Turkic Studies Journal

Foreword

Irina Nevskaya — Mon, 22 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The functioning of the verb bol- in analytical constructions in legal documents of Uyghur civil acts of the 10th–14th centuries

R.A. Avakova, А.А. Avaliyev, Ye. Bayat — Mon, 22 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This article examines the analysis and functioning of the verb bol- within analytical constructions in legal documents based on Uyghur civil acts from the 10th to 14th centuries. The study focuses on phraseological combinations and the semantics of expressions involving the verb bol-, which plays a key role in forming legal modality, predicative relations, and standard formulas of business writing in Old Uyghur. This study aims to identify the characteristics of the verb bol- in analytical constructions within 10th–14th-century Uyghur civil acts and to determine its semantic functions in the Old Uyghur language. This study employs a methodology comprising comparative-historical, descriptive, structural-semantic, and contextual analyses. The empirical basis consists of Uyghur civil deed texts from the 10th–14th centuries, including sales contracts, promissory notes, marriage contracts, and other legal documents. This work is scientifically novel because it is the first comprehensive analysis of the verb bol- in Uyghur civil documents, identifying the peculiarities of analytical constructions in medieval Uyghur legal discourse. Previous studies did not address these aspects. The study reveals that the verb bol- is used primarily as an auxiliary verb that combines with nouns, adjectives, and participial forms in analytical constructions to create stable legal clichés. The form bolsun is the most common in legal documents. It appears in the imperative mood to express prescriptions, intentions, or normative requirements characteristic of the legal sphere during that period. Through this form, concepts such as property rights, status relations, and legal responsibility are established. Examples frequently found in legal documents include ‘ägkligbolsun’, which denotes ownership; ‘korsuzbolsun’, which denotes exemption from liability; and ‘korlubolsun’, which denotes the imposition of responsibility. These constructions define the rights and obligations of the parties in agreements. The semantic field of the verb bol- expands significantly in the examples presented, encompassing dozens of meanings. While its primary meanings are "to be" and "to become," bol- acquires a modal-legal nuance, conveying meanings of obligation, permission, conditionality, or prohibition. In combination with nominal components, bol- forms predicative constructions that ensure clarity and unambiguity in legal formulations. These constructions contribute to standardizing document language and establishing stable legal terminology.

A textual analysis of the manuscript 'Kitab al-Muqaddima' in the Mamluk-Kipchak language (15th Century): based on the Ayasofya MS 1451 and Fiqh Hanafi MS 721 versions

К.К. Aubakirova , М.М. Issakhanova Kırca — Mon, 22 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Valuable information about the history, religion, culture and language of a nation is preserved in its ancient written heritage. Among the written monuments shared by the Turkic world are Kipchak language texts written in Arabic script during the Mamluk era. Although linguistic and literary manuscripts in the Mamluk-Kipchak language have been extensively studied, religious works still require further research. One such work is the manuscript "Kitab Muqaddimah", of which some versions have remained unknown to researchers until recently. This article examines versions of this written monument translated into the Mamluk-Kipchakh language by Abu Layth as-Samarkandi, an Islamic scholar from Samarkand. Particular attention is given to the Egyptian manuscript version (Fiqh Hanafi MS 721), which has not previously been introduced into academic circulation. While the Istanbul manuscript (Ayasofya MS 1451) is well-known and has been the subject of extensive scholary research, the Konya (Uzluk) version and the other Kipchak copies have yet to be comprehensively studied. Moreover, no information on the Fiqh Hanafi MS 721 version has previously been available in Turkological sholarship. As a result of research conducted in foreign manuscript collections, an additional Kipchak version of Kitab Muqaddimah Abu Layth al-Samarqandi (كتاب مقدمة أبو الليث السمرقندي) was identified. This manuscript is preserved in the Dar al-Kutub Library in Cairo, Egypt, in the Hanafi Jurisprudence Collection under catalogue number 721. The aim of this study is to provide a comprehensive description of this newly identified Egyptian manuscript, compare it with the Istanbul version, and introduce it to the international scholarly community. To achieve this objective, historical-comparative, documentary, paleographic, codicological, textual, and graphic-structural analysis methods were employed. The manuscript's paleographic characteristics were examined through its script, calligraphic style, graphic system, and writing techniques, while its codicological features were analysed through its material composition, page layout, paper quality, ink, and auxiliary markings. The textual analysis demonstrated that the manuscript belongs to the Mamluk-Kipchak written tradition. Based on its script and graphic characteristics, it was determined that the manuscript was produced according to a model typical of the Mamluk period (13th–15th centuries). The Fiqh Hanafi MS 721 version served as an important educational text within the Islamic madrasa tradition, facilitating the explanation of Arabic religious works to a Kipchak-speaking audience. Consequently, this manuscript represents a valuable source for the study of both Egyptian society during the Mamluk era and the peoples of the Dasht-i Kipchak region, with whom Egypt maintained significant historical and cultural connections.

