kazakhs

The Kazakhs likely began using the name Kazakh during the 15th century.{{cite book|first=V. V.|last=Barthold|author-link=Vasily Bartold|title=Four Studies on the History of Central Asia|translator=V. & T. Minorsky|location=Leiden|publisher=Brill Publishers|date=1962|volume= 3|pages=129}} There are many theories on the origin of the word Kazakh or Qazaq. Some speculate that it comes from the Turkic verb {{lang|tr|qaz}} ("wanderer, brigand, vagabond, warrior, free, independent") or that it derives from the Proto-Turkic word {{lang|trk|*khasaq}} (a wheeled cart used by the Kazakhs to transport their yurts and belongings).{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0QAraz9qVY4C&pg=PA4|last=Olcott|first=Martha Brill|title=The Kazakhs|publisher=Hoover Press|year=1995|page=4|isbn=978-0-8179-9351-1|access-date=7 April 2009|archive-date=9 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230409180357/https://books.google.com/books?id=0QAraz9qVY4C&pg=PA4|url-status=live}}{{Cite book|last=Caroe|first=Olaf|url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/862273470|title=Soviet Empire : the Turks of Central Asia and Stalinism|date=1953|publisher=Macmillan|pages=38|oclc=862273470}}

Another theory on the origin of the word Kazakh (originally {{lang|trk|Qazaq}}) is that it comes from the ancient Turkic word {{lang|trk|qazğaq}}, first mentioned on the 8th century Turkic monument of Uyuk-Turan.{{cite web|url=http://www.orientalistica.ru/resour/runica/collection/e3a.htm|script-title=ru:Уюк-Туран|trans-title=Uyuk-Turan|language=ru|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060205181454/http://www.orientalistica.ru/resour/runica/collection/e3a.htm|archive-date=5 February 2006}} According to Turkic linguist Vasily Radlov and Orientalist Veniamin Yudin, the noun {{lang|trk|qazğaq}} derives from the same root as the verb {{lang|trk|qazğan}} ("to obtain", "to gain"). Therefore, {{lang|trk|qazğaq}} defines a type of person who wanders and seeks gain.{{cite book|last=Yudin|first=Veniamin P.|title=Центральная Азия в 14–18 веках глазами востоковеда |trans-title=Central Asia in the eyes of 14th–18th century Orientalists|location=Almaty|publisher=Dajk-Press|year=2001|isbn=978-9965-441-39-4}}

{{Main|Turkic peoples|History of Kazakhstan|History of Central Asia}}

File:Kazakhs 19th Century 2.jpg

Throughout history, Kazakhstan has been home to many nomadic societies of the Eurasian Steppe, including the Sakas (Scythian-related), the Xiongnu, the Western Turkic Khaganate, the Kimek–Kipchak Confederation, the Mongol Empire, the Golden Horde and the Kazakh Khanate, which was established in 1465.{{cite book |last1=Pultar |first1=Gönül |title=Imagined Identities: Identity Formation in the Age of Globalization |date=2014 |publisher=Syracuse University Press |isbn=978-0-8156-3342-6 |page=365 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KhiQAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA365 |language=en |access-date=13 February 2023 |archive-date=13 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230213043242/https://books.google.com/books?id=KhiQAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA365 |url-status=live }}

The exact place of origins of the Turkic peoples has been a topic of much discussion. Early Medieval Turkic peoples who migrated into Central Asia displayed genetic affinities with Ancient Northeast Asians, deriving around 62% of their ancestry from a gene pool maximized among Neolithic hunter-gatherers in the Amur region. There is also evidence for contact with Iranian, Uralic and Yeniseian peoples.{{Cite journal |last1=Lee |first1=Joo-Yup |last2=Kuang |first2=Shuntu |date=18 October 2017 |title=A Comparative Analysis of Chinese Historical Sources and y-dna Studies with Regard to the Early and Medieval Turkic Peoples |journal=Inner Asia |volume=19 |issue=2 |pages=197–239 |doi=10.1163/22105018-12340089 |issn=2210-5018 |s2cid=165623743 |quote=Finally, an extensive study of the genetic legacy of the Turkic nomads across Eurasia based on autosomal dna analysis reveals that the source populations for the Turkic nomads who spread ‘Asian genes’ to non-Turkic peoples were (the ancestors of modern-day) Tuvinians, Mongols and Buryats, despite the fact that the latter two are Mongolic (Yunusbayev et al. 2015).81 In sum, one should note that the early eastern Turkic peoples were in all likelihood genetically closer to their neighbouring Mongolic peoples than to various later Turkic peoples of central and western Eurasia. |doi-access=free}}{{Cite book |last=Findley |first=Carter V. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ToAjDgAAQBAJ |title=The Turks in World History |date=2005 |publisher=Oxford University Press, US |isbn=978-0-19-517726-8 |language=en |access-date=21 December 2022 |archive-date=3 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221203140401/https://books.google.com/books?id=ToAjDgAAQBAJ |url-status=live }}{{Cite journal |last1=Yang |first1=Xiao-Min |last2=Meng |first2=Hai-Liang |last3=Zhang |first3=Jian-Lin |last4=Yu |first4=Yao |last5=Allen |first5=Edward |last6=Xia |first6=Zi-Yang |last7=Zhu |first7=Kong-Yang |last8=Du |first8=Pan-Xin |last9=Ren |first9=Xiao-Ying |last10=Xiong |first10=Jian-Xue |last11=Lu |first11=Xiao-Yu |last12=Ding |first12=Yi |last13=Han |first13=Sheng |last14=Liu |first14=Wei-Peng |last15=Jin |first15=Li |date=17 January 2023 |title=Ancient genome of Empress Ashina reveals the Northeast Asian origin of Göktürk Khanate |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jse.12938 |journal=Journal of Systematics and Evolution |volume=61 |issue=6 |pages=1056–1064 |language=en |doi=10.1111/jse.12938 |bibcode=2023JSyEv..61.1056Y |s2cid=255690237 |issn=1674-4918 |quote=The early Medieval Türk (earlyMed_Turk) derived the major ancestry from ANA at a proportion of 62.2%, the remainder from BMAC (10.7%) and Western Steppe Afanasievo nomad (27.1%) (Figs. 1C, 1D; Table S2E). The geographically remote Central Steppe Türk (Kyrgyzstan_Turk and Kazakhstan_Turk) could be modeled as an admixture of ANA (Mongolia_N_-North), BMAC, and West Steppe pastoralists (Afanasievo (P=0.0196) (Fig. S5; Table S2E).}} The Kazakhs emerged as an ethno-linguistic group during the early 15th century from a confederation of several, mostly Turkic-speaking pastoral nomadic groups of Northern Central Asia. The Kazakhs are the most northerly of the Central Asian peoples, inhabiting a large expanse of territory in northern Central Asia and southern Siberia known as the Kazakh Steppe. The tribal groups formed a powerful confederation that grew wealthy on the trade passing through the steppe lands along the fabled Silk Road.{{Cite web |title=Kazakh {{!}} People, Religion, Language, & Culture |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Kazakh |access-date=3 March 2022 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en |archive-date=27 June 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150627060725/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Kazakh |url-status=live }}

