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Kyrgyzstan
Index
The age-old geographic separation of pockets of the Kyrgyz population
has tended to reinforce conservatism in all of the country's society. The
modern Kyrgyz still apply great significance to family and clan origins.
The majority of Kyrgyz continued a nomadic lifestyle until the Soviet
campaigns of forcible collectivization forced them first into transitional
settlements and then into cities and towns or state and collective farms
in the 1930s. Within the centralized farm systems, however, many Kyrgyz
continued to move seasonally with their herds. There has been strong
resistance to industrial employment.
Clans
Kyrgyz identity in public and private life is said to be determined
primarily by membership in one of three clan groupings known as "wings"
(right, or ong ; left, or sol ; and ichkilik
, which is neither) and secondarily by membership in a particular clan
within a wing. The history of this grouping is unknown, although several
legends explain the phenomenon. The left wing now includes seven clans in
the north and west. Each of the seven has a dominant characteristic, and
all have fought each other for influence. The Buguu warrior clan provided
the first administrators of the Kyrgyz Republic under the Soviet Union;
when the purges of Stalin eradicated their leaders in the 1930s, their
place was taken by a second northern warrior clan, the Sarybagysh, who
have provided most Kyrgyz leaders since that time, including Akayev. The
right wing contains only one clan, the Adygine. Located in the south, the
Adygine are considered the most genuinely Kyrgyz clan because of their
legendary heritage. The southern Ichkilik is a group of many clans, some
of which are not of Kyrgyz origin, but all of which claim Kyrgyz identity
in the present.
Acutely aware of the roles each of the clans traditionally has played,
the Kyrgyz are still very conscious of clan membership in competing for
social and economic advantage. Support for fellow clan members is
especially strong in the northern provinces. Kyrgyz men frequently wear
traditional black-on-white felt headgear, which informs others of their
clan status and the degree of respect to be accorded them. Larger clans
are subdivided by origin and by the nobility of their ancestors; although
there is no prohibition of advancement for those of non-noble descent,
descent from a high-born extended family still is considered a social
advantage.
Like other Central Asian groups, the Kyrgyz venerate history and see
themselves as part of a long flow of events. A traditional requirement is
the ability to name all the people in the previous seven generations of
one's family. Clan identity extends this tradition even further, to the
legendary origins of the Kyrgyz people. Kyrgyz clans are said to spring
from "first fathers," most of whom appear in both oral legends
and in history. Clan history and genealogy are entrusted to tribal elders,
whose ongoing knowledge of those subjects makes falsification of lineage
difficult. Because clan identity remains an important element of social
status, however, Kyrgyz do sometimes claim to have descended from a higher
branch of their clan than is actually the case.
Domestic Life
The Kyrgyz are classified as nomadic pastoralists, meaning that they
traditionally have herded sheep, horses, or yaks, following the animals up
and down the mountains as the seasons change. The basic dwelling is the
yurt, a cylindrical felt tent easily disassembled and mounted on a camel
or horse. The image of a yurt's circular smoke opening is the central
design of Kyrgyzstan's flag. Various parts of the yurt have ritual
significance. Because the herding economy continues in many parts of the
country, the yurt remains a strong symbol of national identity. Families
living in Western-style dwellings erect yurts to celebrate weddings and
funerals.
Traditional domestic life centers on the flocks. The diet of the nomads
is limited to mutton and noodles; fruit and vegetables are rare even in
today's Kyrgyz cuisine. The most traditional dishes are besh
barmak , a mutton stew, and roast lamb. For ceremonial meals,
the lamb is killed without spilling its blood, and the head is served to
the guest of honor, who slices portions of the eyes and ears and presents
them to other guests to improve their sight and hearing. Horsemeat is
eaten fresh and in sausages. Traditional beverages are kumys ,
fermented mare's milk, and two varieties of beer.
Family traditions continue to demonstrate the patriarchal and feudal
character of a nomadic people. Family relations are characterized by great
respect for older family members and the dominance of male heads of
households. Traditional celebrations of special events retain the markings
of religious and magical rites. For example, the cutting of a child's
umbilical cord is celebrated with elaborate consumption of food and
humorous games. The naming of a child and the cutting of the child's hair
are conducted in such a way as to appease supernatural forces. The full
observance of the most important family event, the wedding celebration,
requires considerable expense that relatively few Kyrgyz can afford:
payment for a bride, dowry, animal sacrifice, and an exchange of clothing
between the relatives of the bride and the groom.
The Role of Women
In traditional Kyrgyz society, women had assigned roles, although only
the religious elite sequestered women as was done in other Muslim
societies. Because of the demands of the nomadic economy, women worked as
virtual equals with men, having responsibility for chores such as milking
as well as child-rearing and the preparation and storage of food. In the
ordinary family, women enjoyed approximately equal status with their
husbands. Kyrgyz oral literature includes the story of Janyl-myrza, a
young woman who led her tribe to liberation from the enemy when no man in
the tribe could do so. In the nineteenth century, the wife of Khan
Almyn-bek led a group of Kyrgyz tribes at the time of the Russian conquest
of Quqon.
In modern times, especially in the first years of independence, women
have played more prominent roles in Kyrgyzstan than elsewhere in Central
Asia. Since 1991 women have occupied the positions of state procurator
(the top law enforcement official in the national government), minister of
education, ambassador to the United States and Canada, and minister of
foreign affairs. Women have also excelled in banking and business, and the
editor of Central Asia's most independent newspaper, Respublika
, is a woman. Roza Otunbayeva, who was minister of foreign affairs in
1996, has been mentioned frequently as a successor to Akayev.
Data as of March 1996
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