"Yallı: A Symbol of Strength, Harmony, and Unity" - an event for high school students

With the initiative of the Republic Center for Child and Youth Development (RCCYD) and the support of the State Agency for Preschool and General Education, a public listening and discussion event titled "Yalli: symbol of strength, harmony, and unity" was held in the "Aquarium" format for schoolchildren.

RCCYD informed AZERTAC that the event aimed to cultivate interest among children and youth in Azerbaijan's ancient dance form Yalli, which is one of the oldest dance genres in Azerbaijani national folklore.

Firuza Sultanzada, Director of the Republic Center for Child and Youth Development, emphasized the importance of introducing children and youth to Yalli, an important part of Azerbaijan's cultural heritage. She noted that Yalli, included in UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, reflects themes of heroism as well as the spiritual and emotional states of ancient communities, their strength, unity, lifestyle, customs, traditions, resilience, and fearlessness.

In the "Aquarium" format public listening and discussion event, the following individuals spoke about their activities and the topic:
    • Sabina Hajiyeva, Head of the State Service of Cultural Heritage Conservation, Development and Rehabilitation under the Ministry of Culture of Azerbaijan.
    • Sevil Karimova, Head of the Department of Art and Intangible Cultural Heritage at the Ministry of Culture of Azerbaijan.
    • Mustafa Shabanov, Employee of the National Commission of the Republic of Azerbaijan for UNESCO.
    • Afaq Huseynova, Doctor of Philosophy in History and Art Studies.
    • Fikrat Abdullayev, Honored Cultural Worker.
    • Chinara Guliyeva, President's Awardee, Teacher and Choreographer at the Baku Choreography Academy.

They discussed various aspects related to their activities and the theme surrounding the event.

The jury evaluated participants' presentations on the following nominations: "Research and Preservation of Dance History and Traditions", "Philosophy of Dance", "Dance Rhythms, Mythologies, Rituals, and Historical Context", "Intersections of Dance: Yallı and Other Cultures", and "Global Voices: Yallı in Musical Collaborations".

Note that the event, held among pupils aged 11-17 and across 5 categories, attracted 193 applications. In the initial stage, 93 participants were selected. Out of the 34 qualified finalists, 15 emerged as winners.

The event concluded with the performance of the song and dance ensemble "Cucelerim" featuring the "Garabakh Yallısı" dance. At the end, winners in each category were awarded with diplomas.