4TB: A new tool to study Tocharian A – Old Uyghur parallels

M.V. Vyzhlakov — Mon, 22 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The paper introduces 4TB, a web-based corpus developed to support research on Tocharian A and Old Uyghur. Its aim is to collect and align Tocharian A fragments with their Old Uyghur (and later Sanskrit) parallels, particularly the Tocharian A Maitreyasamiti-Nāṭaka and its Old Uyghur translation Maitrisimit nom bitig. Despite extensive scholarship, no complete editions of these texts are currently published. A Tocharian A edition is in preparation and will serve as the basis for the corpus, while 4TB focuses on assembling Old Uyghur parallel fragments as a foundation for a future full edition of the Maitrisimit nom bitig. Compared to existing digital resources, Tocharian is relatively well represented, whereas Old Turkic corpora remain limited, making even a partial parallel corpus a meaningful contribution. The paper discusses key problems of corpus design and development. Transliteration is omitted for both languages, while transcription is handled differently. For Tocharian A, it follows established conventions; for Old Uyghur, all data are normalized into a unified transcription system, with limited correction of outdated forms. Additional challenges arise from inconsistent transcription practices in the literature. Translations are provided as in the source publications (Russian for Tocharian A, mainly German for Old Uyghur), with plans to add automatic English translations. The corpus is structured around tokens as the smallest unit, but alignment operates on higher-level units due to the lack of reliable word-to-word correspondence. Because sentence segmentation is problematic, a flexible unit called a “passage” is introduced. Passages are grouped into “passage groups” to account for manuscript variation and are then aligned across languages, allowing for discrepancies such as omissions and additions. This approach preserves textual coherence and differs from standard KWIC-based corpus models. The corpus offers several core features. Dictionaries cover all lemmatized tokens and link forms and spellings with grammatical annotation. A concordance displays passages together with their parallels. Search tools support queries by spelling, form, lemma, and grammatical features, including cross-linguistic searches. Editing tools allow modification of texts and lexical data, with semi-automatic lemmatization and potential for further expansion. Overall, 4TB provides a scalable framework that can be used in future corpus projects. It facilitates cross-linguistic research on Tocharian and Turkic languages and improves access to the material for non-linguistic specialists such as Buddhologists.

The Chinese inscription on the Kultegin monument: a historical and source analysis

T.Z. Kairken — Mon, 22 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This article examines the Chinese inscription on the Kultegin Monument, one of the most important sources for the history of the ancient Turks and their diplomatic relations with the Chinese Empire during the early medieval period. Erected in 732 CE in honour of Kultegin, the son of Elterish Qutlugh Qaghan, founder of the Second Turkic Khaganate, the monument constitutes a key historical source for the study of the political and cultural history of the Turkic world. Three sides of the stele contain inscriptions in Old Turkic that record the history of the Turkic Khaganates, their relations with neighbouring states, and internal political developments among Turkic tribal confederations. The fourth side bears a Chinese inscription. During the early medieval period, Old Turkic and Chinese functioned as the principal languages of political and diplomatic communication across North and East Asia. Although several translations of the Chinese text have been published, a number of passages remain disputed and insufficiently studied. This article re-examines the Chinese inscription with particular attention to the circumstances surrounding the monument's erection and the representation of political and diplomatic relations between the ancient Turks and neighbouring states. A comprehensive analysis of the text contributes to a more accurate understanding of interstate relations during this period. The study presents a revised reconstruction of the inscription and offers translations of previously damaged or missing passages. Personal names, official titles, toponyms, and historical-philosophical concepts are analysed in light of the latest historical and philological research. Particular emphasis is placed on the role of the ancient Turkic Khaganates in the development of Turkic statehood and on the diplomatic traditions that shaped relations between the Turks and the Chinese Empire. The article also examines elements of Chinese imperial ideology reflected in the inscription, including representations of the emperor's benevolence, strategies of political integration, and the pragmatic use of military and diplomatic power. The Chinese inscription contains valuable information on dates, places, historical figures, and events, making it an important source for verifying and supplementing other historical records. Of particular significance is its confirmation and clarification of information preserved in Old Turkic runic inscriptions, which have traditionally been interpreted primarily through the evidence of Chinese dynastic histories, including the Jiu Tangshu and Xin Tangshu. Comparative analysis of the Chinese inscription, Chinese chronicles, and Old Turkic runic texts demonstrates the close interrelationship of these sources and contributes to a more reliable and comprehensive reconstruction of the history of the ancient Turkic Khaganates and their relations with neighbouring states.

