Wool has been a staple in human life for centuries, and one of its most versatile derivatives is felt—a non-woven material created through the process of felting. The origins of felting are difficult to pinpoint, but legend has it that…
Ayşe Zarakol’s book Before the West: The Rise and Fall of Eastern World Orders challenges our understanding of the history of international relations and makes sense of the apparently chaotic and brutal conquests of the nomadic warriors from the Mongol steppes. As…
“I wish to see kok-par players – “Steppe Wolves” from Central Asia on the world’s best catwalks. They are not the refined Europeans, just ordinary guys from a remote aul with crooked legs and scarred faces, bruised from the kok-par fights. Their clothes are…
The nomadic people of Eurasia left behind rich treasures that rival those of sophisticated settled societies. Many of these precious items, which can be seen today in museums around the world, were made of gold, bronze, and silver with unique…
The Aral Sea catastrophe has been known since the late 1980s as one of the largest environmental disasters in the world. Once the fourth-largest lake in the world, despite being located on the otherwise arid Eurasian continent, the Aral Sea…
Abilkhan Kasteyev (1904-1972), a Kazakh artist who was born at the dawn of the twentieth century, became the founder of visual arts in Soviet Kazakhstan. Prior to him, Kazakh painting mostly existed in a decorative or applied form. However, the…
Since at least the time of Marco Polo, the Kazakh steppes have attracted many visitors from the West: travelers, diplomats, traders, and researchers. Their notes, books, and memoirs provide invaluable insight into the various epochs of Kazakh culture and history.…
This July, Gaudy Boy will publish an English-language anthology of Kazakhstani women’s writing entitled Amanat. The anthology brings together short stories and essays by 13 women from three generations (ranging in age from 30 to 75) and hailing from all parts…
The Abai Center in Washington, D.C., supports Kazakh culture and cultural studies and aims to increases the American people’s awareness of—and interest in—various aspects of Kazakh culture. In May 2023 it partnered with JSC AltynAlmas on an essay contest for…
Evgeny Matveevich Sidorkin (1930-1982) is a Soviet graphic illustrator and artist who was recognized by several prestigious awards for his art. He mainly worked in Kazakhstan and created powerful images of Kazakh folklore and people through a variety of techniques,…
English transcript of the video presentation below Today I am going to talk about one particular type of traditional Kazakh clothing: the headdress of a bride, called a saukele. Voronina-Utkina A.A. Watercolor. Saukele – women’s wedding headdress. Kazakhs. Kazakhstan, Karaganda…
Author Alan Georgievich Medoev (1934-1980) Alan Medoev was born in Leningrad in 1934. In the 1960-1980s he guided archaeological teams and expeditions in the field; he discovered and explored the significant Paleolithic monuments of the world: Semizbugu, Turanga,…