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The Kirghiz Soviet Socialist Republic (Kirghiz SSR; ky, Кыргыз Советтик Социалисттик Республикасы, Kyrgyz Sovettik Sotsialisttik Respublikasy, ky, Кыргыз ССР, Kyrgyz SSR, russian: Киргизская Советская Социалистическая Республика, Kirgizskaya Sovetskaya Sotsialisticheskaya Respublika, russian: Киргизская ССР, Kirgizskaya SSR) or Kyrgyz Soviet Socialist Republic (Kyrgyz SSR), or Kirgiz Soviet Socialist Republic (Kirgiz SSR), also commonly known as the Kyrgyzstan and Soviet Kyrgyzstan ( ky, Кыргызстан, Советтик Кыргызстан, Kyrgyzstan, Sovettik Kyrgyzstan, links=no) in the Kyrgyz language and as Kirghizia and Soviet Kirghizia (russian: Киргизия, Советская Киргизия, Kirgiziya, Sovetskaya Kirgiziya, links=no) in the Russian language, was one of the constituent republics of the
Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
(USSR) from 1936 to 1991. Landlocked and
mountain A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually highe ...
ous, it bordered
Tajikistan Tajikistan (, ; tg, Тоҷикистон, Tojikiston; russian: Таджикистан, Tadzhikistan), officially the Republic of Tajikistan ( tg, Ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон, Jumhurii Tojikiston), is a landlocked country in Centr ...
and China to the south,
Uzbekistan Uzbekistan (, ; uz, Ozbekiston, italic=yes / , ; russian: Узбекистан), officially the Republic of Uzbekistan ( uz, Ozbekiston Respublikasi, italic=yes / ; russian: Республика Узбекистан), is a doubly landlocked co ...
to the west and
Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...
to the north. The Kirghiz branch of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union governed the republic from 1936 until 1990. On 30 October 1990, the Kirghiz SSR was renamed to the Socialist Republic of Kyrgyzstan; on 15 December, after declaring its state sovereignty, it was renamed again to the Republic of Kyrgyzstan. On 31 August 1991, it transformed into independent
Kyrgyzstan Kyrgyzstan,, pronounced or the Kyrgyz Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Asia. Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Tajikistan to the south, and the People's Republic of China to the ea ...
.


Etymology

The name " Kyrgyz" is believed to have been derived from the Turkic word for "forty", in reference to the forty clans of Manas, a legendary hero who united forty regional clans against the
Uyghurs The Uyghurs; ; ; ; zh, s=, t=, p=Wéiwú'ěr, IPA: ( ), alternatively spelled Uighurs, Uygurs or Uigurs, are a Turkic ethnic group originating from and culturally affiliated with the general region of Central and East Asia. The Uyghur ...
. The name "Kyrgyz" or "Kirghiz" means "Land of the forty tribes", combined from three words: ''kyrg'' (''kyrk'') meaning "forty", ''yz'' (''uz'') meaning "tribes" in East-Turkic, and ''
-stan The suffix -stan ( fa, ـستان, translit=''stân'' after a vowel; ''estân'' or ''istân'' after a consonant), has the meaning of "a place abounding in" or "a place where anything abounds" in the Persian language. It appears in the names of ...
'' meaning "land" in Persian. Politically, the name of the republic was the ''Kirghiz Soviet Socialist Republic'' as stated in the 1937 and 1978 Constitutions of the Kirghiz SSR. From 30 October 1990 to 15 December 1990, it was renamed the ''Socialist Republic of Kyrgyzstan'' (or ''Kirghizia''). Afterwards, the "Socialist" prefix was dropped and it became the ''Republic of Kyrgyzstan''. Officially, in Russian language, the name of the country in Kyrgyz language began to be used - ''Kyrgyzstan'', instead of Russian - ''Kirghizia''. Later, the official name of the state was changed to the ''Kyrgyz Republic'', which retained this name after independence.


