Main traditional festivals and taboos of the Kazakh people

Kazakh men and women are good at riding horses. Young men like wrestling and sheep hunting. During festivals and festivals, herdsmen hold various riding performances and competitions;"Girls chasing" is the favorite entertainment for young people. The main Kazakh festivals are Roz Festival, Gurbang Festival and Nawruz Festival. The first two are festivals derived from Islam. Nawruz Festival is a traditional Kazakh festival.

Kazakh Festival-Rouz Festival, a traditional Kazakh festival, Rouz Festival, the name comes from the Persian transliteration, while the Arabic transliteration is "Eid Fitur", which means "Eid al-Fitr", so "Rouz Festival" is also called "Eid al-Fitr". According to Islamic regulations, believers must fast for one month in the ninth month of the Islamic calendar every year. During Ramadan, Muslims, as long as they are not sick, travelers, pregnant and nursing women, must abstain from all food and sexual intercourse from dawn to sunset every day. Eat only twice a day before sunrise and after sunset.

Fasting is a mandatory "destiny" exercise for believers, symbolizing that guilty Muslims repent and atone for Allah, so as to cultivate Kazakh believers to become people who can endure hunger, abstain from self-restraint, and be afraid of the Lord and abide by the law. Fasting is not only about not eating or drinking, but mainly about eliminating all bad behaviors. During the Lent month, in addition to the five services a day, there is also a 2O prayer service in the evening. Because there are few Kazakh people worship temples, they usually do it in yurts. After the one-month fast expires, the fast is fenced on October 1st of the Islamic calendar. On this day, Kazakhs from all clans and tribes must gather in a nearby worship temple to pray and congratulate each other. This day is Roz Festival.

Kazakhs celebrate Ruz Festival for three days every year. During the holidays, Kazakh men and women wear the latest and best clothes and ride horses to pay homage to each other in groups. First, the younger generation pays homage to the elders, and every family prepares rich food. Most of these foods are made on Friday, the last main day of Ramadan, which is the fourth main day of Ramadan. These foods are mainly fried foods. Various recreational activities will also be held on this day.

Kazakh Festival-Gurbang Festival, a traditional Kazakh festival, is 70 days after the Rouz Festival. It is called the New Year in the Muharram calendar, also called the Big Festival, and is more solemn than the Rouz Festival. The word "El Adha" is an Arabic transliteration, meaning "sacrifice of animals", so it is also called "Eid al-Adha".

During the Gurbang Festival, every Kazakh household has to clean, and each family has to prepare Borshak fried fruits, oil cakes and various snacks. Rich Kazakh families slaughter sheep and cattle for hospitality or gift. When slaughtering sheep, it is traditional custom not to tie the legs of sheep. According to legend, the sheep slaughtered is an animal to ride in heaven. If the legs are tied, it cannot walk and cannot reach heaven. After slaughter, cut them into large pieces and boil them. After cooking, they are placed on a large plate. When the guests come, the owner cuts them into slices with a knife in front of the guests, and enthusiastically invites the guests to eat meat and drink a bowl of broth. During the festival, men, women and old all wear festive costumes, visit relatives and neighbors to congratulate the festival. During the festival day, interesting and unique traditional national sports activities such as horse racing, sheep hunting, and girl chasing are also held. At night, people gather together happily to sing and dance.

Kazakh Festival-Nawruz Festival "Nawruz" means "sending the old and welcoming the new" in Kazakh language. It is a traditional Kazakh festival. The festival falls on the first day of the New Year in the folk calendar, roughly on the Spring Equinox of the Lunar Calendar.

On this day, Kazakh families eat a rice made from a mixture of millet, rice, wheat, milk bumps and meat. The Kazakh people put on bright national costumes to congratulate each other. The owner would entertain the guests with hand-made holiday food. With the accompaniment of Dongbula, everyone would sing a festival song with fixed tunes and impromptu lyrics specially sung on this day., and dance. In some places in pastoral areas, people also slaughter livestock on this day, present sheep's heads to the elderly, and use the elderly's blessings to pray for a bumper harvest in the coming year.

The Kazakh nomadic production activities follow the zodiac chronology passed down since ancient times. Every year, on the first lunar month, the vernal equinox, around March 21 of the Gregorian calendar), known as the "Nawrezi" Festival, which means New Year), it is the Spring Festival of the Kazakh people, that is, the New Year's Day of the Kazakh New Year.

In order to send the old and welcome the new and predict a bumper harvest, every household must use seven foods: wheat, millet, rice, flour, salt, meat, and milk to make "Nawurezi" rice. On this day, Kazakh people flock from one Aul to another Amal, walking from house to house, eating "Nawu Rezi" rice, singing the "Nawu Rezi" song, hugging each other and congratulating each other on the New Year. The heads left when livestock were slaughtered in winter will always be preserved to this festival and dedicated to the elderly. The old man read the message: "May your livestock be full and your milk be abundant." During the festival, the Kazakh people also carry out various cultural and sports activities, such as singing, duet, wrestling, etc., as well as tongue twisters, guessing puzzles, and realizing dreams. During the festival, Kazakh children are even more happy. They kick shuttlecock and fly kites during the day and play hide-and-seek at night.

