keynote speakers, Academician Askar Dzhumadildayev, who participated in the conference several years ago. Following the event, he met with the President of Kazakhstan, and the very next day, the Head of State publicly emphasized the importance of promoting Kazakh as a language of science,” the professor noted.
Among the invited speakers were Professor Gulzhanat Kurmangaliyeva of Ankara Hacı Bayram Veli University, NU researcher Maxat Zhabagin, and IT expert Timur Bektur.
The conference featured multiple thematic tracks, including Kazakh language and literature, social sciences and humanities, natural sciences, as well as technical and medical disciplines. Presentations covered a wide range of topics such as “Youth Slang and Language Culture,” “Challenges of Translation in Cinematography,” and “The Potential of Artificial Intelligence in Teaching the Kazakh Language,” among others.
“Engaging with young researchers, one clearly sees the strong potential of Kazakhstani science. Their curiosity, drive to contribute, and commitment to creative work are exceptionally high. Having spent nearly 25 years in Canada as a scholar, researcher, and educator, I can say that I have never seen events of this caliber organized by students themselves,” said Provost Rehan Sadiq.
