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The epic hero Manas is a folk hero personifying the power, freedom and unity of the Kyrgyz people. Legends about Manas have been passed orally from one generation to another for many centuries and they have been formed into the epos, which contains more than 500.000 lines of poetry. It is the longest epic poem in the world. Real life events of the Kyrgyz people were reflected in the epos and it has been preserved and recited by the storytellers, known as manaschy, who are greatly respected by the ordinary people
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Wedding customs are the most interesting - especially the tradition of kidnapping the Bride.
It has been a tradition from time immemorial that a man may kidnap a young woman he loves. His friends and relatives help him in this. Usually the man plans the day of the kidnapping beforehand. Relatives gather at his home and lay tables and cook a festive dinner. A room is set aside in the house and one corner is curtained-off (koshego). When the woman is brought to the house her head is covered by a kerchief - the sign of virginity, and she is placed behind the curtain. This custom is still observed in Kyrgyzstan today.
The marriage rite is followed by the "Otko Kirgizish" - initiation into the family hearth. Relatives invite the young couple to the hearth and the young wife is considered an equal member of the new family only when she puts grease in the pot.
Another interesting rite is "Djengek Toi" - the feast to celebrate the birth of a baby. Also of interest is the holiday for "Tyshoo Kesuu" - cutting the strings of a young baby that has just learned to walk. The competition or race is conducted amongst invited young children. The baby's feet are tied with a black and white string. The child who wins the race is given the right to cut baby's strings. It is believed that after being released from the strings, the young person will live healthily and confidently.
The Spring Holiday of Nooruz is widely celebrated. It is connected with the celebration of the Eastern New Year and is accompanied in the evening by a symbolic purification around a large fire, accompanied by a festive meal. Different dishes are served which are cooked especially so that the coming year will be fertile and generous.
Whilst travelling around Kyrgyzstan, a traveller may see an unusual sight. Certain roadside bushes or trees (usually at the site of natural springs) are covered by strips of fabric of different colours. This dates back to when the people were Shamanists, and these "Prayer Trees" were used to ask the "powers of life" to protect against diseases or to heal relatives.
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Meat, milk, vegetables, fruit, and pastries are the traditional products used in Kyrgyz cookery. Beshbarmak (Five fingers), is the most popular traditional, national dish. At official feasts and celebrations it may only be prepared by the men - the sheep's carcass is stripped of the remaining meat and this is mixed with noodles and herbs and served as a soup-like dish.
The most festive of the main courses is Shorpo - meat broth with vegetables and spices.
The favourite drink is kymyz. Kymyz is made from fresh mare's milk which is poured into a special leather bag - and is then stirred with a special wooden stick which is called "bishkek". The name of this stick is given to the current capital of the Republic.
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The invention of an easily assembled and reassembled house, made of felt, called a yurta, is the most remarkable achievement of the Kyrgyz nomads. A nomad could find shelter in a yurta from summer heat and rain and winter frosts. Today the yurta is popular with chabans (shepherds), who spend their summers in the high pastures (jailoo).
The basic rule for erecting a yurta is that the door should always face South or Southeast. The interior of a yurta is divided into functional zones. The "Red Corner" of the yurta is opposite the door where the trunks and chests with the main family valuables are kept. Blankets are also stacked in the same area. The middle of the yurta is occupied by the fire and a low table. The right-hand side of the yurta is the female area and the household utensils and children's things are placed here. The left-hand side is the male part where saddles, bridles and other male items are stored.
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Each nation makes its own contribution to the world cultural treasury according to the peculiarities and richness of its talants and creative abilities.
The Kyrgyz people have enriched the world culture with the unique epos "Manas", which is uncomparable in its volume and rich content. The epos "Manas" is the national pride of the Kyrgyz people, the peak of their spiritual life, which they inherited from their ancestors. The epos "Manas" is often reffered to as "the epos-ocean", because it is as vast as an ocean in its volume and depth of content. It reflects the ancient history of the Kyrgyz people and their social life covering the period of millennium.
The epos "Manas" is a genuine epic creation, it reflects not only historic events, but also all sides of human life; social, economic, political situation, struggle for independence, relations with other states. The epos widely depicts the life, goodness and evil, friendship and humanism, love for homeland, care for people's well-being.
