History. Culture. Traditions.

The first signs of a man on the territory of Kyrgyzstan date from the early Paleolithic period - Ashels epoch (400-100 thousand years ago). Monuments of that time were found in the On?Archa River basin on the territory of Osh region.
Next period of the Stone Age - Mustier epoch (100-40 thousand years ago) - presents itself by a great number of archeological monuments around Issyk-Kul and Chu valley.
Upper Paleolithic period (40-12 thousand years ago) - is a time of maternal clan community. Origin and relationship were determined on the women's line. A modern man - Homo sapiens appeared in this period. Instruments of the Upper Paleolithic Period were found in the natural boundary Kapchigai, in the caves next to Khaidarkan and in other settlements.

New Stone Age period (6-4 thousand years BC), the monuments were found everywhere: in Issyk-Kul, Tien-Shan, in Chu and Talas valley and in other places. The most interesting is a great number of
caves with the marks of dwelling inside. On the walls of a large Ak-Chunkur cave on the Sary-Jaz River many petrogliphs of people, bull, goat and snake painted with red paint were found. During the excavations there were found animals' bones, various stone articles and fire marks.

In the Bronze Age (2 - beginning of the 1 thousand years BC) shepherd-farming tribes inhabited Kyrgyzstan. Rock petrogliphs those are in Talas valley and in Fergana range clear represent individual parts of life. Scenes of men's activity like cattle breeding, hunting and so on are on the stones. That time they began to open natural resources - copper, tin, silver and gold. The main occupation of shepherd tribes settled on the Tien-Shan territory was cattle breeding. The main memorials of the Kyrgyz shepherd tribes of that time are burial grounds, found in Issyk-Kul, next to Naryn, Chon Kemin and in other valleys. The finds, discovered in burials, consist of household goods and decorations. Treasures of bronze instruments (axes, daggers, sickles, spear and chisel-heads) evidence the developed metallurgical production of that period. A great attention was paid to pottery and stonemason handicraft, manufacture of various decorations, such as bracelets, rings, beads and pendants. Further tribes of Central Asia and Kazakhstan are known as Saka in Persian sources, and Scythians in Greek-Asian ones. The part of such tribes dwelled on Tien-Shan territory in the VII - III century BC. They were cattle-breeders and led nomadic way of life, bred sheep, goats, horses and cows. Barrows represent Saka's archeological monuments. They belong to common nomads and ancestral tribe nobility. The first are of small sizes and in graves there is poor stock: earthenware crockery, knives, arrowheads, and decorations. Barrow embankments of tribe nobility reach their 5 - 6 meters height and 50 meters in diameter. Such burials are found in Ketmen-Tubin valley. Funeral stock consists of numerous household goods, weapons, harness and decorations. Petrogliphs represent interesting information about Saka's epoch in the republic. They show scenes of ceremonies, way of life, hunting and goats, deer, horses and different kinds of beasts. Especially these petrogliphs are significant around the Issyk-Kul Lake (Cholpon-Ata, Chon-Sary-Oi, etc.). Saka-breeders were skilful horsemen. Their courage and warlike character were wildly known in the East. Sakas of Central Asia waged war with conquers. They put up heroic resistance to Alexander Makedonsky's army.

From the III - to the VI century AD Usun dwelled in Tien-Shan. The main tribal community settlement was on the Southern Issyk-Kul bank. Their principal activity was nomadic breading, however, settlements around the Issyk-Kul Lake and in Chu valley evidence of the fact, that the majority of them led settled way of life. Nomads-Usun lived in felt yurts, ate meat and milk. In household utensils there was mainly earthenware, wood and leather crockery. The Usun time is bound with wide international links between the Tien?Shan population and other states of Central and Middle Asia. The VI century AC is commemorated by the big mass of Turk tribes' invasion to Middle Asia. The X - XI century was a time of feudalism flourishing that entailed establishment of Karakhanid State. Capital of Karakhanid - Balasagyn was located near the present town Tokmak.
The most outstanding architecture work of the XI century is the tower Burana.
In the course of time people forgot the principal purpose of the tower. There are a lot of legends about its origin. According to one of them, a powerful khan erected the minaret to save his only daughter from the predicted mortal bite of black karakurt, a great amount of which abounded in that place. In spite of the father?s efforts, the foretell came true and his daughter died of the karakurt's bite, that was brought to the refuge with grapes. The tower became a burial vault.
Small structure of the XV century - Tash-Rabat is situated in the At-Bashin region. This unique stone building is the biggest one on the territory of Middle Asia. Scientists assume that many ages ago there was a caravanserai for the merchants moving from Europe to China. Due to masonry simplicity, proportion heaviness and lack of window apertures, the building seems to be severe.
In this period, big towns grew in all valleys suitable for farming. Their character feature is a large area of enclosed with long wall field ground around the principal dwelling territory. In Chu valley, for example, the total area of some towns reached 10 - 20 sq. Km. (Krasnorechensk cite of ancient settlement).