On the basics of textual criticism of Runic inscriptions

I.L. Kyzlasov — Mon, 22 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Evidence of literacy and education among speakers of the Old Turkic runic script is already attested in the earliest known stone steles of the Second Eastern Turkic Khaganate along the Orkhon River, dating to the first third of the eighth century. Monuments of the Uyghur Khaganate bear traces of multiple compositional layers, suggesting the hereditary continuity of a distinct professional class engaged in intellectual and educational activity. As with other literary languages of antiquity and the Middle Ages, the written literary language, often referred to as a runic koine, emerged from a supra-dialectal oral tradition, grounded not only in epic poetry but also in ritual and cultic poetic forms. Numerous Yenisei epitaphs, produced between the eighth and twelfth centuries in honour of various members of the ruling elite of the Old Khakass state, preserve within their structure and content elements of such ritual poetry, particularly funeral laments. The Yenisei memorial inscriptions reflect the deep historical roots and perceived sacral status of the ancient Proto-Runic scribal tradition. They preserve features of the earliest stages of runic textual production, in which stone inscriptions reflect earlier draft versions of texts originally composed on portable writing materials. The presumed prototypes of these stone epitaphs include wooden rods inscribed on all sides, as well as flat wooden tablets bearing inscriptions on a single surface and bound at the edges with cords or straps. It is highly probable that oral koine traditions acquired written form at an early stage within Proto-Turkic ritual practice. The archaic writing technique characterized by a vertical progression (“ascending ladder” structure, in which texts are read from bottom to top) is particularly noteworthy. Since this feature is attested in both Yenisei and Orkhon epitaphic monuments, it likely derives from a common and ancient prototype shared by these traditions. With the spread of Manichaeism in the Uyghur and Old Khakass polities, local runic scripts came to be used within a literate religious environment. Monastic communities were established, and literacy became more widespread. While traditional reverence for natural elements such as mountains and rocks persisted, numerous runic prayer inscriptions were produced on such surfaces. In general, the foundations of runic textual criticism may be divided according to the genres of written monuments, including Orkhon and Yenisei epitaphic texts, as well as various types of rock inscriptions, such as individual prayers and more broadly didactic or homiletic texts.

Translation and scholarly commentary on the Old Uyghur script copy of Latafat-nama (the Otrar library collection)

Т. Moldabay — Mon, 22 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The Kabul copy of Latāfatnāma by Khodjandi, written in the Old Uyghur script, is preserved in the Otrar Library Collection of L.N. Gumilyov Eurasian National University. The manuscript consists of 56 folios and 313 lines. In stylistic terms, Latāfatnāma is closely related to Khwarazmi’s Mahabbatnāma and Yusuf Emri’s Dakh-nāma, composed within the same literary tradition. However, the text is distinguished by its relative linguistic conservatism and is of particular significance as a source reflecting linguistic features characteristic of the Karakhanid period. The language of 11^th century Turkic written monuments, particularly those of the Karakhanid era, subsequently underwent substantial structural changes. Although the literary school of this period eventually declined, its poetic conventions continued to be preserved for centuries. At the time of the composition of Latāfatnāma, a common literary koine was in use, incorporating local dialectal features and enjoying broader circulation than earlier literary varieties. Its dialectal basis differs from that reflected in Kutadgu Bilig and Atabat al-Haqāyiq. The present study demonstrates that the language most closely related to that of Latāfatnāma is Khwarazmian Turkic; accordingly, this linguistic variety was used as the principal reference point for the transcription of the text. Since this work had not previously been translated into Kazakh, the aim of the study was to produce a translation of the Kabul version, provide scholarly commentary, and introduce the text into academic circulation. The study also includes a review of the history of research on the work and an examination of historical figures associated with it, along with several original interpretative observations. In preparing the transcription of the original text, particular attention was paid to the limited graphemic inventory of the Old Uyghur script, in which phonemic distinctions such as a/e, o/u, y/i, k/g, and b/p are represented by single graphemes. The transcription was conducted with careful consideration of the linguistic features of Khwarazmian Turkic. An analysis of the verse Tabīʿatdın çıḳardım naẓm bisyār / acunda bulmadım ikev ḫarīdār (“I composed many poems expressing my nature, yet found not even two recipients in this world”) suggests the possible existence of additional works by Khodjandi. During the translation process, individual lexical items were supplemented with scholarly commentary and interpreted on the basis of lexicographic sources. A structural analysis of the text identified its compositional organization, consisting of an introduction, ten main chapters, and a conclusion. Throughout the translation, the semantic structure of the original was preserved, while explicative and descriptive translation techniques were employed where necessary.