History

Established on 14 October 1924 as the
Kara-Kirghiz Autonomous Oblast The Kara-Kirghiz Autonomous Oblast (russian: Кара-Киргизская автономная область; ky, Кара-Кыргыз өзэркин облусу, translit=Kara-Kyrgyz özérkin oblusu), abbreviated as Kara-Kirghiz AO (russia ...
of the RSFSR, it was transformed into the Kirghiz ASSR ( Kirghiz Autonomous Socialist Soviet Republic) on 1 February 1926, still being a part of the RSFSR. The borders were not divided by ethnic or linguistic lines, however. On 5 December 1936, with the adoption of the
1936 Soviet Constitution Events January–February * January 20 – George V of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India, dies at his Sandringham Estate. The Prince of Wales succeeds to the throne of the United Kingdom as King E ...
, it became a separate constituent republic of the USSR as the Kirghiz Soviet Socialist Republic during the final stages of the
national delimitation in the Soviet Union National delimitation in the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics was the process of specifying well-defined national territorial units (Soviet socialist republics SR autonomous Soviet socialist republics SSR autonomous oblasts rovinces raions ...
. At the time of formation of Kirghizia, its territory was divided into districts. On November 21, 1939, five oblasts (regions) were created: Jalal-Abad,
Issyk Kul Issyk-Kul (also Ysyk-Köl, ky, Ысык-Көл, lit=warm lake, translit=Ysyk-Köl, , zh, 伊塞克湖) is an endorheic lake (i.e., without outflow) in the Northern Tian Shan mountains in Eastern Kyrgyzstan. It is the seventh-deepest lake in th ...
,
Osh Osh (Kyrgyz: Ош, romanised Osh; uz, O‘sh/Ўш) is the second-largest city in Kyrgyzstan, located in the Fergana Valley in the south of the country and often referred to as the "capital of the south". It is the oldest city in the country (e ...
, Tyan Shan, and Frunze Oblasts. In 1944, Talas Oblast was established from Frunze but was abolished in 1956. In 1959, Frunze, Issyk-Kul and Jalal-Abad oblasts were abolished. Frunze and Issyk-Kul became territories under direct republic jurisdiction while Jalal-Abad joined Osh. Tyan Shan was the last oblast to be abolished in 1962, and by this point, the rest of the republic with the exception of Osh was divided into districts of republican subordination. In 1970, Issyk-Kul and Naryn (formerly Tien Shan) were restored, and in 1980 so was Talas. In 1988, the Naryn and Talas oblasts were again abolished where the former was merged with Issyk-Kul while the later was merged with Osh. However, in 1990 they were restored and at the same time, Jalal-Abad and Chüy (formerly Frunze) were reestablished. These districts were particularly known for their heavy application of fertilizers after independence. The Osh Massacre in 1990 undermined the position of the first secretary. That same year, on 15 December, the Kirghiz SSR was reconstituted as the Republic of Kyrgyzstan after declaring its sovereignty. On 17 March 1991, Kirghizia supported the Union preservation referendum with a 95.98% turnout. However, this did not come to pass when the hardliners took control of Moscow for three days in August 1991.
Askar Akayev Askar Akayevich Akayev ( ky, Аскар Акаевич (Акай уулу) Акаев, translit=Askar Akayevich (Akay Uulu) Akayev ; ; born 10 November 1944) is a Kyrgyz politician who served as President of Kyrgyzstan from 1990 until being ove ...
, the first president, unequivocally condemned the putsch and gained fame as a democratic leader. The country declared its independence on 31 August 1991 and the Soviet Union was formally dissolved on 26 December 1991. However, the 1978 constitution remained in effect after its independence until 1993.


Politics

Similar to that of the Soviet republics, Kirghizia's government took place in the framework of a
one-party A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government ...
socialist republic Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the ec ...
with the Communist Party of Kirghizia as the sole legal political party. The First Secretary of the Communist Party of Kirghizia served as the head of the party, while the Chairmen of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet functioned as the executive head of state and the Chairmen of the Council of Ministers led the legislative branch.


