An international workshop on Epigraphy in Arabic Script of the “Abat-Baytaq” Necropolis was organized by Aqtobe Governorate (with the participation of its Department of Culture), Aqtobe Regional University named after Zhubanov, and IRCICA and held at Aqtobe Regional Museum of Local History on 2 February 2024. The workshop marked the completion of the joint research and authorship work that was conducted by Professor Ashirbek Muminov, Dr. Allen Frank and Dr. Baghdad Duissenov during 2019-2023 under the coordination of Aqtobe Governorate, IRCICA and R.B. Suleimenov Institute of Oriental Studies (Almaty) on the inscriptions in Arabic script of the historical “Abat-Baytaq” Necropolis in Aqtobe.
The necropolis is an important site of cultural heritage for mainly two main reasons: it is an archive of documents on the administrators, learned persons, families and communities that lived in the area during that period; at the same time, the wide diversity of the gravestones representing different styles and materials of craftsmanship makes it an invaluable artistic-archeological collection. The project and the resulting book-album are introducing this documentary treasure to the world of learning. Published in 2023, the book contains textual and photographic records of the gravestones in Arabic script, their transcriptions in Kazakh in Cyrillic script, their translations in English and Russian, and their photographs taken from different sides.
The book was launched during the Aqtobe international workshop, moderated by Prof. Rahim Beknazarov, Vice-Rector for Science and Innovations of Aqtobe Regional University named after Zhubanov, the workshop heard the opening speech of Prof. Mahmud Erol Kılıç, IRCICA Director General, presented by Prof. Ashirbek Muminov, doctor of historical sciences, IRCICA’s Consultant for Central Asian Studies. Prof. Kılıç indicated that the workshop and the book-album marked the culmination of many years of specialized surveys, preservation efforts and authorship devoted to the registration and valorization of the valuable cultural assets of the monumental complex of “Abat-Baytaq” Necropolis. The Deputy Governor of Aqtobe Region, Mrs. Bulbul Eleusinova, gave an address at the opening.
During the working sessions, the authors and the participating experts exchanged evaluations on the documentary and archeological information valorized through this project, and, generally, on the fields of specialization involved.
