Cultural ties between Iranians and the Turkic peoples in historic Central Asia

The historic familiarity of the Turkic people with the Iranian culture and civilization, initially has started with the intermingle to each other and then by learning the Persian language. Along with Arabic, the Persian Language became the religious language of Turks when they were converted to Islam in the 7th. century CE and onwards (due to the presence of many Persian terms in the religious culture of the region). Before that, the Silk Road had been able to these peopoles culturally closer to each other throughout the decades and centuries of history, and on its east-west route, in addition to goods, language, culture, religion, rituals, and traditions were also exchanged, and in general, the exchange of civilizations between the nations and ethnicities that have interacted with each other during these centuries occurred. For example, the Sogdians civilization, one of the Iranian peoples (in the present-day region of Uzbekistan and Tajikistan), who lived on the border between China and historic Iran, established the first foundations of cultural relations between Iranians and the Turkic people living in that region.
Considering dialogue as the main pillar of cultural exchange between two nations, translators and teachers who instruct one nation in another's language and translate cultural resources play a vital role in fostering familiarity between nations. The dissemination of ideas through text translation and the sharing of literature enriches one nation through another, promoting friendship and connections between them. Translation is particularly significant as a crucial tool for cultural relations among different nations worldwide, facilitating the transfer of civilization, sciences, language, and literature. Translated works reflect characteristics of both the source language and the target language. Consequently, it can be asserted that translations of various Persian works into Turkic languages during the Middle Ages played an important role in spreading Persian language and literature across the vast territories of Islamic governance from Asia Minor to Middle and Central Asia. It is noteworthy that most Turkish translations from this period were derived from Arabic and Persian. Undoubtedly, Turks have greatly contributed to the growth and prosperity of Islamic civilization due to their historical, social, and cultural commonalities with other Muslim nations, especially those speaking Arabic and Persian. This article examines the role of Iranian culture and the Persian language in shaping people's cultures while investigating relations between Iranians and Turks in Central Asia