A new interpretation of the Tuekta IV (A 88) inscription based on its 3D documentation

I.A. Nevskaya, M.V. Vavulin, L.N. Tybykova — Mon, 22 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This article presents a new interpretation of the Tuekta IV runic inscription based on the latest data obtained through digital photogrammetry. The study aims to improve the methodology for researching runic monuments in the Altai Republic, especially given their poor state of preservation and archaeological significance. The Tuekta IV (A 88) is a unique written monument consisting of three lines of runes carved on an upright stone at the foot of a low mountain range southeast of the village of Tuekta in the Ongudai District of the Altai Republic. The first reading and interpretation of this inscription were published in 2009 on the website "Written Runic Monuments of the Altai Republic" and in the "Catalog of Ancient Turkic Runic Monuments of the Altai Mountains" in 2012. Traditional methods of studying Altai runic monuments, such as contact analysis, are often ineffective due to the inscriptions’ features. These inscriptions are characterized by extremely fine lines, small signs, partially destroyed surfaces, and the presence of petroglyphs from various eras. Since 2017, we have been using three-dimensional documentation methods. As part of the ongoing study of ancient Turkic runic monuments in Altai, we are processing the obtained three-dimensional data in detail. Initial or refined interpretations of Altai runic inscriptions have already been published. The main objective of this study is to publish a new catalogue of Altai runic inscriptions, which will serve as an important resource for further research on Turkic writing and culture and contribute significantly to the advancement of Turkic studies. The ultimate goal of this research is to create of a new Catalog of Altai Runic Inscriptions, which will be an important resource for furthering the study of Turkic writing and culture. Using a three-dimensional documentation method based on digital photogrammetry technology, which provides highly detailed recordings, we made significant progress deciphering the Tuekta IV inscription. While analyzing the three-dimensional data, identified and corrected errors in the initial reading and interpretation (signs 1-16). We achieved a more precise identification of the signs in the first 21 signs of the initial part of the second line and proposed a possible interpretation of the middle fragments of the inscription (signs 17-23), which we had not previously read. Probable decipherment of the symbols in the second line of the inscription allowed us to correct previous Turkologist readings and interpretations of the text. Consequently, this article enables us to propose a new, more substantiated interpretation of the entire inscription.

The medical manuscript 'Kitāb-ı ʿilm-i ṭıbb': transcription and fundamentals of scientific and textual analysis

