The opening of the first Uzbek language course in Iran was held virtually on Thursday, October 28, 2021 in the presence of Dr. Sarvar Bakhti, President of ECO Cultural Institute, Dr. Abdollah Motamedi, Head of Allameh Tabatabai University, Dr. Golchehreh Rokhsi Yova, President of Tashkent State University of Oriental Studies and a group of Uzbek language teachers and students.
According to the ECO Cultural Institute, Sarvar Bakhti, President of the International Cultural Organization, while congratulating the beginning of the Uzbek language course, said: "One of the missions of the ECO Cultural Institute as an international and cultural organization is to preserve and promote common languages of the region and to strengthen cultural and literary interactions among the countries. The first Uzbek language course in Iran is launched on a comprehensive planning to cover all languages of the region.
He said: "As everyone believes, language is an important part of culture and the ECO Cultural Institute attaches special value to teaching the important languages of the ECO region in order to spread peace and friendship among the nations of this area of civilization." However, depending on its history, civilization and culture, each language carries concepts, values and counter-values. Language is not only a skill, a tool for evolution and dialogue, but it is in fact a huge part of culture and way of thinking. The cultural elements manifest themselves in linguistic elements, and thereby, language becomes a factor for culture. Since language is a cultural factor, its dissemination can denote the dissemination of its cultural underpinnings.
"Uzbek language with an ancient history has always been one of the influential languages and has had a basic role in transmitting the cultural heritages and civilization. Nearly 50 million people around the world speak Uzbek, which indicates the importance of this language among the world languages. On October 21, 1989, the Uzbek language was adopted as the state language in Uzbekistan, which was an important step towards the country`s independence.", he added.
"Learning the Uzbek language, the learners will get acquainted with a nation that has a long history of civilization and culture and can enjoy reading the works of the dignitaries such as Amir Ali Shir Nava'i, Sultan Husayn Bayqara, Ataei Balkhi, Hamidi, Farqat, Mirza Babur, Hamza Hakimzade Niyazi, Mirmuhsin, Zulfia, Gafur Gulam, Erkin Vohidov and others.
Dr. Abdollah Motamedi, head of Allameh Tabatabai University, said at the ceremony, which was organized by the Department of Turkish Language and Literature in cooperation with the Oriental University of Tashkent and the ECO Cultural Institute: "Iran and Uzbekistan are two great countries in the region. With their valuable cultural resources each country has enriched the identity of the people of the region.
"Although historical developments over the past centuries have ostensibly highlighted the political boundaries, today we can realize that a suitable ground is provided for understanding each other and renewing the long-standing friendship between the people of the two
At the end of his speech, head of Allameh Tabatabai University said: "On the occasion of the forthcoming Uzbek Language Day, we welcome the beginning of the Uzbek language course and wish all professors, students and honorable people of Uzbekistan success and we hope that this cooperation will strengthen the relations between the two countries."
Dr Gulchehra Reksiva, Rector of the Tashkent State Institute of Oriental Studies, said: "Throughout the history of Iran and Uzbekistan, there are many linguistic commonalities that have a unique place in the economic, social, political and cultural fields of both nations. There are many Persian words in Turkish and Uzbek languages and it is very important for the Turkish and Uzbek language learners. It is very important that the Uzbek language course begins in Iran which is hoped to open new chapter of relationships in various cultural and social aspects".