History, Culture and Traditions of the Kazakh People

Considering these circumstances, E. Pugachev promised the Kazakhs land, water, forests, weapons, lead, clothing, and assured them that he would not interfere with their way of life and religious beliefs. In return, he sought their military support to «restore» him to the status of Russian Tsar. In 1773, Pugachev clandestinely visited the nomads of the Junior Zhuz. He showed keen interest in the condition of the steppe dwellers; fluently speaking Kazakh, he often conversed with influential local elders, hoping to secure their support ahead of assistance from the Yaik Cossacks.

Many Kazakh clans, especially those from regions bordering Russia, expressed their willingness to support E. Pugachyov’s uprising. Khan Nuraly himself arrived at the Yaik fort with a detachment of 1,000 men. He sent a letter to E. Pugachyov affirming his readiness to serve him, but subsequently adopted a neutral stance, formally promising assistance both to Pugachyov and the tsarist forces. Later, Nuraly was forced to move away from the areas engulfed by the rebellion. Due to these ambiguous actions, the khan’s position weakened even further both within the Steppe and in the eyes of the Russian authorities.

Empress Catherine II, doubting the strength of Khan Nuraly, issued a decree in 1782 to establish in Orenburg the «Special Administration for the Kyrgyz-Kaisaks of the Little Horde,» known as the «Border Expedition». She abolished the previous ban on the transit of livestock into Russia during the winter months. The border officials were instructed to enforce strict justice, and substantial funds were allocated for the construction of mosques, schools, and caravanserais. Meanwhile, raids by Kazakhs continued, and in some cases, military forces had to be deployed to restore order.

Later, in 1784, the administration of the Orenburg region was headed by Baron Igelstrom. He sent a special message not only to the khans but also to all the Kazakh nomads, proposing to cease raiding border Russian settlements and to live in peace. The Kazakh population, perceiving signs of the decline of khan’s authority in this message, organized a popular assembly to discuss their response to Igelstrom. The leader of this gathering was Srym-Batyr, a representative of the people. Recognizing Srym-Batyr’s influence over the Kazakhs, Igelstrom entered into negotiations with him and easily persuaded the assembly to swear allegiance to Russia and promise to live in harmony.

Following these events, the number of Russian captives in the Kazakh steppes sharply decreased. In the Junior Zhuz, five judicial districts were established, with appointments for the chairman and his deputies who received salaries. Kazakhs were permitted to settle in sedentary villages, for which they were granted one-time aid from the state treasury. They were also allowed to move into Russian territory and receive land there for settlement. An order was issued to draft a special legislation for governing the Kazakhs, based on their folk traditions and customs, and in 1789, a staff of Kyrgyz schools was approved.

After the death of Nural Khan in 1790, his son Irali became his successor, despite the will of the people. Protests against Irali’s rule continued among the Kazakhs. When Irali died in 1794, the population of the Junior Zhuz wished to see Abulgazi, son of Khan Kaip, as their khan. However, the Orenburg governor chose Nuraly’s eldest son, Ishim, which also caused discontent in the Steppe. The Russian government took measures to strengthen Ishim’s authority within Kazakh society, but these attempts were unsuccessful. In 1797, Ishim was killed by Srym Batyr, after which Igelstrom forced the people’s assembly to elect Abulkhair’s already elderly son, Aichuvak, as khan.

At that time, the rights of tribes to land in the Kazakh steppes had become so entangled that it was no longer possible to identify the true landowners. Internal unrest caused by the nomadic conflicts led to desperate enmity. As a result, one group of Kazakhs, who had been roaming near the Urals, migrated eastward; another moved south toward the Caspian Sea; and a third group headed to the lower reaches of the Syr Darya River, proclaiming Abulgazi as their khan.

Taking advantage of these unrests, the chairman of the khan’s council, Sultan Bukey, persuaded part of the people – up to 7,000 kibitkas (nomadic households) – to migrate with him beyond the Ural River, to lands vacated by the Kalmyks who fled in 1771. In 1801, Bukey obtained the approval of Emperor Paul I for permanent nomadic settlement in these lands, thereby laying the foundation for the formation of the so-called Inner Horde, or Bukeyev Khanate.

However, in the Trans-Ural lands, where the Kazakhs continued to roam, unrest and disturbances persisted: the Russian government repeatedly appointed successors of Abulkhair as khans. This provoked discontent not only among ordinary steppe dwellers but also within the ranks of the khan aristocracy, particularly among the heirs of Nuraly. The Kazakhs continued to conduct raids on border settlements, with instances of cattle theft from the Ural Cossacks – especially horses – and the kidnapping of women (Shangina, 2012). Despite measures taken to curb these acts, Russia’s influence among the Kazakh people remained weak.