In this respect, the outstanding Kazakh scientist of 19-th century Ch. Vallkhanov named the epos "Manas" as "Illiad" of steppe (nomadic) tribes.
Academician V. Radlov noted that "the epos reflects all the aspects of people's life".
The known Greek creations "Illiad" (15693 lines) and "Oddyssey" (12110 lines) together have 27083 lines. The above named version of the Kyrgyz epos 20 times exceeds their volume. It is even 2,5 times larger than the ancient Indian "Makhabkharata", which is known as the largest one, and it is 5 times larger than "Shakh-Name" (in the Pharsi language).
The epos "Manas" consists of three parts. It is named after the main hero, Kyrgyz legendary batyr-khan Manas, who was the leader of his people in their struggle against foreign invaders. The first part of the trilogy tells about the feats and courage of Manas and his battle- friends in their struggle for national independence. The second part - Semetey-narrates about the life and deeds of Semetey, son of Manas.
Not a single epic creations in the world can be compared with the epos "Manas" in the volume, richness of plot and artistic poetry. For instance, the recorded version of Sayakbay Karalayev has more than 500553 poetic lines. While the world-wide third part "Seitek" tells about Seitek, courageous son of Semetey.
The epos had been composed for a long period of time, from century to century. There are different opinions of scientists concerning the initial period of its formation. For example, M. Auezov and A. Bernshtam dated it
back to the 6-th-9-th centuries. Yunusaliev dated it back to the 10-th- 11-th centuries, V. Jirmunsky and other scientists connect the main events of the epos with the struggle of the Kyrgyz people in the 17-th-18-th centuries against the Oyrat-Kalmyk aggression. Nowadays about 60 versions of the epos are kept In the manuscript-stock of the National Academy of Sciences of Kyrgyzstan.
The main and decisive events of the history of Kyrgyz people from ancient times till the 18-th century are the core of the plot of the epos. The epos represents different features, notions, ideas, customs and traditions of different epochs and centuries. The plot of the epos is undoubtedly influenced by significant events of the history of common ancestors of the Turkic people: the powerful state of Hunns, the Great Turkic Khaganate and the Khaganate of the Yenisei Kyrgyz, the State of Karakhanids. The heroic deeds of such historical figures as Mode Shanyu (Ogus-Khan), Bars-Bek, Buur-Khan and others are similar to the feats of many legendary heros of the epos "Manas".
The emphasis is made on the description of the struggle of the Kyrgyz people for independence against Kara-Kytays (Kidans), Mongols, especially against Kalmaks and Manchjurs. The period of the complete epos formation coincides with the period of the end of this struggle (XYII-XYIII centuries).
The epos contains a lot of historical data which can he found in the written memorials of the Middle Ages: data about different states, different regions of the world, rivers and lakes, towns, ethnic names, etc. For instance, Sagymbay Karalayev's version includes the names of 113 states, nations and tribes, 530 cities, towns, villages, areas and rivers (European, Asian and African). That's why the epos has great significance as the authentic source of the history of Kyrgyz people. The epos is also a boundless source of the richness and expressiveness of the Kyrgyz language, and also the key to understanding of different aspects of philosophy, psychology, ethnography and spiritual life of the people.
The epos sings the values which are common for all people: social justice, honesty, dignity, humanism, care for people, love for homeland, for national traditions and customs, respect for human rights, national unity and tolerance, peaceful co-existance with neighbourring states, people's aspirations and hopes for the better future.
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There are many and various relics of the past in the Talas valley such as numerous tumula, ruins of medieval settlements and towns, mausoleums and so on. Among all those relics and monuments the "Mausoleum of Manas" is the most illustrious one. The Mausoleum built in the XIV-th century A.D. is well known among the Kyrgyz population as the "Manastin Kumbuzu" or "Mausoleum of Manas" the famous hero of the great Kyrgyz epos.
Many places of the Talas valley are connected with the events or protagonists of this famous epos. There was a camp of the Manas Army, there was born his son Semetey. Till now in the Talas valley there are the mountain and the cave of Manas, the poplar of Manas, the gorge of Manas. One can find there the plane tree of Kanikey, Aichurek's grove and Chachikeys gorge. Chachikey was Semetey's wife. There is a feeding rack and tethering post and turned-to-stone heart of Ak-Kulu, the stallion of Manas. Many other objects created by human hand or by nature are also connected with Manas. So the beautiful ancient Mausoleum situated at the foot of the hill which people call "Manastin Chokusu" also was connected with the name of Manas.
