What is a qurultay and which nations still hold it?

What is Qurultay?

The word qurultay comes from early Turkic and Mongolic languages and is derived from a verb meaning to gather. It refers to an assembly where important matters are discussed and decided collectively, emphasizing participation and shared responsibility rather than rule by a single leader. For nomadic societies of Central Eurasia, such gatherings served as a form of self-governance long before parliaments or ministries existed.

Qurultay in Kazakh history

Throughout the period of the Kazakh Khanate, the qurultay played a central role in political life. Elders, clan leaders, and respected figures gathered to settle disputes, choose leaders, and respond to major challenges such as war or external threats.

With the expansion of imperial rule and later Soviet governance, traditional forms of collective assembly lost their political function. The qurultay gradually disappeared from everyday governance but remained embedded in historical memory, oral tradition, and national identity.

Following independence in 1991, Kazakhstan returned to the concept in a new context. The first World Kurultai of Kazakhs, held in Almaty in 1992, was designed not to govern but to reconnect Kazakhs separated by borders and migration. Representatives from dozens of countries discussed language, culture, education, and ties with the historical homeland.

Later gatherings deepened these links and led to the establishment of the World Association of Kazakhs, which continues to support cultural and social initiatives among Kazakh communities worldwide.

In 2022 President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev launched Ulttyq (National) Qurultay as a consultative forum. Unlike its historical predecessor, this body does not make binding decisions. Instead, it brings together public figures, experts, cultural leaders and regional representatives to discuss national development, social values and reforms.

Similar assemblies among other peoples

The qurultay as a nationwide political institution took shape within Mongol society at the turn of the 13th century, during the unification of previously independent Mongol tribes under Genghis Khan.

The earliest known written reference appears in The Secret History of the Mongols, where the term Yeke Qurilta, or Great Qurultay, is used to describe such a gathering.

One of the most dramatic examples of the qurultay’s power took place in 1206. At a great assembly of Mongol tribes, Temujin was proclaimed Genghis Khan, the supreme ruler of a unified Mongol state.

In modern Mongolia, the parliament is officially called the State Great Khural. The word khural is a direct linguistic relative of qurultay and reflects the same idea of a national gathering.

In Kyrgyzstan, qurultai gatherings have deep historical roots as assemblies of tribal leaders and elders who discussed major political, social, and military issues. After independence in 1991, this tradition resurfaced informally during periods of political change, often as public meetings or civic forums expressing popular opinion.

The modern People’s Kurultai of Kyrgyzstan is a constitutionally defined institution that revives this tradition in a contemporary framework. The first official People’s Kurultai was convened in Bishkek in November 2022, with further sessions held in 2023 and subsequent years. Unlike parliament, the People’s Kurultai does not pass laws or exercise executive power. Its role is consultative and supervisory. It brings together delegates from all regions of the country, as well as representatives of the diaspora, to discuss key social, political, and economic issues.

In Hungary, the Kurultáj is a large cultural gathering that celebrates ancient Hungarian heritage and its links to the Eurasian steppe world. Held every two years in Bugac, it brings together historians, artists, and official delegations from dozens of Turkic and nomadic peoples across Central Asia, the Caucasus, Anatolia, and Siberia.

Beyond ceremony, Kurultáj functions as a space for international cultural exchange. Folk music, throat singing, and epic storytelling highlight shared traditions, while participants in historically inspired dress and mounted warriors reenacting battle scenes evoke the nomadic past and reinforce a sense of common cultural space.

In Russia, several regions with Turkic and Mongolic heritage use the qurultay concept in their political institutions. Bashkortostan’s regional parliament is known as the State Assembly Kurultai, while Buryatia has the People’s Khural.

For the Bashkir people more broadly, the World Qoroltai of the Bashkirs serves as a global forum uniting communities from different countries. Unlike a parliament, it focuses on cultural preservation, language, education and social cohesion.

A similar role is played by the Qurultay of the Crimean Tatar People, which acts as a representative body expressing the political and cultural interests of the Crimean Tatars.

Earlier, Qazinform News Agency reported on Amirlan Nurgazin, Research Fellow at the Maqsut Narikbayev Institute for Network and Development (MIND), discussing the Ulttyq Qurultay.