Mahmudkhoja Behbudi’s Role in the Formation and Development of Turkestan Jadidism

In 2025, the 150th anniversary of Mahmudkhoja Behbudi’s birth is being widely celebrated. He was a great historical figure who left a profound mark on the recent history of Uzbekistan, devoting his entire life to the idea of awakening the nation. Behbudi dedicated all his strength and abilities to rescuing his people from ignorance and backwardness, striving to lead the country out of darkness. He is rightfully recognized as the ideological leader and, without doubt, the foremost figure of the Jadid movement in Turkestan. As the head of the Jadid reformist movement, Mahmudkhoja Behbudi was actively engaged in practical initiatives that served the interests of the people: he took the lead in establishing new-method schools, laid the foundations of theatrical art, published newspapers and journals, and founded publishing houses and libraries. He contributed equally to political, educational-cultural, and socio-economic spheres. Notably, Behbudi’s activities were interconnected and implemented in a coherent and systematic manner.This article explores Behbudi’s program aimed at creating a national system of primary education in the mother tongue, his regular correspondence and cooperation with Ismail Gasprinsky – the founder of the Jadid (reformist) movement among Russian Muslims – his editorial work, the establishment and operation of the Journal of ‘Oyina’, and his involvement with foreign periodical press.