The men of the Kirghiz are expert horsemen and fearless masters on horseback. Kirghistan, located in the heart of Asia, along the ancient Silk Route, sits between the Pamir and Altai regions, amid the Tianshan Mountain Range. The landscape is picturesque with 7,000 meter high snow-capped mountains, lakes and high steppes.
Nomads have criss-crossed this region for thousands of years, encountering cultures of all kinds. The area today features people from 28 different nationalities, most of whom earn a living by animal husbandry and farming, with the Kirghiz people constituting 60 percent of the population.
They belong to the Turkic people and are one of the oldest of the Central Asian cultures. The name kirghiz means “the people,” and the suffix “stan” stands for “land.”
Masters on Horseback
Horses have been bred by the people of this area for 3,000 years, resulting in a type of animal well suited to the harsh conditions of nomadic life. The Kirghiz horses’ small stature enables it to maneuver well on narrow mountain paths. The owners take pride in their animals and treat them with love and respect. Horse breeding represents the people’s heritage and is an expression of their spiritual and economic existence. As with the Mongols, the Kirghiz nomads are true masters in riding. Children learn to ride bareback when quite young, even before they can mount by themselves.
Forced Onto a Reservation
More than 70 years of Communist rule have left deep scars in the landscape and in the people’s culture. During an era of ruthless collectivization, many of the nomads were compelled to settle and remain in a certain area. And the diminutive Kirghiz horse underwent a change: during Soviet rule, many of the Kirghiz horses were subjected to cross-breeding with Russian horses, to produce horsemeat for human consumption. Oppressed and defiant, many Kirghiz people opted to kill their beloved animals rather than exchange them for a dozen Soviet chickens. Some horses were hidden in the Tianshan Mountains.
Following the collapse of the Soviet system, Kirghistan became an independent republic in 1991. With the toppling of the Marx and Lenin monuments, the collective farms were abolished and their lands distributed among the farmers. A process of transformation set in. This is a huge task for the Kirghiz people—to restructure a “planned economy” into a market economy. Recalling their heritage and rekindling ancient nomadic traditions—almost lost for several generations under Communist rule, helps them to reclaim their identity. The Soviet system was never quite able to deny the Kirghiz their love of horses. The animals play a vital role in the people’s daily lives. Even today, the horse is their most important means of transportation.
