The Department of the Middle East and South Asia of Al-Farabi Kazakh National University, Faculty of Oriental Studies (Almaty, Kazakhstan) organized a meeting with Prof. Dr. Ashirbek Muminov, a well-known scholar in Oriental Studies and Historical Sciences, and Head of Research and Publication at IRCICA. The meeting was held online, on 25 February 2021. Its main purpose was to acquaint young specialists, researchers, students and other interested persons with Oriental and Islamic Studies and create objective grounds to promote their enthusiasm for engaging in these fields. By introducing them with eminent scholars, in the present case Professor Muminov, the program ensures dissemination of information on exemplary achievements for the benefit of research and education as well as for encouragement of scientific interest in the said fields. It is expected that the path, experience and work of Prof. Ashirbek Muminov will make a special impression on the students of the Faculty of Oriental Studies.
The meeting, attended by 34 young scholars and specialists, comprised three sections. First, the biography of Prof. Muminov was outlined, where the scholar spoke about the different stages of his career, introducing the notable authors and specialists of the field from around the world with whom he met and/or collaborated over the years. The second section introduced at length the present activities of Prof. Muminov, in the context of the activity programs of IRCICA. The scholar gave detailed information on the topics, materials, methods and modalities of research in Oriental and Islamic Studies. He communicated his observations on scientific interest and the state of studies in these areas around the world. He gave examples of the publications of IRCICA with information on their contents. The third section engendered an inspiring interactive discussion focusing on diverse aspects of these areas with respect to the different subject areas, languages, geographical regions and other themes under study, including the qualities that a future orientalist needs to possess and other conditions and requirements of a successful career and valuable contributions to scholarship and education. Some of the questions and answers focused on IRCICA’s research projects conducted in cooperation with Kazakhstan and other countries in Central Asia, and its publications. Prof. Muminov invited the attendees to participate in these activities and to contribute their articles to the IRCICA Journal. The attendees expressed their appreciation of the very informative and interesting lecture.
