In 2019, the name of Kazakhstan’s capital, Astana, was changed to “Nur Sultan” after the proposal was unanimously accepted. A group of deputies in the Assembly, the lower house of the Kazakhstan Parliament, proposed that the capital of the country be given its former name, Astana. In the proposal, stating that the people could not accept the new name of the capital, “Therefore, it would be historically fair to return the name Astana, which was proposed by the First President (Nursultan Nazarbayev) at the time, to the capital.” it was said.
The proposal of the deputies of the “New Kazakhstan” group in the parliament brought up the public debate on changing the name of the capital from Nur Sultan to Astana.
Making a statement on the subject, Parliament Speaker Yerlan Koşanov said that since the day the name of the capital was changed, various opinions have been shared in the society and most of them are for the return of the old name.
Senate President Maulen Ashimbayev pointed out that the public’s views on this issue were taken into account and said, “If the society supports it, such a decision should be taken.” he said.
BECOME “NUR SULTAN” IN 2019
President Kasım Cömert Tokayev, who took over the duty in the Parliament one day after the founding President of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbayev, resigned from his presidency on March 19, 2019, made a proposal to change the name of the capital Astana to Nur Sultan.
Despite the demonstrations and petition campaigns held in different parts of the country, the proposal was unanimously accepted in the Parliament on March 23, 2019, and the name of the capital of the country was “Nur Sultan”. (AA)