Turkic Wikimedia Conference

Turkic Wikimedia Conference is an annual conference organized by Wikimedians of Turkic Languages User Group (WMTurkic) and attended by the Turkic world and surrounding Wikimedia communities. The conference, which was first held in Almaty, Kazakhstan in 2012, was not held again until 2023. In 2023, with the initiatives of WMTurkic, a new conference was planned and action was taken. The last conference, which was held in Istanbul in 2023, is planned to be held in Baku in 2025.

The generic logo of the conference

History

Organizers of the 2012 Almaty conference

For the first time, a conference called Turkic Wikimedia Conference 2012 was held in Almaty, Kazakhstan, in 2012. The purpose of the conference; It was the promotion of the Wikimedia Movement and its projects in Turkic speaking countries, the promotion of the Creative Commons movement, the strengthening of cooperation between Turkic-speaking communities and the adoption of the Wikipedia Education Program. To the conference that lasted 2 days; In addition to participants from Türkiye, Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Tatarstan, Bashkortostan, Chuvashia, Saha and Uyghur Autonomous Region, there were contributions from the Wikimedia Foundation, Creative Commons and TURKSOY. After this conference in 2012, no more local or international conferences on the same theme were held.

Wikidata Istanbul Conference 2022 family photo

In 2022, Wikimedians of Turkic Languages User Group held the Wikidata Trainings For Turkic Wikimedians Conference in Istanbul, Türkiye, exactly 10 years later, on the 10th anniversary of Wikidata. The positive feedback and high yields received at this conference convinced the user community to organize an annual conference for the Turkic world. Firstly, opinions were received from WMTurkic members about finding a name for the conference. As a result of the voting, it was decided to maintain the name Turkic Wikimedia Conference adopted in 2012. After the name was announced, a general corporate identity guide was designed.

Turkic Wikimedia Conference 2023, which done in Istanbul, Türkiye, on 20-22 October 2023 in cooperation with Wikimedians of Turkic Languages User Group and Wikimedia Community User Group Turkey.

Goals

The conference aims to bring together all the people who work on Wikimedia projects and support the development of projects and the Wikimedia Movement on a local and global level. Today, more than 200 million people speak Turkic languages, and the geography of the speakers unites Türkiye, Azerbaijan, Iran, Central Asia, China, and Russia. On this basis, the development and support of communities of Turkic-speaking Wikimedians are critical.

Branding

The logo consists of people united, derived from a letter of the Orkhon alphabet, and the text of the Turkic Wikimedia Conference. People in unity represent a conference where participants from the Turkic world and surrounding Wikimedia communities join together for a purpose. Turquoise, the historical color of the Turkic people, is used in the logo. The brand identity was designed by WMTurkic and Turkish Community member, graphic designer Kurmanbek.

Conferences

Conference	Date	Location	Attendance	Archive
Turkic Wikimedia Conference 2012	April 20–21, 2012	Almaty	38	Category
Turkic Wikimedia Conference 2023	October 20-22, 2023	Istanbul	90+	Category
Turkic Wikimedia Conference 2025	TBA	Baku	TBA	TBA