The Great Silk Road - a code-name of the international landline that crossed Asia from the East to the West. For a long time in western countries they knew nothing about China, as in China about other countries. The highest Tien-Shan, Pamir, Himalayan ridges and waterless deserts separated different countries. Only in the II century BC, the Chinese traveler Chzhan Tszan could get over them. Soon, merchants with caravans followed the traveler.
Three branches of Great Silk Road (Pamiroalay, Fergana, Chui way) passed through the medieval Kyrgyzstan. Caravans and merchants suffered serious troubles, camels with luggage and riders with horses often fell into precipices. Robbers were on the watch for them on the roads. The most popular product was fabric. During the excavations in Batken and Talas region there were found different clothes made of china silk. Silk from Iran was found in the Issyk-Kul burials. Turk feudal had a great amount of silk, they even paid monthly payment to their warriors with cloth pieces.
In the middle of the XII century the tungus-mongol nomads from the eastern Mongolia conquered Karakhanid State. In 1219 the Genghis Khan's hordes invaded into Tien-Shan and ruined all towns.

In the 70s of the XV century Kyrgyz already had their state association or khanate in Tien-Shan. Their state strengthening was accompanied with the war of liberation against the Mongol feudal. It ended in 1510 with the Mongols exile from northern part of Kyrgyzia and Central Tien-Shan.

There is one contrast else, which is more striking than those created by nature. This is the contrast of time, the contrast of life created by people. Everyone knows that quite recently awful poverty, half-starving life, diseases condemned people to die out. The proverb '"he pasture is where you have tied your horse, the home is where you have made the fire" clearly reflects past. A yurt and a horse were the only property of poor Kyrgyz.
Its art, culture and history people reflected in epic "Manas", their pride that is by right called encyclopedia of the Kyrgyz people. The epic developed gradually, it was inherited and transmitted from centuries through the talented men of people "manaschy". Epic performance was their main occupation.
"Manas" - unlike the epics of many nations - is composed by verses from the beginning till the ending. There are 500 thousand verse lines, that is 20 times more than in "Illiada" and "Odissea". The epic's ideological inspiration is connected with uncompromising struggle of the Kyrgyz people against the foreign yoke. The chief and inspiration to the people is hero Manas. All trilogy events develop around this image, having the main idea of separate Kyrgyz tribes association.
The epic narrator - manaschy - performs unaccompanied.  "Manas" melody consists of various recitative intonations. According to the tradition its performance lasted during some days or weeks. The "Manas" performance was marked in the people as a great art event and took place with a big concourse. The popular artist of Kyrgyzstan, compositor, remarkable melodies singer, comuzchy Atay Ogonbaev knew dozens of various performance methods of playing the comuz and executed with the help of all fingers of right hand, one finger, pizzicato, flick at stand, finger board, circle spin hand movements up and down. He performed putting the comuz on the shoulder, on the head, putting it behind the back, spinning it around the body, striking the hearers by his virtuous technique.
By their appearance Kyrgyz relate to the southern Siberia Mongol subrace. They have straight hair, flat face, prominent cheekbones, rather fair complexion and other Mongol race features.
Relation of the Kyrgyz language to other Turk languages differs. The Kyrgyz nationality by the language with Altays, Kazakhs, Karakols, Bashkirs, Tartars, is in so-called kypchygai or northwestern group of turkik people. The tribal division is kept by the territory and language indications till the present days.

Traditions. Religion believes.

