On 6 October 2026, during the 7th International Forum on Cultural Diplomacy, an awards ceremony was held for the Khvylya / Dalğa Award for promoting the Ukrainian and Crimean Tatar languages worldwide, the Ukrainian Institute reports.
The laureates were university lecturer Alla Nedashkivska, school teachers Olha Polisvyat and Gulnaz Adzhyheldiieva, and director and cultural manager Fatima Osman.
The distinction is presented by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine and the Ukrainian Institute.
For the 2026 award, the organisers received 31 applications from 12 countries around the world.
- In the category “Teachers of Ukrainian as a foreign language at higher education institutions in Ukraine or abroad”, Alla Nedashkivska won.
Alla Nedashkivska is Professor of Slavic and Applied Linguistics at the University of Alberta; the author of textbooks and digital resources for learning Ukrainian; the founder of the international summer school “Ukrainian Through Living Culture”; co-founder of the International Association of Ukrainian Language Teachers; and Vice-President of the American Association of Teachers of Slavic and East European Languages.
One of the leading strands of her work has been rethinking the teaching of Ukrainian and Ukrainian studies in the context of decolonising Slavic studies. She has addressed this topic in talks in Ottawa, Warsaw and Lviv, as well as at the international round table she organised in 2026, “Teaching Ukrainian as a Foreign Language in the Context of Decolonising Slavic Studies”, which brought together researchers from Canada, Poland and Ukraine.
- In the category “Teachers of Ukrainian as a foreign or heritage language in non-academic settings abroad, and civic, public-sector and cultural figures whose work is aimed at promoting the Ukrainian language worldwide”, the winner was Olha Polisvyat.
A Ukrainian-language teacher at the Ukrainian School of the Most Pure Virgin Mary in London, she served as the school’s headteacher in 2004–2010; is a member of the examination board of the Association of Ukrainian Teachers in Great Britain; leads an editorial team creating learning materials for children in the Ukrainian diaspora; and is a co-author of a literature textbook and a series of workbooks for Ukrainian schools in Great Britain.
- In the category “Teachers of the Crimean Tatar language at educational institutions in Ukraine or abroad”, Gulnaz Adzhyheldiieva won.
A philologist and Turkologist, an Honoured Teacher of Ukraine, she is a co-author of a new-generation textbook and model curricula in Crimean Tatar language and literature for Years 1–9, a co-author and presenter of 140 video lessons for the All-Ukrainian Online School, and the author of teaching and methodological materials.
Gulnaz Adzhyheldiieva has been teaching Crimean Tatar language and literature for more than twenty years, and since 2023 has taught at the Crimean Tatar Lyceum Birlik School in the village of Chayky, Kyiv Region.
In April 2026, for her contribution to the development of education, professionalism and many years of teaching work, Gulnaz Adzhyheldiieva was awarded the honorary title “Honoured Teacher of Ukraine”.
- In the category "Civic, public-sector and cultural figures whose work is aimed at promoting the Crimean Tatar language worldwide", the winner was Fatima Osman.
A director, media manager and cultural projects manager; the originator of the idea and head of the educational multimedia platform for children BÜLBÜL; the director of the Crimean Tatar language video lessons Elifbe; and co-director of the documentary film 1944. Crimea. Deportation.
The multimedia platform BÜLBÜL (Nightingale) combines animation, music and other interactive formats, creating a natural and engaging language environment in which a child hears the Crimean Tatar language from an early age. BÜLBÜL shapes children’s first language experience while also helping parents integrate Crimean Tatar into everyday family life. In June 2026, its second phase was presented: six animated cartoons, ten children’s songs and ten audio fairy tales based on Crimean Tatar folklore. The new block was implemented with UNESCO support.
The awards were presented to the winners by:
- Maryana Betsa, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine
- Iryna Kliuchkovska, Chair of the Ukrainian-language section jury, Director of the International Institute of Education, Culture and Diaspora Relations at the Lviv Polytechnic National University;
- Refat Chubarov, Chair of the Crimean Tatar-language section jury, Head of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People, President of the World Congress of Crimean Tatars, Co-Chair of the National Commission on the Crimean Tatar Language;
- Alim Aliyev, Deputy Director General of the Ukrainian Institute
The laureates received statuettes created by Ostap Ivanyshyn, a glass artist and lecturer at the Lviv National Academy of Arts.