Economy


Demographics

In 1926, the Kirghiz Soviet Socialist Republic had a population of 1,002,000 people. In 1939, 1,458,000 people were recorded. The population grew significantly in the decades after World War II; the republic had 2,065,837 people in 1959, 2,932,805 people in 1970, and 3,529,030 people in 1979. In the final Soviet census of 1989, the Kirghiz Soviet Socialist Republic had grown to 4,257,755 people. The majority of the population were ethnic Kyrgyz people. However, because large numbers were sent here in deportations, at times there were significant other ethnic groups. Between March and May 1944 alone, it was reported in the Kremlin that 602,193 residents of the North Caucasus region had been deported to the Kirghiz and Kazakh SSRs, of which 496,460 were Chechens and Ingush, 68,327 of which were Karachai and 37,406 were Balkars. The majority of the Kyrgyz population were (as they are today) Muslims, speaking a
Turkic language The Turkic languages are a language family of over 35 documented languages, spoken by the Turkic peoples of Eurasia from Eastern Europe and Southern Europe to Central Asia, East Asia, North Asia (Siberia), and Western Asia. The Turkic languag ...
. Bishkek had the largest concentration of Russians in the country, some 22% of the population by independence, with Uzbek minorities in the
Fergana Valley The Fergana Valley (; ; ) in Central Asia lies mainly in eastern Uzbekistan, but also extends into southern Kyrgyzstan and northern Tajikistan. Divided into three republics of the former Soviet Union, the valley is ethnically diverse and in the ...
especially constituting some 13% of the population. In 1990, violent clashes between Uzbeks and Kyghyz peoples broke out in the Osh Raion; ethnic tension still remains in the region.


Religion

Under Soviet rule, Islam in Kirghizia was heavily suppressed with people actively encouraging atheism. Soviet authorities permitted limited religious activity in all the majority-Muslim Soviet republics. Most of the Russian population of Kirghizia were atheist or
Russian Orthodox Russian Orthodoxy (russian: Русское православие) is the body of several churches within the larger communion of Eastern Orthodox Christianity, whose liturgy is or was traditionally conducted in Church Slavonic language. Most ...
. After independence, the country enjoyed greater religious freedom and remains to this day a secular state.


Geography

Kirghizia, a landlocked republic in
Soviet Central Asia Soviet Central Asia (russian: link=no, Советская Средняя Азия, Sovetskaya Srednyaya Aziya) was the part of Central Asia administered by the Soviet Union between 1918 and 1991, when the Central Asian republics declared ind ...
shared its borders with
Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...
,
Tajikistan Tajikistan (, ; tg, Тоҷикистон, Tojikiston; russian: Таджикистан, Tadzhikistan), officially the Republic of Tajikistan ( tg, Ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон, Jumhurii Tojikiston), is a landlocked country in Centr ...
and
Uzbekistan Uzbekistan (, ; uz, Ozbekiston, italic=yes / , ; russian: Узбекистан), officially the Republic of Uzbekistan ( uz, Ozbekiston Respublikasi, italic=yes / ; russian: Республика Узбекистан), is a doubly landlocked co ...
as well as China on the outside lying between latitudes 39° and 44° N, and longitudes 69° and 81° E. It is farther from the sea than any other individual country, and all its rivers flow into closed drainage systems which do not reach the sea. The mountainous region of the
Tian Shan The Tian Shan,, , otk, 𐰴𐰣 𐱅𐰭𐰼𐰃, , tr, Tanrı Dağı, mn, Тэнгэр уул, , ug, تەڭرىتاغ, , , kk, Тәңіртауы / Алатау, , , ky, Теңир-Тоо / Ала-Тоо, , , uz, Tyan-Shan / Tangritog‘ ...
covers over 80% of the country, with the remainder made up of valleys and basins. Issyk-Kul Lake, or Ysyk-Köl in Kyrgyz, in the north-eastern Tian Shan is the largest lake in Kyrgyzstan and the second largest mountain lake in the world after
Titicaca Lake Titicaca (; es, Lago Titicaca ; qu, Titiqaqa Qucha) is a large freshwater lake in the Andes mountains on the border of Bolivia and Peru. It is often called the highest navigable lake in the world. By volume of water and by surface area, i ...
. The highest peaks are in the Kakshaal-Too range, forming the Chinese border. Peak
Jengish Chokusu Jengish Chokusu ( ky, Жеңиш чокусу, , ; en, Tomur Peak, zh, s=托木尔峰, t=托木爾峰; russian: Пик Победы, ''Pik Pobedy'', ) is the highest mountain in the Tian Shan mountain system at . It lies on the Kyrgyzstan–Ch ...
, at , is the highest point and is considered by geologists to be the northernmost peak over in the world. Heavy snowfall in winter leads to spring floods which often cause serious damage downstream. The runoff from the mountains is also used for
hydro-electricity Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined an ...
.


