Seminar "Preservation and transmission of Kyrgyz customs and knowledge to future generations"

Seminar on "Promoting the Preservation and Transmission of Pastoral Traditional Knowledge" Project

The project was aimed to achieve great success in preserving traditional pastoral knowledge and supporting the ecological, economic, cultural and social vitality of mountain communities.

On the basis of two pilot vocational lyceums, a new subject on traditional knowledge was developed and introduced, with the production of six methodological manuals: on nomadic cuisine, on everyday life and culture, on traditional patterns and dyeing in garment making, on physical development (nomadic games), on traditional knowledge of pastoral resources and pasture grasses.

Support was also provided for the development and establishment of the Pastoral Network "Kyrgyz El Akyl Kazyna", which nowadays already unites more than 3,000 people throughout the country. Network activists hold various festivals to popularize nomadic customs, and implement such initiatives as the "Baibiche Club", "School of daughters-in-law", training in carpet weaving, embroidery, yurt decoration, etc.

"We had to literally gather knowledge about the meaning of ancient traditions and rituals in the villages bit by bit. In modern society we still observe them in everyday life, often without understanding their deep meaning and purpose. Old people are leaving, taking with them the most valuable knowledge, we should have time to collect and preserve the intellectual and cultural wealth of our ancestors and pass it on to our children and grandchildren," said Altyn Dzhanyshbaeva, Chairperson of the Pastoral Network "Kyrgyz El Akyl Kazyna".