Kumyks - Religion and Expressive Culture



Religious Beliefs. Sunni Islam spread among the Kumyks between the eight and twelfth centuries. Christianity had been widespread prior to this and, among the upper class of Khazaria, Judaism. Not many pagan beliefs have been preserved, and the institution of shamanism as such is virtually nonexistant among the Kumyks. Folklore and ethnographic material, however, indicate that Kumyk tribes worshiped the high god Tengiri and the divinities and spirits of the sun, the moon, the earth, the water, and so on. There are surviving heroic poems, narratives, and ritual songs concerning, among others, the demon Albaslï (a woman with huge breasts thrown over her shoulders, who might injure women giving birth); Suv-anasï, the "mother of water"; the three demons Temirtösh, Baltatösh, and Qïlïchtösh (with ax blades protruding from their chests with which they kill people); Sütqatïn, a goddess or spirit of the rain; Basdïrïq, who could suffocate people in their sleep; and a gluttonous figure. The subsequent spread of Islamic mythology often transformed or provided an overlay to the pagan beliefs. Today Muslim and, in particular, pagan beliefs are becoming things of the past.

Arts. In houses of the older type great significance was attached to the carving of the wooden parts of houses: beams, pillars, clothes closets, shutters, the frames of windows and gates, and the like. Stone slabs with traditional carvings and inscriptions were inserted in the walls of porches or gates. Clay decorations were placed on niches, apertures, cornices, and fireplaces. The spacing of decorations was based on the native sense of decorative rhythms. Daggers, pistols, sabers, and rifles were covered with various decorations with gold or silver mounting. Female attire, particularly that of girls, was decorated with gold and silver galloons or lace, or artfully realized gilded pectorals.

The Kumyk people have created highly artistic forms of folklore. Their heroic epics include the ancient "Song of Minküllü," similar to the Gilgamesh epic; the "Song of Kartkozhak and Maksuman," a segment of the Kumyk Nart epic; and the "Song of Javatbi," in which, as in the Oghuz epic of Dede Korkut, the tale is told of the struggle of the hero with Azrail, the angel of death. Poetry of the yearly cycle includes songs for bringing rain ("Zemire," "Sütqatïn"), for meeting autumn ("Güdürbay," "Hüssemey") and spring ("Navruz"), and family-ritual songs: wedding songs and laments. Children's literature is also significantly developed, as are myths, legends, and tales. The epics include songs of legendary heroes such as Aigazi, Abdulla, and Eldarush and the heroes of the anti-colonial and anticzarist struggles of the nineteenth century. To the relatively late genres of Kumyk folklore belong the songs about the freedom-loving Cossack warriors, the takmaks and sarïns (quatrains used in verbal dueling), amatory verse, and humorous and other songs. The telling of proverbs and maxims also flowered. Kumyk dance, which has about twenty variants, is related to Lezgin dance. Characteristic of its choreography are compositional precision, a clearly expressed manner of realization (powerful and masculine by the men; tranquil and proud by the women), a complex pattern, and a duple rhythm. Vocal art is also highly developed, particularly the male polyphonic choir. Dances and songs are accompanied by a kumuz (a plucked string instrument), an accordion, or less often a wind instrument. Solo folk songs are also performed on these instruments.

Kumyk literature began to develop in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries but reached a more significant development at the turn of the nineteenth century when poets such as A. Qaqashurinsky, Y Qazaq, and M. Osmanov appeared. Major contributions to Daghestan Soviet literature were made by A. Salavadov, A. Magomedov, A. Adzhiev, and many others. The Russian poet Arseni Tarkovsky is a Kumyk on his paternal side, as is his son, the internationally known film director Andrei Tarkovsky. Kumyk theater, the first in Daghestan, was created in 1930; it has featured such outstanding Daghestani actors as Stanislavsky Prize laureate B. Muradova. I. Kaziev has played a significant role in the development of Daghestan cinematic art. T. Muradov, I. Batalbekova, Z. Aleksenderov, and B. Ibragimova are particularly popular actors.


Medicine. Native healers used herbs, foods, and water; practiced bloodletting and massage; and applied compresses and other poultices together with magical techniques of great antiquity. In Soviet times highly qualified medical personnel have emerged (e.g., R. P. Askerkhanov, corresponding member of the Academy of Sciences).


Death and the Afterlife. In funeral ritual and poetry, side by side with Islamic regulations (particularly regarding the process of burial) and beliefs or concepts regarding the afterlife, are elements of pagan beliefs and even certain rituals and songs, for example, shaghalai (a singular type of keening and ritual dances around the deceased) and a ritual of dedicating a horse to the deceased.

User Contributions:

Comment about this article, ask questions, or add new information about this topic: