History, Culture and Traditions of the Kazakh People

The stove held an important place in the winter dwelling of the steppe Kazakhs, being heated from morning until night. A cauldron was placed in the stove, where food was cooked, laundry was washed, and household items were cleaned. In winter, the entire family typically gathered around the stove, as closely as possible, since the temperature in the room rarely reached nine degrees Celsius. Wealthy Kazakhs lived differently: their homes were cozy, with wooden floors that were carefully cleaned, and the beds were covered with carpets and pillows. These houses had fresh air and moderate temperatures.

To encourage the Kazakhs to transition to a sedentary lifestyle, Jangir allocated land for the construction of houses and outbuildings free of charge. The rapid adaptation of the Kazakhs to sedentary and semi-sedentary ways of life is also linked to the mass death of livestock during the harsh and prolonged blizzards in the winter months of 1827—1828. Due to starvation – a devastating drought – up to 111,000 horses, 45,000 head of cattle, 6,000 camels, and 220,000 sheep perished in the khanate. Other reports indicate that in that year, two-thirds of the total livestock population in the Bukeyev Khanate was lost. The colossal damage suffered by herders during these years forced them to seek ways of self-preservation. From that point on, the Kazakhs rapidly began to create the most primitive shelters for their livestock and winter dwellings.

The main wealth of the Kazakhs of the Bukeyev Horde was always livestock, but by the mid-19th century, animal husbandry had declined. One of the reasons for the decline in the population’s well-being in the khanate, as noted by some historians, was the incorrect distribution of lands by Khan Jangir among the clans, in which the main part of the best lands was concentrated in the hands of the large and middle nobility. The initial trust from the Russian government and the policy of control over the Bukeyev Khanate gradually gave way to principles of non-interference in the internal affairs of the horde. Jangir took advantage of his relatively independent position, which led to arbitrary land distribution in the horde and the establishment of levies. As a result, many Kazakhs lost their pasture plots and were forced to rent lands for nomadism from their neighbors – the Kalmyks or large landowners, for example, the princes Yusupov, Bezborodko, and others. Some, due to the lack of lands, fell into dependence on the nobility and were forced to pay tribute. And some Kazakhs altogether left the territory of the khanate and tried to return again to the Trans-Urals steppes.

Many historians have regarded the land relations established within the Bukeyev Khanate as an anomaly in the nomadic Kazakh society. For instance, researcher S. E. Tolybekov affirms: «The entire history of the Kazakh nomadic khanate does not recognize any estate-based or monopolistic landownership by the khan and sultans; we are not aware of a single case where a nomadic herder was attached to the land, i.e., serfdom» (Tolybekov, 1971). For example, Karaul-Khodzha Babadzhanov, who, by decision of the khan, became a land magnate, forced nomads to mow hay for him as payment for the lands granted. Additionally, Karaul-Khodzha introduced monetary levies on each yurt and a natural tax in the form of fillet and sausages.

The intensification of land disputes became a factor in the disintegration of internal ties within Kazakh communities. As ordinary herders grew poorer due to the shortage of pastures, more within the kinship groups became kreme (outsiders). The weaker the kinship bonds among the nomads, the more freely they abandoned their relatives in search of more favorable living conditions. Driven to despair, people could no longer tolerate the existing situation and arose in fierce resistance. By the mid-1830s, the uprisings of the dependent population (sharua), caught under the yoke of local feudal lords, escalated into an organized rebellion led by Isatai Taimanov. The batyr appealed to the khan, requesting an end to the lawlessness of the Sultans. However, Jangir’s reaction to this plea was to appeal to the Russian authorities for military reinforcements. The people’s outrage turned into armed resistance. «It required extraordinary courage and influence over the masses,» wrote A. F. Ryzanov, «to lead almost unarmed people against well-armed Russian troops, under the command of officers wielding artillery, which inspired a mystical terror among the half-wild horde members. We know of the feats of Srym, Karatay, Kenisary, but we have never encountered such a display of willpower, such a passionate thirst for victory, and such sacrifice – what Isatai batyr manifested!» (Mukataev, 2001).