Culture

As the Soviet Union respected other cultures even after
delimitation Boundary delimitation (or simply delimitation) is the drawing of boundaries, particularly of electoral precincts, states, counties or other municipalities.
, there are a wide variety of cultural items in Kirghizia listed here: * '' Manas'', an
epic poem An epic poem, or simply an epic, is a lengthy narrative poem typically about the extraordinary deeds of extraordinary characters who, in dealings with gods or other superhuman forces, gave shape to the mortal universe for their descendants. ...
* '' Komuz'', a three-stringed lute * ''
Tush kyiz Tush kyiz ( ky, туш кийиз , туш — ''side, the edge'', кийиз — ''felt''; kk, тұс киіз) are large, elaborately embroidered wall hangings, traditionally made in Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan by women to commemorate the marria ...
'', large, elaborately embroidered wall hangings * ''Shirdak'', flat cushions made in shadow-pairs * Other textiles, especially made from
felt Felt is a textile material that is produced by matting, condensing and pressing fibers together. Felt can be made of natural fibers such as wool or animal fur, or from synthetic fibers such as petroleum-based acrylic or acrylonitrile or wood ...
* Falconry


Traditions

Apart from celebrating the New Year each 1 January, Kirghizia, like all Soviet Republics, observed the Great October Socialist Revolution on 7 November. Its festivals and traditions such as
Nowruz Nowruz ( fa, نوروز, ; ), zh, 诺鲁孜节, ug, نەۋروز, ka, ნოვრუზ, ku, Newroz, he, נורוז, kk, Наурыз, ky, Нооруз, mn, Наурыз, ur, نوروز, tg, Наврӯз, tr, Nevruz, tk, Nowruz, ...
and Ulak Tartish were suppressed by the Soviet authorities. The tradition of
bride kidnapping Bride kidnapping, also known as marriage by abduction or marriage by capture, is a practice in which a man abducts the woman he wishes to marry. Bride kidnapping (hence the portmanteau bridenapping) has been practiced around the world and ...
, which remains illegal to this day, was suppressed by the Soviet regime. It is debatable whether bride kidnapping is actually traditional. Some of the confusion may stem from the fact that arranged marriages were traditional, and one of the ways to escape an arranged marriage was to arrange a consensual "kidnapping.""Reconciled to Violence: State Failure to Stop Domestic Abuse and Abduction of Women in Kyrgyzstan"
''Human Rights Watch Report''. September 2006, Vol. 18, No.9.


Legacy

According to 2013 Gallup poll, 62% of Kyrgyz people say that the collapse of the
Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
harmed their country, while only 16% said that the collapse benefitted it. The poll also showed that well-educated Kyrgyz people were more likely to say that the breakup harmed their country.


See also

* Leadership of Communist Kyrgyzstan * Interhelpo


References


Further reading

* Fatland, E. (2020). ''Sovietistan: Travels in Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan.'' New York: Pegasus Books. {{coord, 42, 52, N, 74, 36, E, source:afwiki_region:KG_type:country, display=title States and territories established in 1936 States and territories disestablished in 1991 1936 establishments in the Soviet Union 1991 disestablishments in the Soviet Union Former socialist republics Republics of the Soviet Union Communism in Kyrgyzstan