K.B. Sultanbek — Mon, 22 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This article presents a transcription of the first two pages of the Chagatai manuscript Kitāb-ı ʿilm-i ṭıbb, along with the foundation of its textual analysis and an index glossary of the first page. The Chagatai period (15th–20th centuries) is widely recognized as a significant stage in the history of Turkic written culture. Although religious literature predominated during this period, a considerable number of texts representing various branches of knowledge were also produced, including medical works. The manuscript Kitāb-ı ʿilm-i ṭıbb, preserved in the National Academic Library of the Republic of Kazakhstan, is described in terms of its codicological features. The text is written in black ink, with occasional use of red ink for emphasis. However, no information is available regarding its author, date of composition, or copyist. The manuscript has not previously been incorporated into scholarly circulation and has been known only through catalogue records. The aim of this study is to introduce this previously understudied medical manuscript into academic discourse. To achieve this, the first two pages of the text were transcribed, an index glossary for the first page was compiled, and the proportional distribution of lexical units was analyzed. The study employs textual analysis, the historical-comparative method, and linguistic description. A persistent problem in Turkological studies is the lack of standardization in the transcription of Turkic texts written in Arabic script. Different studies employ Cyrillic, Latin, or mixed transcription systems. In this article, a Latin-based transcription system is adopted, following the principles proposed in the Turkic Academy publication Qara sözder, with necessary extensions and additional characters. Following transcription, the lexical structure of the text was analyzed using an index dictionary generated with the TURKSÖZDIZ 4.3.1 program developed by Turkish researchers. Abbreviations and specific features of the Chagatai written tradition were also examined. As a result, the manuscript is introduced into scholarly circulation for the first time and is identified as one of the most extensive known medical manuscripts within the medieval Turkic written heritage. The findings contribute to the study of Chagatai medical literature and provide valuable material for the analysis of historical Turkic lexicon and terminology. The proposed transcription and index glossary may serve as useful tools for future textological research on Turkic written heritage.

The Karsakpay epigraphic monument on Altynshoky Hill in the Landscape of Tamerlane’s 1391 Military Campaign

E.R. Usmanova, R.M. Zhumashev, G.T. Yedgina, I.P. Panyushkina — Mon, 22 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This study offers a comprehensive interdisciplinary analysis of the cultural-historical complex on Altynshoky Hill (Ulytau, Kazakhstan), established in connection with Tamerlan’s military campaign against Tokhtamysh, Khan of the Golden Horde, in 1391. We conceptualize the landscape of this military conflict as a distinct historical and cultural space, in which material objects acquire sacred and commemorative significance. The study focuses on the epigraphic monument known as “Timur’s Stone” (also referred to as the Karasakpay inscription by its first translator, Nicholas N. Poppe, in 1940), as well as the kurgan-oboo, interpreting them as interconnected elements of a unified complex that constitutes a “place of memory.” Using methodology of lieu de mémoire, which identifies historical events symbolically embedded in material environment, we integrated archaeological, historical, and textual evidence into a unified analytical framework. The epigraphic monument reflects the continuity of Turkic written traditions within the political culture of Timurid' era. It uses the Uyghur script to record a text in the Chagatai language upkeeping earlier Turkic writing practices in the official commemorative address of the late fourteenth century. The mixture of Arabic formulaic expressions with a Turkic text illustrates the synthesis of Islamic political ideology and Turkic state-administrative traditions. The bilingual character of the inscription along with its composition suggest the prominence of this inscription in political legitimation, linking sacred Islamic discourse with established forms of steppe political culture. It constitutes as important relic of cultural and ideological policies under the Timurid dynasty. The horizontal orientation of the text is also a notable epigraphic feature. It reflects the adaptation of the Uyghur script to the demands of monumental inscription and to the physical layout of the stone slab, indicating a transformation of graphic conventions within the broader context of material culture and regional practices of written record-keeping. It shows flexibility of writing norms when transferred from manuscript to epigraphic context and highlights the influence of technical and spatial constraints on the visual organization of the text. The inscription functioned as a politico-memorial marker, recording Tamerlane’s campaign against Tokhtamysh in 1391. In this role, the epigraphic monument serves as a material instrument for constructing historical memory and symbolically representing power in medieval Turkic political culture. Alongside the kurgan, interpreted as a ritual and thermotechnical structure, the Altynshoky complex is considered a unique example of sacralizing the space of military conflict, combining elements of Turkic-Mongol tradition, Islamic ideology, and local natural-cultural practices of steppe landscape. This study offers a new perspective on the role of material objects in shaping historical memory and political symbolism.

Resolving High-Vowel Ambiguity (⟨ï⟩ / ⟨i⟩ / ⟨ı⟩) in OCR-Derived Old Turkic Editions: An Edition-Metadata-Driven Disambiguation Layer