The spread of Islam in the Kyrgyz environment is tightly connected with its ethnic history of the IX-XII century. The confession of Islam among the Kyrgyz people became more active during Kokand Khanat. In the most important strategic places they built strengthening and as a rule mosques inside, where Kokand mullahs settled down. But the role of the mosque in the religious life was limited, as it was built up in the strengthening that Kyrgyz tried to escape. Islam's ideology propagation from the Kokand side and then from Russian authorities didn't reach the desirable results. From five so-called "pillars of Muslim religion", they celebrated only Muslim holidays that also interlaced the early religion remainders. So, after a thirty-fife-day fast they celebrated "Orozo Ait" praying for the spirit of ancestor and dead. In their honor they baked borsoks, lit candles (sham), read Koran. "Kurman Ait" was celebrated as the holiday for alive and was accompanied with sacrifice. Along with Islam, and sometimes mixed with it, the preislam traditions existed.
One of the tribes in Northern Kyrgyzstan is called "bugu"(deer), a number of superstition legends evidence of the totem deer reverence by Kyrgyz. This can be connected with widely spread superstitions of eagle, wolf and mountain goat reverence. Apart from this there was zoroastrical animal worship. The object of warship was a white young of camel, snake, eagle owl and a bear. In the religious conceptions of the Kyrgyz people, the important place was given the to nature cult, and the most ancient among them - heaven. Being in difficult situation, Kyrgyz appealed to the sky with the words: "Heaven help me". When blessing young or to gratify - "Heaven bless you". They also connected sky with damnation "Heaven curse you". In the nature cult great attention was given to the earth and water warship, as they are the bearers of the life origin. One of the most ancient rituals was "Jer-suutau", when the Kyrgyz people sacrificed animals for the deity. In the premuslim system of conceptions one of the most important was ancestors cult. Ancestors? spirits protected alive and guarded them from various troubles.
Shamanism and connected with it concepts and ways of treatment were very important in the Kyrgyz philosophy. The shamans were black and white. The most powerful were black ones. Their main function was to treat "nervous" diseases and soothsaying. They "treated" and "prophesied" with the help of evil spirits. The shaman spirit considered to be inherited. Premuslim beliefs happened to be more stable than Islam. Nowadays, when the prices for treatments are very high and it's difficult to find a good doctor in the village, more and more common people use the modern sorcerer's services. Almost in all markets you can meet shamans offering their services (fortune telling, amulet production and treatment). A lot of family traditions tightly interlaced with the religious-magic rituals. So, when the child was born, along with "Jetibek toi" (birthday feast), "Tushoo kesuu" (hobble cut in the first child's anniversary), when parents organized celebration withentertaining and jolly games there also were rituals dealt with supernatural powers beliefs. For example, when putting to cradle ("Beshikke saluu") and cutting child's hair ("Chach aldyruu"). One of the most important family event was wedding. It included kalym payment, various clothes exchange between the bride's parents, expensive dowry, farewell wailing, and animal sacrifice for the couple.
We can also call the New Year holiday "Nooruz" - that is on the 21 of March - the traditional holiday of the past.


National games.

Odarysh is a national game. Fight on horses that demands strength andadroitness combined with the skillful horse control. The goal is to drag down from horse his opponent. One of the most favorite among the Kyrgyz people sport is horse race, as they are natural horsemen. The competitions are held at a 50 meters distance. The racers should be fast and hardy and the rider - skillful control.

Kyz-Kuumai(catch the girl). In past times this game was a wedding ritual. Its participants were the bride, the bridegroom and a sister in law - jene that tried to help the girl to escape from the bridegroom. The bride and bridegroom's friends also took part in the game. According to the rules the bride was given the best horse and she began racing first, having the additional 20 meters distance. The bridegroom had to catch the girl and kiss her or touch her with his hat at tilt. Thus, he proved his love and secured the right to marry her. Due to worse horse the bridegroom sometimes failed to catch up the girl.

The wrestling between riders for a goat carcass (Ulak Tyrtysh, Kok Beru) - is a very popular Central Asian horse game. The words kok beru mean "grey wolf". The game's history goes back to the distant past, it was originated when the herds of cattle grazed all year round in the steppes and people suffered from wolves those attacked cattle.
Due to the lack of firearms, the cattle-breeders couldn't deal with the wolf just in the act. Steadfast jigits (horse riders) on fast and hardy horses chased the wolf to death, beat it with sticks and kamchas (lash), picked it up from the ground taking it away from each other.
Later, leading more settled way of life, people replaced "kok beru" by "ulak tartysh" - wrestling for a goat's carcass. There are 2 teams of 2-4 people in the game. The playing ground is 200x150 meters. The opposite sides are marked with flags (10 meters) and are called "the gates". In the center of the playing ground a 6-meters in diameter circle is placed, where before the competition they put a goat's carcass weighting 30-40 kg., without a head and limbs cut to the wrists (ulak).

With the signal, the team captains ride to the center and begin wrestling for the goat's carcass. As soon as the ulak is picked up, the rest members of the teams begin to participate in wrestling. The winner of this game is the team that threw ulak into the opponent's gates more times.