Children and education workers from the Dovletliler Palace in Ashgabat participated in the “Turkic World Children’s Games Festival” held in Istanbul, Turkey, on April 28-30. The Ministry of National Education of the Republic of Türkiye with the support of the Turkic Union organized this wonderful festival, which was dedicated to the joy and excitement of the joyful childhood world of children from Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Hungary, Northern Cyprus, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and various parts of the Republic of Türkiye. The opening ceremony and main events of the festival were held at the Rami Library, which is located in a historical building dating back to the 18th century in Istanbul and serves as the cultural and educational center of the city.
In his opening speech, Deputy Minister of National Education of the Republic of Türkiye Ömer Faruk Yelkençı noted that this festival was held for the first time with the aim of popularizing the national children’s games of the Turkic world, which have their origins in common history and millennia, and at the same time play a special role in the development of children in harmony with the national culture and spiritual values of the people, strengthening the bonds of friendship and brotherhood between children of Turkic countries through children’s games, and helping children learn cultures and spiritual values that have emerged from a common historical background from an early age.
Children’s creativity and handicrafts, instruments used in playing national games, various types of material assets reflecting the cultural characteristics of the countries, book exhibitions, national dishes were exhibited, children’s games specific to the Turkic world, game-type national dance performances were performed, songs were sung on national musical instruments, and music was played. For three days, the elderly and young residents of Istanbul and guests of the city had the opportunity to watch children’s games of the Turkic world, various types of creative performances, play together and learn, and taste the national dishes offered. The Turkmen national children’s games played by the children of the Dovletli Palace, who participated in the “Children’s Games Festival of the Turkic World”, such as “chilik”, “yagliga tovusdy”, “yüzükbukdy”, “ayterek-gunterek”, “gozdangdy”, “chopan bilen mojek”, “düzzüm”, “bashdash”, “jikge-tükge” played with love, and “uchem” aroused great interest among everyone. Educational workers participating in the festival from Turkmenistan provided interesting information about the history of these national children’s games, the rules of playing and their importance for the development of children, as well as the role of Turkmen national children’s games in the formation of fully developed individuals in our Motherland. The festival participants greeted musical performances such as “Küştdepdi”, “Yelpeselendi”, “Garashsyzlyk bagynda”, skillfully performed by the children of the Dovletli Palace in harmony with the Turkmen national children’s games, with great enthusiasm. During the days of the festival, the White House of Turkmenistan was crowded.
During the last days of the festival, the excursions organized to the historical and scenic sites of Istanbul for the children who participated in the “Turkic World Children’s Games Festival” were also impressive.
