The Central Asia-Caucasus Institute at SAIS, Johns Hopkins University, invites you to:

“Yusuf of Balasagun: 11th Century Political Philosopher from Present-day Kyrgystan”

Featuring

Featuring Dr. S. Frederick Starr, Chairman, CACI, SAIS; Dr. Rusty Butler, Associate Vice-President, International Affairs and Diplomacy, Utah Valley University; three winners of a contest on Yusuf of Balasagun’s Kutadgu Bilig; and an Uyghur historian (TBA)  

Wednesday, 10 June, 2009
5 to 7 PM
The Rome Auditorium, Rome Building
1619 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20036

Yusuf Has Hajib of Balasagun (11th century ) was the first major writer in any Turkic language and the author of a classic guide for rulers, Kutadgu Bilig,  which has just been republished by the Utah Valley University and the Central Asia-Caucasus Institute. Yusuf, who lived at the time of the Karakhanid dynasty, resided at one if its capitals, Balasagun, on the Kyrgyzstan-Kazakhstan border. His book is a compendium of early Turkic thinking about politics and society. It is written in a language most closely resembling modern Uyghur, but which resonates with all the Turkic languages today.
 
This Forum will present the new publication. Featured speakers will be  Dr. S. Frederick Starr, Chairman, CACI,  and Dr. Rusty Butler, Associate Vice-President, International Affairs and  Diplomacy, Utah Valley University; additional,  brief remarks will be offered by three UVU undergraduates, winners of an essay contest on the subject of the Yusuf of Balasagun’s  book. An expert on Uyghur history (TBA) will also comment.

 Light refreshments will be served at 5 PM.  The program will begin promptly at 5:30 PM and conclude at 7 PM sharp. RSVP for this event is mandatory. To RSVP please send an email with your name and affiliation to caci2@jhu.edu With questions about the Forum, please call 202-663-7723.

The Central Asia-Caucasus Institute is the primary institution in the United States for the study of the Caucasus, Central Asia and the Caspian Region. The Institute, affiliated with Johns Hopkins University-SAIS, forms part of a Joint Center with the Silk Road Studies Program, affiliated with the Stockholm-based Institute for Security and Development Policy. Additional information about the Joint Center, as well as its several publications series, is available at www.silkroadstudies.org