The Spring Holiday Nauryz-Meiramy in the Kazakh Tradition

Year 2018, Volume: 2 Issue: 1, 49 - 77, 30.06.2018

Dina Amırova

https://doi.org/10.33906/musicologist.439341

Abstract

The present article is the first attempt by
the author to give a scholarly interpretation of the interesting yet under
investigated phenomenon of Kazakh ‘Nauryz’. The ethno-cultural traditions of
‘Nauryz’, lost as a result of Islamization and Sovietization of Kazakhstan,
have been revived over the last 30 years.

The article reviews the basic socio-historical
prerequisites of ‘Nauryz’ in the system of Kazakh traditional culture, taking
into account the typological features of spring holiday (the idea of cyclic
revival of life), as well as specific aspects of Central Asian nomadism. The
author regards ‘Nauryz-meiramy’ as a complete calendar-ceremonial complex of
high social and spiritual significance and conditionally differentiates three
interconnected components of the traditional ‘Nauryz-meiramy’ (ritual,
competitive, entertaining) and emphasizes their duplicative character.

The article devotes special attention to an
examination of the musical context of ‘Nauryz-mejramy’. The author argues for
the existence of the currently lost song genre specific to Nauryz-meiramy (akin
to carols) and based on the available data attempts to reconstruct its original
model.

Keywords

Nauryz, Spring holidays, New Year rites, Kazakh Folklore, Kazakh nomadism, Kazakh Folk Music, Genre model

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