During the Nawruz Festival, every Kazakh household also has the custom of dedicating sheep's heads to the elderly. When the old man accepted the sheep's head, he recited a congratulatory message: "May your livestock be full and your milk be abundant."

Nowadays, influenced by Islam, Kazakh urban residents no longer celebrate this festival in a grand manner. The pastoral areas that retain more traditional festivals and customs are mainly in the pastoral areas. Because pastoral areas are not deeply influenced by Islam, and because Nawruz Festival is closely related to animal husbandry production and herdsmen's life.

Kazakh festival taboos There are many Kazakh festival taboos, which are manifested in many aspects such as production, life, guests, marriage and religious beliefs.

1. When visiting during festivals, Kazakhs avoid guests riding fast horses to their homes and entering the rooms. This will be considered a provocation or announcing funeral and sending unlucky news. When you are approaching your house on horseback, slow down, get off your horse on the side of the house or behind the house, and put your whip away.

2. When guests during festivals, Kazakhs avoid guests sitting on boxes with food or other daily necessities. The Kazakh people believe that food is given by Hu Da and holy.

3. Kazakhs are not allowed to sit on beds in yurts, sit cross-legged on the carpet on the ground, and are not allowed to straighten their legs.

4. When talking and eating, the Kazakh people are most taboo about pinching nose, picking nostrils, farting, spitting, cutting nails and yawning. Otherwise, they are considered the greatest disrespect.

5. When eating or drinking tea, Kazakhs are not allowed to step on the table cloth, let alone cross the table cloth. After eating and drinking, it is best not to leave casually until the table cloth is put away. If you go out for something, you can't walk in front of people. You have to go around behind people.

6. When the Kazakh people eat inlaid pieces, they cannot hold the entire inlaid piece in their hands and chew it with their mouths, but should cut it into small pieces and eat it.

7. When the owner is cooking, it is best for guests not to touch the tableware, let alone fiddle with the food or lift the lid of the pot.

8. The tea, wine, meat and other food served by the owner, no matter whether it is good or bad, must be happily accepted. You can't drink half of the tea and leave the table with half left. It's best to drink it in one gulp. If you don't know how to drink it, you should also drink a little to express your gratitude, otherwise the host will think that you look down on him or have other opinions. You must also accept the meat given by your master happily and don't refuse to eat it, otherwise the master will be unhappy.

9. Before and after meals, the Kazakh host would pour water for guests to wash their hands. After washing your hands, do not throw water randomly, but use a towel to dry them.

10. The Kazakh people abstain from eating pork, donkey meat, and the meat of livestock and wild animals that died without being slaughtered, and also abstain from the blood of all animals. They believe that these meat and blood are unclean.

11. When staying in a Kazakh family, don't refuse to use the owner's bedding, otherwise you will be considered looking down on them.

12. In Kazakh homes, guests usually stay for up to two days.

13. Kazakhs taboo others praise their children face to face, especially not to say can be "fat", they think this will bring unlucky things to children.

14. Kazakhs taboo others praise their livestock and hounds, etc. in front of their owners can not chase hounds and guard dogs, do not count the number of heads of their owners, they think this will cause livestock losses and disasters.

15. Don't cross the ropes that tie livestock. Kazakhs believe that crossing the ropes that tie livestock is an insult to the gods who made them rich. The Kazakh people believe that the increase and fatter of livestock are given by the gods who are in charge of the ropes that tie various livestock.

16. Kazakhs should take a detour when encountering sheep when walking. They should not ride through the sheep on horseback, and do not kick or hit the head of livestock with wooden sticks.

17. Don't use your hands or sticks to point out the number of people, otherwise the Kazakh people will think that they are counting people as livestock.

18. When returning the borrowed horse, the saddle must be removed, otherwise it will be regarded as impolite by the Kazakh people.

19. Kazakh daughter-in-law cannot use his father-in-law's saddle and sit on his father-in-law's bed; father-in-law cannot use his daughter-in-law's saddle and sit on his daughter-in-law's bed.

20. Kazakh women are in confinement, houses where children have rashes, houses where newlyweds, houses where young women live alone, should not enter others 'houses casually, let alone wearing vests, trousers, or bare-shirtless.

21. Kazakh women are not allowed to walk in front of their elders, let alone drink or smoke in front of their elders.

22. When Kazakhs worship, don't walk in front of them, don't step on the prayer cloth, let alone imitate their movements and laugh loudly.

23. On the west wall of Kazakh houses, no heads of people should be hung, no feet should be moved west and east when sleeping, and no toilet door should be opened west.

24. Tuesdays and Fridays are unlucky days for Kazakhs and cannot go out.

25. No defecation and defecation are allowed near Kazakh houses, next to water sources, worship temples, and cemeteries.

26. Kazakhs must wear a hat and not speak when urinating and urinating.

27. Kazakhs cannot pee and pee at the sun or moon.

28. Kazakh people avoid plowing grass because grass is a symbol of the continuation of life on the grassland.

29. Kazakhs are not allowed to spit into the fire or water, pour dirty water or defecate.

30. Kazakhs avoid crying and speaking filthy language in the morning. Kazakhs believe that this will cause trouble or bring disaster.