Today, events dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the First Turkology Congress are being held in Baku. A century ago, in February 1926, the Azerbaijani capital hosted a magnificent meeting that opened a new page in the scientific and cultural life of the Turkic world. The decisions adopted at that time determined the direction not only of those years but also of subsequent decades. Today, a large part of those ideas is again on the agenda and has become one of the main pillars of cooperation among Turkic states.
As emphasized in the Decree signed by Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev regarding the 100th anniversary of the First Turkology Congress, this forum played an exceptional role in the integration of Turkic peoples who share a rich common history and cultural heritage. At the Congress, the most important problems of Turkology were widely discussed, and fateful decisions were made regarding the future of the language, history, ethnography, literature, and culture of the Turkic peoples. One of the most important issues was the idea of transitioning to a single common Turkic alphabet based on the Latin script.
The fact that the First Turkology Congress was held in Baku was not accidental. In the early 20th century, the city was also distinguished by its intellectual environment. As a result of the alphabet reform ideas initiated by Mirza Fatali Akhundzadeh, and the activities of enlightened intellectuals such as Jalil Mammadguluzadeh, Uzeyir Hajibeyli, Ali bey Huseynzade, Firidun bey Kocharli, and others, Azerbaijan had become one of the main centers of innovative thought in the Turkic world. For this reason, on February 26, 1926, scholars from various countries of the world and Turkic peoples living in the USSR gathered in the Ismailiyya building in Baku. The Congress lasted ten days, 17 sessions were held, and 38 scientific reports were heard with the participation of 131 delegates.
This meeting was not only a scientific discussion among linguists and historians but also a discussion about the future development model of the Turkic peoples. Important decisions were made here on issues such as alphabet and writing rules, terminology, literary language, educational methodology, the kinship of Turkic languages, and the formation of a common scientific space. One of the biggest outcomes was the achievement of a common agreement on transitioning to a Latin-script alphabet. In subsequent years, Azerbaijan and other Turkic republics took steps in this direction, and later Turkey also transitioned to the Latin alphabet, bringing this process to a new stage.
However, the great hopes created by the congress did not last long. With the tightening of Soviet rule, the rapprochement of Turkic peoples was seen as a threat. During the repressions of the 1930s, more than a hundred participants of the congress were arrested, exiled, or shot on charges of "Pan-Turkism" and "nationalism." Bekir Chobanzade, Ahmad Baytursunov, Salman Mumtaz, Ruhulla Akhundov, Osman Nuri Agchograkli, and dozens of prominent scholars became victims of the repression. Subsequently, in 1939, the Latin script was abolished, and Turkic peoples were transitioned to the Cyrillic alphabet. Thus, one of the most important decisions of the First Turkology Congress could not be implemented for many years.
One hundred years have shown that while ideas can be suppressed, they cannot be completely eradicated. With the gaining of independence by Azerbaijan and other Turkic republics in the late 20th century, the ideas voiced at the First Turkology Congress became relevant again. Today, Azerbaijan, Turkey, and most Turkic states in Central Asia use the Latin-script alphabet. Within the framework of the Organization of Turkic States, projects related to a common alphabet, common terminology, common history, and cultural heritage are being implemented.
President Ilham Aliyev's jubilee decree also notes that many ideas once put forward by the First Turkology Congress are now being successfully realized in modern conditions. The steps taken to strengthen fraternal relations among Turkic states, deepen cultural cooperation, and protect common values are regarded as the ideological continuation of that historic congress. It is no coincidence that the Declaration of the Summit of the Organization of Turkic States held in Gabala in 2025 specifically emphasized the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the First Turkology Congress.
Today's jubilee events in Baku are not just a commemoration of a historical event. This is an indication that the ideas voiced in the Ismailiyya building a hundred years ago have stood the test of time and returned to the agenda of the Turkic world. The decisions adopted a century ago are reflected today in common alphabet initiatives, scientific cooperation projects, cultural integration, and the activities of the Organization of Turkic States.
Azerbaijan's policy in recent years also resonates with the ideas of the First Turkology Congress. President Ilham Aliyev has repeatedly emphasized in his speeches that the Turkic world is one of the priority directions for Azerbaijan, and he has regarded strengthening solidarity among Turkic states as one of the main goals of foreign policy. The head of state has stated on various platforms that Azerbaijan sees its family and natural allies not in other geographies, but precisely in the Turkic world, and that the Organization of Turkic States should become one of the important power centers in the system of international relations.
It is precisely as a result of this policy that relations among Turkic states in recent years are not limited to the cultural and humanitarian sphere. Relations are rapidly deepening in the fields of economy, transport, energy security, defense industry, military cooperation, education, science, and foreign policy. The development of the Middle Corridor, common investment projects, cooperation in the defense industry, common military exercises, and mutual support in international organizations have already become the main directions of cooperation among Turkic states.
If the First Turkology Congress held in Baku in 1926 sought to form a common language, alphabet, and scientific thought for the Turkic peoples, a hundred years later, these ideas are being implemented in a broader context – in the format of political solidarity, economic integration, and security cooperation. Today, the decisions adopted within the framework of the Organization of Turkic States show that the idea of a common future put forward a century ago is already transforming from a theoretical concept into a real model of cooperation.
In this regard, the First Turkology Congress is not just a scientific meeting that remained in history. It retains its significance as one of the most important events that shaped the common identity of the Turkic world and still forms the ideological foundation of interstate cooperation today.