Due to the threat of destruction from military fortifications, the rebels led by Isatai managed to break through and retreat back into the Trans-Ural steppe near the Yamankhalin fort on the night of December 14, 1837 (Zimanov, 1982). Later, they returned again across the line, and shortly thereafter, Isatai himself was killed in a confrontation with Russian troops. The remaining seven rebels were brought to trial, and by court decision, they were sentenced to be whipped through the gauntlet (The gauntlet is a long, flexible and thick rod made of willow (willow bush) used for corporal punishment in the 17th—19th centuries. The gauntlets were first soaked in salt water) – running between two ranks of 500 men in two consecutive rounds of punishment. Afterward, they were exiled for eight years of forced labor in Riga; those who remained fit for service after this period were transferred into the ranks of soldiers.

Remaining concerned and not indifferent to the bloody events that had occurred, the military governor of Orenburg, V.A. Perovsky, wrote to Jangir: «These people would never have dared to take action that would lead to such consequences without cause or reason. I have learned that not only the followers of Isatai, but also the majority of the Kyrgyz, have been driven to the extreme by the self-rule of the sultans, biys, and elders you employ to manage the horde. «Over time, Jangir realized the mistakes he had made in reforming land relations and assessed the scale of their consequences. He had plans to address the land issue in the khanate, but his untimely death prevented him from realizing his intentions.

Jangir sought to strengthen his position within Kazakh society by rewarding loyal associates, granting them the best lands, conferring titles, offering gifts, and providing privileges. To manage Kazakh communities, Jangir prepared religious figures who partly served as agents of his policies, including in the realm of education. Documents mention that before Jangir was elevated to the status of khan, most Kazakhs – except for a few sultans and khojas – had a limited understanding of Islamic religious beliefs; at that time, the number of mullahs across the entire khanate did not exceed fifteen (Zimanov, 1982).

To bring his fellow tribesmen closer to religion, the khan resorted to various, sometimes unconventional, measures. For example, the khan considered complex disputed cases in a specially arranged mosque, where he preliminarily conducted a worship service for the parties. About the population of the Bukeyev Khanate, the military official L.L. Meyer wrote that «they pray willingly, but have a decisive aversion to visiting mosques». There were cases when during the fair in the Khan’s Headquarters, a detachment of Cossacks from the khan’s personal escort suddenly appeared, who drove the crowd into the mosque with whips and lashes to perform prayers. L.L. Meyer, who observed the Kazakhs, believed that «the reason for this is purely physical: the stuffy air of the mosque is especially sensitive and unpleasant for the inhabitants of the free steppes and makes the communal prayer a perfect punishment» (Mukataev, 2001). By the beginning of the 1840s, individual aul collectives already had their own spiritual mentor. Tatar mullahs invited by Jangir taught the faith to worthy Kazakhs, who, after successfully passing an exam, became mullahs by the khan’s order. The Islamization of Kazakh society was facilitated by the Orenburg Mufti, whose daughter (Fatima) Jangir married.

For his active implementation of Islamic institutions in the khanate, Jangir was honored with numerous commendations from the Muslim clergy of the Russian Empire. However, after Jangir’s own death, the reforms he had initiated in the spiritual and religious life of the Bukeyev people drew criticism from the tsarist administration. Jangir’s actions were now seen as an obstruction to the transformations being carried out by the Russian administration in the horde, which contributed to the growth of anti-Christian and anti-Russian sentiments among his subjects (Pochekaev, 2014).

In the absence of control from the Russian government, among the khan’s levies approved by Jangir, the zakat was the foremost. This tax, grounded in Islamic religious principles and practiced in many Muslim countries, was initially levied in kind, deriving from a fixed quota of one-twentieth of the livestock according to a strictly established distribution scheme:

1) for 5 camels – 1 head of sheep; for 10 camels – 2 sheep; for 15 camels – 3 sheep; for 20 camels – 4 sheep; for 25 camels – a taylak (a two-year-old camel); for 36 camels – one three-year-old camel; for 46 camels – one four-year-old camel; for 61 camels – one five-year-old camel.