Iranians, Turkmen celebrate birth anniversary of Pyragy

TEHRAN,May 19(MNA) -- Iranian and Turkmen scholars and officials celebrated the 279th birth anniversary of Iranian Turkmen poet Magtymguly Pyragy during a ceremony on Friday morning. The ceremony, which was attended by fans of the poet, was held at the Pyragy mausoleum located in Aq-Tuqai village in the Iranian province of Golestan. The Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance Seyyed Mohammad Hosseini and Turkmen Ambassador to Tehran Ahmad Qorbanov attended the ceremony. As the greatest Turkmen poet, Magtymguly (1733-1790) is considered to be the founder of authentic Turkmen literature by the people who speak the Turkic language. The village Aq-Tuqai is located in the southeastern Caspian Sea region, the western portion of which is home to many Turkic-speaking Iranians. A small number Turkic-speaking Iranian people live in Bandar Turkmen in the western portion of Golestan Province, in the southeastern Caspian Sea region.