Gradually, with the development of trade and economic relations, by the early 19th century, friendly and cooperative ties began to be established between the Kazakh and Russian populations of the border regions. The previous reciprocal raids diminished significantly. Trade at border fairs became more active. Among Kazakhs and Russians, the practice of Tamyrstvo (fraternity or brotherhood) spread widely, fostering closer social bonds.

By the 1820s, the institution of the khanate had lost its role as the supreme authority capable of governing the internal affairs of the Zhuzes. The Tsarist administration abolished the khanate and began independently reforming the governance system with the aim of transforming this region into a colony of the Russian Empire. Meanwhile, there were no unified approaches to the organization of administration in the Orenburg and West Siberian regions.

According to the ideas of M.M. Speransky, in 1822 the «Charter of the Siberian Kyrgyz» was issued, which was gradually implemented only for the population of the Middle Zhuz and a small part of the Senior Zhuz, transferred under the jurisdiction of the West Siberian General-Governor. The khanate authority in the Middle Horde was abolished, and all internal governance was directly entrusted to Kazakh communities. The main units of administration were volosts, managed by their own sultans. These volosts were grouped into two districts: the Karkaralinsky and Kokchektaevsky districts. At their head were appointed orders, composed of elected senior sultans, three Russian commissioners, and two Kazakh representatives. Within the steppe itself, Cossack settlements were established. The right to administer justice and impose punishments was retained by biys – honorable judges among the Kazakhs. Typically, biys were not appointed but elected by the people themselves, who regarded them as authoritative, just, honest, and eloquent orators.

The new administrative arrangement affected part of the Orenburg Kazakhs of the Junior Zhuz in 1824, leading to the abolition of the khanate. The steppe was divided into three sections, each governed by senior sultans. These sultans were granted unlimited authority, and each was accompanied by a Cossack detachment. The Russian civil authorities were concentrated in the Orenburg Border Commission, which oversaw the Orenburg Kazakhs. In territorial terms, the new system, dictated by the Russian government, completely disregarded the traditional tribal division of land, causing discontent among the Kazakhs.

The expansion of Russian borders into the steppes did not cease at this point. Between 1824 and 1838, Russian frontier military posts extended to the Altai and Aktau, reaching the border with the Hunger Steppe (The Hungry Steppe (Kazakh: Myrzashol) is a clayey-saline desert in Central Asia. It is located on the left bank of the Syr Darya, where the river exits the Fergana Valley). Russian settlements such as Kokchetav, Karkaraly, Ayaguz, Bayan-aul, and Akmol formed within the Kazakh steppes. The population of the Senior Zhuz frequently faced invasions from Central Asian states, particularly Kokand and Khiva. The Kazakhs of this region were particularly interested in duty-free trade with Russia. Furthermore, England began to show interest in the southern borders of Kazakhstan, pursuing its goal of conquest in Central Asia during this period (Bekmakhanov, 1957). In the Senior Zhuz, as well as in the Middle Zhuz, Cossack settlements were established. These settlements maintained Russian authority and supplied grain to the troops. To govern the occupied territory, the Altai District was formed.

The introduction of the new system of governance in Kazakhstan led to a major national liberation movement from 1837 to 1847, led by Kenesary Kasymov. This uprising was directed against the Russian colonization of Kazakh lands, as well as against certain Kazakh feudal lords who supported the tsarist administration. Through his actions, Kenesary Kasymov sought to establish an independent Kazakh statehood. However, given the huge disparity in power between the Kazakhs and the Russian Empire, the uprising was doomed to fail. During a battle with the Kyrgyz in 1847, Kenesary was captured and killed (Abdildabekova, 2009).

Deprived of lands traditionally used for summer, and sometimes winter, pastures, the Kazakhs found themselves in a difficult position. The seizure of land disrupted traditional nomadic routes, led to the mixing of different clans within limited territories, formalized pastures as clan property, and established dependencies among clans. The ecological situation worsened, as the same lands had to be used for both summer and winter grazing.

The situation was especially difficult for Kazakhs who roamed in close proximity to the fortified lines or found themselves between them as frontier territories advanced southward. The Cossacks often regarded all land near the borders as their own property. They prohibited nomads from using these lands, depriving them of the opportunity to harvest hay for the winter. Such a situation developed, in particular, between the Old and New Lines in the Orenburg Governorate. For instance, in the 1830s, the authorities generally banned Kazakhs from pasture nomadism in this area. Protest actions – such as petitioning, livestock theft from colonists, open attacks, and anti-Russian demonstrations – rarely led to success for the nomads.

