The General Directorate of Syriac Culture and Arts in the Kurdistan Region conducted the third day of the Syriac Cultural Week 2022, at Al-Omaraa Hall in Alqosh on Saturday, December 10, 2022. The Event was held in the presence of His Excellency Bishop Mar Boulos Thabit Habib, Pastor of the Chaldean Diocese of Alqosh, accompanied by a number of priests, Kaldo Ramzi Oghanna, Director General of Syriac Culture and Arts, Bernard Youssef, Director of the Syriac Heritage and Museum, Raed Jerjees, Director of Syriac Culture / Dohuk, and a large audience of Alqosh residents and neighboring villages and towns. Furthermore, in Alqosh, the directorate hosted the opening of the Handicrafts and Heritage Handicrafts Exhibition, with the participation of a group of talented sons and daughters of our people in handicrafts and heritage.
Then, the activities began with a welcoming speech by the Director General of Syriac Culture and Arts, in which he said: “From Alqosh, where the monastery and school of Mar Mikha al-Nuhdary are located, from Alqosh, the city of the great thinker, Mar Thomas Udo, the great Syriac linguist who wrote dictionaries and lexicons that preserved our language for us, from Alqosh where the monastery of Rabban Hormuz and his students who wrote thousands of books that are still alive today. We are here continuing the march of Syriac art, culture, and creativity, to continue the path of our fathers and grandfathers… We are here with you today to continue together the activities of the Syriac Cultural Week organized by the General Directorate of Syriac Culture and Arts to be with a distinguished Heritage Day that recalls the glorious past and anticipates a promising future. We thank you for your interaction, communication, and support, and we hope that our joint activities will continue in the future, expand and prosper. He pointed out that Alqosh, Ankawa, Batnaya, Telskuf, Nohadra, and Zakho are all our lands, and the love for them is equal in our hearts.
This was followed by the speech of the pastor of the Chaldean diocese of Alqosh, His Excellency Bishop Mar Boulos Thabet Habib, in which he said that today we are in a wedding held for us by the General Directorate of Syriac Culture and Arts. In every wedding, the bride is adorned, and our land, the bride today, is adorned with our culture, language, faith, and everything we see today. All of it reminds us and reminds the whole world that we are the children of those greats who built this civilization and established this culture that we strive today for its perpetuation and survival despite the many challenges. Additionally, he pointed to the importance of our children and future generations learning our Syriac language, stressing that children speaking English is not a cause for pride as much as they speak the language of their parents and grandparents, Syriac. It is the language of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Then a group of girls from Alqosh Elementary School for Girls, dressed in traditional folkloric costumes of Alqosh, presented a song in the Syriac language, followed by a distinguished painting for the children of Christian education in Alqosh, followed by a dance painting by the Barmaya troupe of Beit Zalin / Qamishli in Syria.
The third day of the activities of the Syriac Cultural Week 2022 witnessed the presentation of folkloric heritage costumes for the various villages and towns of our people. Then, the audience enjoyed singing performances by the artists of our people (Danny Asmaro, Martin Hormuz, and the brilliant Youssef Aziz), during which a theatrical scene was presented entitled “The Mother-in-law and the Daughter-in-law” directed by Raed Jajo. Moreover, Asaad Anwar presented a solo playing on the flute, and the Barmaya troupe had a distinguished presence by presenting dance paintings.
The activities of the Heritage Day were distinguished by presenting traditional dishes, making bread of all kinds, and serving it fresh to the audience in addition to several popular dishes.
It is worth noting that the Syriac Cultural Week 2022 continues its activities for the period from December 8-12, 2022, moving from Nohadra – Dohuk to Alqosh and Telskuf in the Nineveh Plain. Then, it concludes its work in Zakho. The program of Cultural Week 2022 includes a variety of cultural activities, art exhibitions, and dialogue sessions in which an elite group of creative people from among our people. We are on our program date tomorrow in Telskuf.