E. Uçar — Mon, 22 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This study addresses the problem of high-vowel ambiguity in OCR-derived Old Turkic texts, in which the graphemic distinction between ⟨ï⟩, ⟨i⟩, and ⟨ı⟩ is frequently neutralized to ⟨i⟩. This issue arises from the limitations of existing normalization approaches, which fail to adequately capture edition-specific orthographic conventions or the variability across the editorial traditions. As a result, a significant portion of the original graphemic information is lost during digitization, thereby reducing the reliability of subsequent linguistic and philological analysis. To resolve this problem, the paper proposes a dedicated disambiguation layer integrated into a TEI-P5 two-layer encoding framework (orig/reg). The proposed layer operates strictly at the representation level and does not attempt to reconstruct phonology or modify the original OCR output. Instead, it combines edition-specific metadata with rule-based linguistic cues, including lexical allow-lists, morphological constraints, vowel harmony patterns, and loanword profiles. The model follows a deterministic priority structure, ensuring that each ambiguous case is resolved in a transparent, consistent, and reproducible manner. By design, the framework avoids probabilistic inference and prioritizes philological accountability over statistical generalization. The model was evaluated on a dataset of 4,485 tokens drawn from thirteen Old Turkic editions published between 1919 and 2023. Among these, 1,837 tokens exhibited unresolved high-vowel ambiguity after normalization. The proposed method successfully disambiguates approximately 88–93% of these cases, depending on the edition, while preserving unresolved forms through explicit TEI <unclear> annotation. This approach ensures that ambiguity is not obscured but remains visible and accessible for further philological evaluation and interpretation. Comparative analysis across editions further confirmed the stability of the method under varying orthographic conventions. The results demonstrate that a deterministic, edition-aware approach can significantly improve accuracy compared to baseline methods, without sacrificing transparency, reversibility, or interpretability. The study further highlights the importance of editorial traditions in shaping graphemic representation and shows that ambiguity can be effectively managed through structured metadata and constrained rule-based systems. The proposed framework offers a reproducible and extensible solution for enhancing the quality, consistency, and interoperability of OCR-derived historical corpora in Turcology and digital philology. Future work will focus on extending the framework to additional Turkic editions and integrating it with corpus-level search and annotation tools.

The place, time and method of writing the ‘Dīwān Lughāt al-Turk’ by Mahmud Kashgari Barskani

Т. Tchoroev (Chorotegin) — Mon, 22 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The legacy of Mahmud Kashgari, an outstanding figure in pan-Turkic culture and science during the "Golden Age of Islam", is a complex issue. He was born into the family of the Bek of the Barskan (Issyk-Kul) principality in the eastern part of the Karakhanid Khaganate between 1029 and 1038 (the year and place of his death remain unknown). This article is devoted to studying its complex aspects, particularly the issues of determining the time and place of composition of his only surviving work, “Dīwān Lughāt al-Turk”. It also analyses the source of the method used to compose this unique work, which serves as both a Turkic-Arabic dictionary and an encyclopedic, ethnographically rich compendium. Mahmud Kashgari, a native of the ruling dynasty of the Muslim Karakhanid Khaganate, is considered the first Turkologist, ethnologist, and cartographer. Based on critical analysis of the sources, the author believes that Mahmud Kashgari's Arabographic work was written in the Middle East, specifically in the central regions of the Abbasid Caliphate (Baghdad), which was under the political control of the Turkic-speaking Seljuk Sultans at the time. The article argues that this work was written between 464–469 AH/1072–1077 CE. It emphasizes that Mahmud Kashgari's work was not written in the classical dictionary format characteristic of earlier Arabic dictionaries but rather in a unique format combining lexical, grammatical, dialectological, ethnocultural, and cartographic (i.e., encyclopedic) approaches. The author highlights the work of orientalists Gotthelf Bergstrasser and Anas Khalidov, who, as early as the 20th century, proved that Mahmud Kashgari's method was derived from the work of Central Asian linguist Abu Ibrahim Ishaq al-Farabi (died in the year 350 AH / 961–962 CE). Al-Farabi was a native of Farab, whose ruins are located in southern Kazakhstan. Mahmud Kashgari even used the title of al-Farabi's work, “Divan al-Adab fi Bayani Lughat al-‘Arab” – “A Compendium of the Words of Fine Arts in the Description of the Arabic Languages", as a template. The article emphasizes that the difference between the two lies in the fact that Mahmud Kashgari wrote the word "language" ("луға" (‘luga’)) in the plural form, "...Turkic languages" ("...луғāti т-турк" (‘…lugati t-turk’)), whereas al-Farabi wrote it in the singular. The article concludes with a proposal for the academic community to widely celebrate the 950th anniversary of the completion of Mahmud Kashgari’s (1077–2027) "Divan" in 2027, recognizing it as an important legacy for the intellectual history of humanity.