Andreas Biro: The World Bashkir Kurultay is the remarkable festival of language and culture

The World Bashkir kurultay is the remarkable festival of language and culture – this is the appreciation, given to the III World Bashkir Kurultay (Congress) by its guest, the Hungarian ethnologist Andreas Biro, specializing in the investigation of the Bashkir-Hungarian and Turk-Hungarian relations.

“I’m for the third time in Bashkortostan but for the first time I come here as a guest of the World Bashkir Kurultay” – the scientist said at the after-Congress briefing – “People in Hungary are aware of Bashkortostan quite well because once the ancient Hungarians and Bashkirs lived together in the South Ural. Hungarians had left this territory for Europe more than one thousand years ago but we still have much in common. We are united by the ancient nomad culture, our cultures, grammar rules and even our national cookeries stand very close. Now we are preparing for the large Hungarian Kurultay, which is to be held in August 2010. We are waiting for the delegations from 12 countries, including a large delegation from Bashkortostan. In Hungary we will show our national traditions: more than 200 jurts will be demonstrated, 600 horses will take part in the national performances and we will show the reconstruction of the national clothes and cold steel. The wide-scaled show will demonstrate the Hungarian folklore. We will be happy to see our friends from Bashkortostan in Hungary”.