According to the most popular version of the legend this mausoleum was built by the wife of Manas - Kanikey. She ordered to write on the Mausoleum the name of a woman to deceive enemies and protect her husband's body from defilement.
Another version tells that the Mausoleum was built by Semetey who buried there his father killed in a battle. And there is even a legend that Manas lived some time in the Mausoleum before he was killed by his enemies. There are many other versions, but the true story of Mausoleums origin was forgotten and only in the XX-th century thanks to the scientists such as V.A. Kallaur, V.V. Bartold, B.P. Denike, P.P. Ivanov, M.E. Masson, A.M. Belenitski, A.N. Bernshtam, B.M. Zima, G.A. Pugachenkova and others the history of this mausoleum was restored. In 1946 M.E. Masson and G.A. Pugachenkova carried out a thorough study of the mausoleum. The results of their research were published in their monograph "Gumbez of Manas" which came off the press in 1950.
The "Ghumbez of Manas" is situated on the bank of the Kenkol river not far from its confluence with Talas and at the foot of the hill which people call "the observation post of Manas". There is an ancient burial ground of the Hun period (I - IV centuries A.D.) not far from the mausoleum. Some fragments of XII - XIII and XVII - XIX centuries A.D. pottery were found near the mausoleum. On the top of the hill there are ruins of the fortress of the XIII - XIV centuries A.D. The fortress was built of stone. Originally It was a tower on a stone platform.
The "Ghumbez of Manas" isn't a spacious building measuring only 4,38 by 4,48 metres. It was built of baked bricks bound with clay mortar. The building is crowned with a double dome. The outer one is in the form of a sixteen-ribbed bilateral pyramid. The inner cupola is lancet-shaped.
The facade of the mausoleum has a monumental portal with an entrance arch and corner pillars. The portal of the bulging is richly decorated with carved terracota slabs. Three other walls have no decorations.
There is a window in each side-wall. The windows are proved with decorative lattice made of ghanch (the local kind of plaster). The floor inside the mausoleum is paved with baked bricks. The carved decorated tiles covering the portal of the building make up alternating-wide and narrow ornamental stripes. Some of the patterns decoratig the mausoleum look very much like the Kyrgyz national patterns. The geometrical patterns are quite simple: eight-pointed stars, eight-petalled rosettes, circles and so on. Some of them inherent to Kyrgyz applied arts
There are also two stripes of epigraphical ornament on the portal containing the historical data and religious inscription. The religious inscription is made in so called "cufic style" (an ancient angular form of the Arabic alphabeth). It reiterates the word "al-mulk" (power, rule) being an abbreviated version of a pies ejaculation "The power belongs to Allah". An artisan who made the mold for the tiles with this word didn't know the language so the word runs not from right to left as it should in the Arabic but vice versa.
The other inscription made in "divani" style is of the exceptional importance. It runs as follows: "This is the majestic mausoleum of the virtuous, chaste, modest (and so on, and so on) and the most glorious of women Kenizek-Khatun, the daughter of the Emir Abuka.." Further the inscription glorifies numerous virtues of Kenizek-Khatun and the construction of the mausoleum, didn't survive. There remained only the last word- "Four" and the name of the month-"Ramadan".
The date of the construction of this mausoleum was determined on the basis of paleographical analysis of the inscription and architectural analysis of the mausoleum itself. The style and calligraphy of the inscription containing the historical data have close analogies with the inscriptions on the other architectural monuments of Central Asia constructed in the second quarter of the XIV-th century A.D.
M.E. Masson and G.A.Pugachenkova came to the conclusion that the Mausoleum known as the "Ghumbez of Manas" was built in the year of 1334 A.D. Other scientists who studied the Mausoleum share their opinion.
Mausoleum of the "Ghumbez of Manas" type were wide spread in the North regions of Central Asia, i.e. in Khorezm, Ferghana, Kyrgyzstan and also in South Kazakhstan. On the territory of Kyrgyzstan (and especially in the Talas valley) mausoleums of such type were built also in the XV - XIX centuries and even in the beginning of the XX-th century A.D.