Grazing livestock near the lines was sometimes permitted on the condition that the Kazakhs sent hostages (amanats) from among the local nobility to the regional authorities. Unauthorized crossings of the line were severely punished. For example, in 1823, for «secretly crossing the border and intending to commit theft,» M. Khudainazarov, a Kazakh of the Junior Zhuz, was sentenced to 30 lashes and exile to the Irkutsk Governorate, while his tribesman D. Aituvarov received 20 lashes and was conscripted to serve in the Arkhangelsk garrison (Golunov, 2005).

The emerging unrest and resistance prompted the establishment of garrison points and fortifications in the Kazakh steppes, where free barter trade was conducted without customs duties. Further expansion of Russian borders and the construction of additional forts continued upstream along the Syr Darya River and toward Ak-Mechet, which was renamed Fort Perovsky in 1853 (Brockhaus, 1895). The seizure of the southern Turkestan strip in 1864, situated between the Verniy (future Almaty) fortification and Fort Perovsky, finally enclosed all Kazakh lands within a permanent border. Thus, by the 1860s, the incorporation of Kazakh territories into Russia was completed.

The Russian government maintained the existing Kazakh administration, headed by a patriarch and including the biys’ court, while reserving only general oversight over authorities and the populace. As Tsarist authority strengthened in the Steppe, Kazakhs gradually were removed from the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia. In 1836, the administration of the Bukeyev Khanate was transferred to the Ministry of State Property. By 1854, the greater part of the Middle Zhuz became part of the Siberian Kazakh region and was subordinate to unified state governance. Management of the Junior Zhuz was transferred to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, which was renamed the «Orenburg Kyrgyz Province». Later, Kazakhs roaming within the Syr Darya line and those of the Senior Zhuz, whose lands comprised the Alatau District, were also excluded from the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In 1868, Kazakh steppes under both the Orenburg and Siberian administrations were divided into four districts: Ural and Turgay in the Orenburg Governor-Generalship, and Akmolinsk and Semipalatinsk in Western Siberia.

The provinces were divided into districts. Each district was administered by a district chief, who had two assistants and a chancery. The districts themselves were divided into volosts (rural townships), and the volosts into auls (villages). The size of a volost was determined to be between 1,000 and 2,000 kibitkas (portable dwellings). Auls consisted of 100 to 200 kibitkas and were governed by aul elders. The volost and aul administrators were appointed by special electors from among the local population. Nomads were granted the right to adjudicate according to their own traditions, except in cases of political crimes and breaches of public order. Judges, called biys, were elected by the people for a term of three years.

Many sultans and biys were left without official positions, which led them to resist the new system of administration. Tsarist policy was partly aimed at the Russification of the Kazakh people, hindering the development of national consciousness. The sultans were granted the right to call themselves the «White Bone,» meaning descendants of Genghis Khan, which exempted them from taxes. However, beginning in 1889, all sultans were required to pay the kibitka tax, which amounted to 3 rubles (Brockhaus, 1895).

The bai (Bai (Kazakh) is a large landowner or cattle owner in Central Asia, Kazakhstan) and the poor paid the same. All land was declared state property. The introduced reforms sparked uprisings in the Ural and Turgay provinces, as well as in Mangyshlak. Meanwhile, the local Kazakh elite, relying on the popular masses, sought to restore the khan’s authority in the Junior Zhuz. However, these uprisings did not gain wide support and were suppressed.

Since the early 1860s, school education began to be actively introduced in the territory of Kazakhstan. With the participation of I. Altynsarin, seven primary schools for Kazakh children were opened in the Steppe region, along with four two-class schools and a teachers’ training school offering instruction in both Kazakh and Russian. These schools were established at fortifications constructed in the Steppe (Kosach, 2003). The development of the Kazakh alphabet based on Cyrillic allowed for its practical use in communication with the Kazakhs, since previously documents had been translated for them from Russian into Tatar using the Arabic script.

In December 1894, the first qualified Kazakh doctor entered medical service in the Steppe – Amre Aytbakin, a graduate of the medical faculty of the Imperial Tomsk University. After passing exams before the medical examination board at Tomsk University, Aytbakin was awarded the degree of physician on October 19, 1894. Soon, Aytbakin became widely and deservedly known as a healer and wise man of the Steppe. Information about him spread from Bayan-Aul to Karkaralinsk, then to Semipalatinsk, Irkutsk, Tomsk, and ultimately reached Moscow. According to accounts from individuals who observed his methods in Karkaralinsk and heeded local rumors

about «their» doctor, A. Aytbakyn held immense authority and influence among the Kazakhs in his district. Daily, hundreds of mounted Kazakhs could be seen gathering near his residence, coming from various parts of the district for advice not only concerning their ailments but also on general «matters, disputes, family issues, and others». The local population approached the new doctor with enthusiasm, which, aside from Aytbakyn’s personal qualities, was facilitated by his ability to communicate with patients in their native language without the aid of a translator. Kazakhs visited the previous Russian doctors much less frequently, partly due to an unclear fear and partly because of their lack of proficiency in Russian (Fominykh, S.F., Kuzmin, A.N. & Nekrylov, S.A., 2011).

