President of Tatarstan Rustam Minnikhanov has addressed citizens of the republic on the occasion of the Tatar literature classic, poet Gabdulla Tukai’s 125th anniversary, RT President’s press-service informs.

Dear Tatarstaners,

I sincerely congratulate you on the significant event – the 125th anniversary of the great Tatar poet Gabdulla Tukai.

For Tatarstan, where the year of 2011 was announced the Year of Gabdulla Tukai, for Tatars all over the world his creativity is a spiritual landmark, one of uniting springs that our nation’s unity is based on.

The poet’s creativity connects the past with the present and the future of the national culture. “It is impossible to understand and explain Tukai during a lifetime or even a time of a generation,” Mustai Karim wrote about him. Esthetic nature of the poet’s talent formed under influence of centuries-old national literary traditions. Virtually, he was a link of the 1000 years process of the Turkic-Tatar poetry with the Tatar literature of the 21st century and set the bar high for authors of the 21st century.

Tukai is the most favorite poet of his nation. His heartfelt words about the mother tongue became a hymn, a factor of uniting devotees of the native language and national culture all over the world.

Tukai’s translation of Pushkin, Lermontov, Bairon’s poems presented their creativity to many peoples of the East.

The poet’s short 27-year-old life, his brilliant creativity is a moral ideal, a pattern of serving one’s nation and one’s country.

Let the immortal creativity of Tukai inspire us for noble deeds and acts and be a pole-star of our national culture development!

President of the Republic of Tatarstan
Rustam Minnikhanov