Uniting Cultures Through the International Abai Readings
The Bosaga project became one of the most vibrant international cultural events marking the 180th anniversary of the great Kazakh poet and thinker Abai Kunanbayev. The initiative was launched by Maksim Ponomarenko, a professor at Pomeranian University in Slupsk, who currently lives in Poland and actively promotes the Kazakh language and culture abroad.
The project is implemented with the support of the Abai Center for Kazakh Culture and Science at the Pomeranian University in Słupsk. Over the past ten years, the Center has become a foundation for sustainable cooperation between universities in Almaty and Słupsk, developing into a space of friendship, mutual respect, and intercultural dialogue.
A special highlight is the annual "Reading Abai" seminars, where participants not only engage with the poet’s works but also discuss their relevance in the modern world. According to Maksim Ponomarenko, the true strength of the Center has always been its people, students, teachers, and researchers who, through their participation, imbue it with a vibrant sense of purpose.
Today, this long-standing experience has entered a new stage of development. A cultural brand titled “Bosaga: A Meeting Place of Cultures” has been created, symbolically capturing a decade of cooperation and opening a new chapter in the project’s evolution. The word “bosaga” in Kazakh tradition refers to the threshold of a yurt — a symbolic space that both separates the home from the outside world and invites guests to enter, representing hospitality, dialogue, and the beginning of communication..
The first major project in the new phase of Bosaga's development was the international literary competition TheAbaiWave, organized to mark Abai’s 180th anniversary. Its aim is to unite participants from different countries through reading and understanding the works of the great poet in various languages, continuing the tradition of intercultural dialogue. As Abai once said, "Adamzattıñ bärin süy bauırım dep" – “Love all humanity as your brothers.” Inspired by this humanistic idea, more than 375 participants from around the world took part in the initiative.
A special role in this international wave was played by students of Al-Farabi Kazakh National University. A total of 26 students from Chad, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, China, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Georgia, Turkey, and Kazakhstan participated in the BosagaChallenge. Their performances became a vivid example of how culture can unite people from different countries. Participants read Abai’s works in multiple languages, including Kazakh, English, Italian, French, Tatar, Uyghur, Arabic, Azerbaijani, Chinese, and Turkish. This gave the project a truly global dimension and demonstrated that Abai’s ideas resonate far beyond Kazakhstan.
The Bosaga project demonstrates how culture and education can transcend national boundaries, creating a space for communication, cooperation, and mutual inspiration. It is a story that began with the initiative and enthusiasm of individuals but has gradually grown into an international movement bringing together hundreds of participants worldwide.
Nadezhda Bershina,
Foreign Languages Department
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