Before the October Revolution, Kazakhstan remained a marketplace for goods and a source of raw materials for Russian industry. In the early 20th century, workers’ strikes erupted across Kazakhstan, and Marxist circles began to develop. Simultaneously, disturbances took place in the Turgay, Semipalatinsk, and Ural regions. At the same time, the Tsarist government initiated a process of resettling Russian peasants into Kazakhstan, whose numbers in the Steppe Region began to increase especially after the abolition of serfdom in Russia (Friesen, 2012). This situation immediately impacted the local population, primarily through the reduction of traditional nomadic lifestyles.

Conversely, the growth in the rural population contributed to the strengthening of sedentary agricultural culture in northern Kazakhstan and significantly influenced the traditional economy of the Kazakhs. Under the conditions of land dispossession, the local population was forced to adapt and alter their customary forms of livelihood and way of life (Andreev, I.A., & Andrianov, B.V., 1982). The Kazakh ethnos demonstrated a high level of adaptability, tolerance, and peacefulness. According to contemporary observers, this process was less painful for the Kazakhs than might have been expected. Peoples of different origins have always been able to find a common language. Journalist A. Tregubov, an eyewitness who visited Akmolinsk Oblast, described the relations between Russians and local Kazakhs as follows: «The settlers live very amicably with the Kyrgyz (Kazakhs, the author’s note). I did not hear any complaints from the settlers about the Kyrgyz. Cases of partial «tamyr’ (brotherhood) between settlers and Kyrgyz serve as the best evidence of the possibility of good coexistence between Kyrgyz and Russians. The Kyrgyz are hospitable, but it is necessary to respect their traditions». Incidents that did occur were most often the result of thoughtless actions by bureaucratic officials who were unwilling to consider the interests of the newcomers and the local Kazakh population (e-History.kz, n.d.).

Land previously used by nomads for industrial purposes – such as salt extraction, mining of non-ferrous metals, and other minerals (Golunov, 2005) – was also confiscated. By the 1870s, the process of sedentarization had spread across a broad area of northern and eastern Kazakhstan. Populations in the desert and semi-desert steppes of central and western Kazakhstan remained outside this process, continuing extensive nomadic migrations. In Semirechye and the Syr Darya region – areas that were incorporated into Russia at a later time and characterized by a milder climate – the process of sedentarization began only at the very end of the 19th and the early 20th centuries, progressing quite rapidly. Subsequently, in the 20th century, permanent settlements appeared along the Ili River and on Lake Balkhash (Zhdanko, 1961).

Interactions between representatives of the two ethnic groups were characterized by mutual borrowing of achievements in material and spiritual culture. Due to a shortage of women along the Siberian lines, mixed Russian-Kazakh marriages became common. Researchers and travelers noted the bilinguism (proficiency in two languages) among Siberian line Cossacks and their excellent knowledge of Kazakh customs. As N. M. Yadrintsev observed in this regard: «On the frontier and along the line, the Cossacks almost completely lost their language and now speak Kyrgyz (Kazakh (author’s note)) exclusively. Having frequent interactions with Kyrgyz (Kazakh), they even began to use this language in their domestic life. In the stanitsas, it is often evident that a Cossack girl, a daughter of a Cossack officer, issues her commands in Kyrgyz, and here Kyrgyz replaces French as the language of communication. In Omsk, we were shown a Cossack officer from the steppe who was unable to explain the content of a matter in Russian and, forgetting himself, began to communicate it in Kyrgyz – completely unaware that his listener did not understand» (Lysenko, 2008).

During the years of the First World War, mass requisitions of agricultural products and livestock, increases in taxes and levies, and the conscription of the Kazakh population (in 1916) for rear-area labor sparked a series of strikes and popular unrest. Individual protests escalated into a national liberation uprising that spread across the entire territory of Kazakhstan. The uprising was especially prolonged in the Turgay region, where the rebel forces were led by the Batyr Amangeldy Imanov.

In conclusion of this section, it should be emphasized that Kazakhstan’s integration into the Russian Empire unfolded gradually over the course of two centuries. This process was predominantly facilitated through diplomatic means, though military force was occasionally employed. In certain instances, the policies of the Tsarist government provoked dissatisfaction and determined resistance among the Kazakh population. Nevertheless, throughout this period, political, economic, and cultural ties between the two neighboring peoples were strengthened, which positively influenced the development of both states.