Azernews.Az

By Sabina Idayatova

The International Koroglu folklore festival of the Turkic world ended in Bolu (Turkey) on October 30.

Bringing together guests from all around the world, the festival has become a symbol of unity and brotherhood.

Bolu which is Koroglu`s homeland left a deep impression on the representatives of the Turkic countries and numerous Turk communities.

The guests and city residents had an opportunity to get acquainted with the rich folklore, national dances, and music of the Turkic countries.

The flags of Turkey, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan, and other Turkic-speaking states were raised during the festival.

The Koroglu park`s foundation ceremony was one of the most important parts of the international folklore festival. City Governor Mustafa Kamal Kaskin, Municipal Chairman Alaaddin Yilmaz, and Azerbaijani MP Agil Abbas participated at the ceremony.

Koroglu Park will be set up in Bolu in an area of 90,000 square meters. A 25-meter high monument of the hero will be installed in the park, and it will be visible from anywhere in Bolu. Koroglu museum is also expected to be created in the park.

Azerbaijani scientists and researchers have given interesting speeches related to the worldwide Koroglu epic at the Koroglu symposium held in the framework of the festival.

Azerbaijani representative Elmira Mammadova, who is an employee of the Oriental Studies Institute of the National Academy of Sciences and holds a PhD in philology, also made a report on the Koroğlu epic.

The international symposium was first held in 1987.

The event organized at the conference hall of the Bolu Trade and Industry House was attended by different Turkish public and state figures, and diverse examples of Azerbaijan's national music and poetry were performed by Azerbaijani artists.

The concurrence of the International folklore festival with the 90^th anniversary of Turkish Republic Day created a special mood for the participants.

The national Koroglu epos, widespread in Azerbaijan, the Caucasus, Central Asia, Turkey, and Iran, are heroic legends that feature prominently in the oral traditions of the Turkic nations.

The legend describes a hero who seeks to avenge wronged people. It was often musical, played in sports events in order to inspire the competing athletes.

Koroglu is the epic's lead hero with the same name in Azerbaijani and Turkish as well as some other Turkic languages.

The epic tells the life and heroic deeds of Koroglu as people's hero, a man who fought against unjust rulers in the 16-17th centuries.

There are different versions of the Koroglu epic in a number of Turkic languages and it is common in several different cultures.

The story has been told for generations by the ashugs of Azerbaijan and Turkey.