There are several mausoleums of the same kinds as that one named "Ghumbez of Manas" in the Talas valley. Not far from Djambul there is the Mausoleum "Babadji-Khatun" which dates back to the X-XI-th centures A.D., and there is Ghumbez Sulpukor on the bank of the Karakol near the Aral village and several others.
The "Ghumbez of Manas" served as a model for numerous mausoleums of local aristocracy built in Talas valley in the XVIII - XIX centuries A.D. Mausoleum made of adoby or baked bricks follow the same pattern imitating dimensions and shape of the "Ghumbez of Manas" and even copiing the damages inflicted by the time on this building. For example there are such mausoleums as Ghumbez Ozoke situated not far from Kenaral village, Arzymat's Mausoleum in the Kumushtak gorge, mausoleums situated at the cemetery near the Orlovka village and some others. All of them are close replicas of the "Ghumbez of Manas".
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The talant of "manaschis" is an endowment having its own sacred mystery. Only a person, who had a rich spiritual inner world, who knew aspirations of his people, their legends, tales, family-trees, traditions and customs, who had a gift of certain mysterious, magic force, could be a genuine "manaschi".
The folk tales keep the names of the first famous manashis: Singerson of Yryman, comrade-in-arms of Manas, singer Jaisan. It is known that later the narrating skill was developed by Tolubay-Synchy (con- noisseur) and Toktogul-singer (14-th century), the trilogy was essentially enriched by the narrator Nooruz. The names of the succeeding great manaschis, who lived in the 19-the century, are well known: Keldibek- son of Baryboz, Balyk (Bekmurat) son of Kumar, Naimanbay - son of Balyk, Tynybek son of Japy, Choyuke - son of Omur.
In the 20-th century the creative work of manaschis was continued by Sagynbay son of Orozbak (1867-1930), Sayakbay - son of Karaly (1894- 1971), Togolok Moldo (Balymbet Abdrahmanov, 1860-1942), Shapak - son of Rysmende (1863-1956), Moldobasan - son of Musulmankul (1883- 1961) and others
The first information about the epos "Manas" in the written form reached us in the manuscript "Majmu At-Tavarikh" (historical essays), in the Pharsi language, which was written in the 16-th century by Phergana writer Saif Ad-din Akhsikendi and his son Nooruz Mukhammed. It tells some episodes from the epos and also some stories about Manas's marches against his enemies
Ch. Valikhanov was the first scientist who wrote down an episode of the epos "Manas" and named it the pearl of the folk oral creations of Kyrgyz people. It happened in the 50-s of the last century, when he travelled round the Issyk-Kul lake. The scientist recorded the episode "Funeral repast for Koketay" and translated it into the Russian language. This translation was published in 1904
In the 60-s of the 19-th century the Russian scientist academician V. Radlov recorded a brief version of the epos from unknown manaschis, translated it into German and published in 1885, the first Kyrgyz version of the epos was published at the same time. The Hungarian scientist Almashi also contributed to recording of the epos, he wrote and published one of the episodes in 1911. In 1898, in the city of Kazan Tynybek's version of the episode from "Semetey" was issued in the Kyrgyz Language, in the Arabic letters.
In 1903 the first sound (audio) record was made, version of Kenje Kara.
A lot of work had been done in this aspect during the Soviet time. In the 1920-s the first part of the epos, narrated by Sagynbay Orozbakov and some other manaschis' tales were recorded. From 1940-s most of the recordings were issued in special editions.
Considerable contribution to comprehensive studies and publica- tion of the epos "Manas" was made by the following famous scientists and writers; M. Auezov, K. Rakhmatullin, A. Bernshtam, S. Abramzon, V. Jir- munsky, K. Miftakov, 0. Jakishev, B.Yunusaliyev, A. Tokombayev, T.Sy- dykbekov, Ch. Aitmatov, B. Kerimjanova, R. Kydyrbayeva, H. Kara- sayev, Z. Bektenov, S. Musayev, K.Asanaliyev and others.
At present time young scientists continue to study different problems connected with the epos.
Separate parts and abstracts of the epos "Manas" have been translated and published in English, German, French, Russian, Turkish, Kazakh, Uzbek, Mongolian and other languages of the world. The full version of the epos is being translated into Chinese for publication, the version recorded by V. Radlov has been published in Turkey.
In Kyrgyzstan to the 1OOO-th anniversary, the academic version of the epos (8 volumes) and a number of scientific and popular articles will be published.
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