Aziz Isa Elkun is a Uyghur author, poet, writer, and academic. He was born in Uyghuristan (East Turkistan) and grew up in Shahyar County, near the Tarim River on the northern edge of the Taklamakan Desert, where he completed his primary and secondary education. From 1988 to 1991, he studied Russian and Chinese languages at Xinjiang University in Urumqi. Shortly after graduating, he was persecuted by Chinese authorities due to his political activities during his high school and university years.
In 1999, he fled East Turkistan and in August 2001, resettled in the United Kingdom. Since then, he has pursued further studies and continues to live in the UK with his family. In 2009, he graduated from Birkbeck, University of London, with a degree in Web Development and Multimedia.
Elkun is an active member of the exiled Uyghur community and the founder of the Uyghur music group London Uyghur Ensemble, established in 2006. Since 2014, he has been involved in various research projects on Uyghur culture at SOAS University of London.
From September 2017 to October 2022, he served as Secretary of the PEN Uyghur Centre and as Director of the Uyghur PEN Centre’s Revitalisation Project. From September 2023, he has been working as a researcher on a UK Research and Innovation-funded project, Maqam Beyond Nation, based at SOAS, University of London.
Since April 2025, he has also been serving as President of the Uyghur PEN Centre. In addition, he is a member of English PEN.
Published books:
- “Uyghur Poems” Anthology
Edited and translated by Aziz Isa Elkun (with some contributions from other translators), this anthology was published by Everyman’s Library, an imprint of Penguin Random House, in November 2023. It introduces English-speaking audiences to the rich literary heritage of the Uyghurs, spanning 2,000 years of oral and written traditions. https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/457502/uyghur-poems-by-authors-various/9781841598307
First Anthology of Uyghur Poetry in English. 1. Poets Sing of a Fight for Freedom
First Anthology of Uyghur Poetry in English. 2. The Time of Tragedy
- “Çimenkuş” (A Flower Bird) Elkun’s debut poetry collection, Çımenkuş, translated from Uyghur to Turkish by Amina Wayit Sedef, was published by Önce Kitap Publishers in Türkiye in September 2024. https://www.astanayayinlari.com/cimenkus-aziz-isa-elkun-siir-kitabi-2024
- “Donay Deryasidin Orxun Boylirighiche” (The Journey From Danube River to the Orkhun Valley) in the Uyghur language. Published in 2012 in Türkiye, this book explores the promotion of democracy and freedom of expression among Uyghurs in Uyghuristan and in exile. https://elkitab.org/donay_deryasidin_orxun_boylirighiche/
Selected Articles and Contributions:
- Co-authored English language articles with Rachel Harris, in Inner Asia and Central Asian Survey (‘Invitation to a Mourning Ceremony’: Perspectives on the Uyghur Internet and ‘Islam by Smartphone: the changing sounds of Uyghur religiosity’) and ‘Islam by smartphone: reading the Uyghur Islamic revival on WeChat’, Central Asian Survey 38(1), 2019, 61-80;
- Contributed a chapter on “Music, Terror, and Civilizing Projects in China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region” to The Routledge Companion to Music and Human Rights.
- Co-authored a report titled “The Complicity of Heritage: Cultural Heritage and Genocide in the Uyghur Region” published by the Uyghur Human Rights Project in February 2023.
Some Research articles and Opinion pieces that reflect the ongoing China’s Uyghur Genocide were published on various websites, newspapers, and magazines:
- China’s Uyghur Genocide: A Historical Perspective (The Muslim Vibe, July 2021)
- The world must act on China’s Uyghur genocide (Brussels Morning, May 2021)
- Die heutige Repression der Uiguren hat historische Vorläufer (German “Islamic Newspaper” 2021)
- Poem: Roses (published by Los Angeles Review of Books January 2022)
- A Uyghur Poet Reminds Us that Uyghurs Are Seeking Justice from the World (Bitter Winter 2022)
- Uyghurs Bravely Resist Oppression Through Poetry(Bitter Winter, March 2024)
Documentary Film:
In early 2019, he produced a short documentary film, “An Unanswered Telephone Call”, depicting the ongoing sufferings of his family after China pursued a total blockade of international telephone calls between Uyghurs at home and abroad since 2017. You can also watch this documentary film from Elkun YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCV5DhIq44A-qJMzLkpQ_Vig
On April 16, 2025, the Uyghur PEN Center held its official election at the Mir Publishing House office in Almaty, Kazakhstan, and Aziz Isa Elkun was unanimously elected president of the Uyghur PEN Centre.
Aziz Isa Elkun continues to be a vital voice for the Uyghur community, using his literary and academic work to promote awareness of Uyghur culture, history, and the ongoing human rights struggles faced by his people. You can read poetry, academic and other literary works from his personal blog: www.azizisa.org/en