On February 19, the event called “Dona Kyv” (“My dear language” in Komi), dedicated to the International Day of Native Language, was held in the Youth Library of the Komi Republic. The Holiday itself is celebrated worldwide on February 21.
International students of the Medical Institute of the Pitirim Sorokin Syktyvkar State University took part in the event. They were the 1st and 2nd year students from Iraq, Iran, Egypt, Syria and India.
The students had a chance to learn about the culture of the Komi region at nine different event sites: they played folk outdoor games “Gorelki” and ” Mouse-mouse, give me a corner», drew ornaments on sand, translated names of the household items from Komi into Russian, put together puzzle mosaics “The Komi Republic” and “The Komi hunting calendar”. International students have even had a chance to try a flat bread with smashed potatoes– the Komi national cuisine dish.
— I have only been here for eight months and every time I am surprised by the culture and traditions of Komi people. The flat bread was very tasty, — said Marco Eissa, the 1st year student of the Medical Institute.
After the entertaining part, the quiz “Battle of minds” was held: students guessed the characters of famous movies from pictures, where the names of these characters were initially hidden. Then they played a game called “Crocodile”, where one tried to explain a word with gestures, and others tried to guess it.
What a culture can be without poetry? Marco Eissa and Mohammed Hatem read poems in their native language, and also in English and Russian. These were works by eminent authors: William Shakespeare, Ahmed Shawki, Oscar Wilde, Alexander Pushkin, Marina Tsvetayeva, Ivan Kuratov, and so on.
The event ended with a master class on burning ornaments on wooden surfaces. Students burned out their names in their native languages, in Russian, and in Komi.
Lyubov Yurkina, Faculty of Journalism, 2nd year
Photo by Mark Onikul