Kazakh was a common term throughout medieval Central Asia, generally with regard to individuals or groups who had taken or achieved independence from a figure of authority. Timur described his own youth without direct authority as his {{lang|trk|Qazaqliq}} ("freedom", "Qazaq-ness").{{cite journal|title=Centralizing Reform and Its Opponents in the Late Timurid Period|first=Maria Eva|last=Subtelny|journal=Iranian Studies|volume=21|issue=1/2: Soviet and North American Studies on Central Asia|year=1988|pages=123–151|jstor=4310597|publisher=Taylor & Francis, on behalf of the International Society of Iranian Studies|doi=10.1080/00210868808701712}}

File:SB - Kazakh woman on horse.jpg

In Turco-Persian sources, the term Özbek-Qazaq first appeared during the middle of the 16th century, in the Tarikh-i-Rashidi by Mirza Muhammad Haidar Dughlat, a Chagatayid prince of Kashmir. In this manuscript, the author locates Kazakh in the eastern part of Desht-i Qipchaq. According to Tarikh-i-Rashidi, the first Kazakh union was created {{circa}} 1465/1466 AD. The state was formed by nomads who settled along the border of Moghulistan, and was called Uzbeg-Kazák.{{cite book|title=The Qazaq Khanate as Documented in Ming Dynasty Sources|author=Kenzheakhmet Nurlan|page=133|year=2013}}

At the time of conquest of Central Asia, Abu'l-Khayr Khan, a descendant of Shiban, had disagreements with the sultans Kerei and Janibek, descendants of Urus Khan. These disagreements probably resulted from the crushing defeat of Abu'l-Khayr Khan at the hands of the Kalmyks.{{cite encyclopedia|last=Bregel|first=Yuri|author-link=Yuri Bregel|title=Abu'l-Kayr Khan|encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Iranica|volume=1|pages=331–332|publisher=Routledge & Kegan Paul|year=1982|url=http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/abul-kayr-khan-oglan|access-date=14 January 2017|archive-date=29 April 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110429162406/http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/abul-kayr-khan-oglan|url-status=live}} Kerei and Janibek moved with a large following of nomads to the region of Zhetysu on the border of Moghulistan and set up new pastures there with the blessing of the Chagatayid khan of Moghulistan, Esen Buqa II, who hoped for a buffer zone of protection against the expansion of the Oirats.{{cite book|first=V. V.|last=Barthold|author-link=Vasily Bartold|chapter=History of the Semirechyé|title=Four Studies on the History of Central Asia|translator=V. & T. Minorsky|location=Leiden|publisher=Brill Publishers|date=1962|volume= 1|pages=137–165}}

Regarding these events, Haidar Dughlat in his Tarikh-i-Rashidi reports:{{cite book|title=The Qazaq Khanate as Documented in Ming Dynasty Sources|author=Kenzheakhmet Nurlan|page=140|year=2013}}

{{blockquote|At that time, Abulkhair Khan exercised full power in Dasht-i-Kipchak. He had been at war with the Sultánis of Juji; while Jáni Beg Khán and Karáy Khán fled before him into Moghulistán. Isán Bughá Khán received them with great honor, and delivered over to them Kuzi Báshi, which is near Chu, on the western limit of Moghulistán, where they dwelt in peace and content. On the death of Abulkhair Khán the Ulus of the Uzbegs fell into confusion, and constant strife arose among them. Most of them joined the party of Karáy Khán and Jáni Beg Khán. They numbered about 200,000 persons, and received the name of Uzbeg-Kazák. The Kazák Sultáns began to reign in the year 870 [1465–1466] (but God knows best), and they continued to enjoy absolute power in the greater part of Uzbegistán, till the year 940

[1533–1534 A.D.].}}

In 15th-century Central Asia, the nomads of the Jochid Ulus (Golden Horde), including those who founded the Kazakh Khanate, were collectively called Uzbeks due to their conversion to Islam under Özbeg Khan (r. 1313–1341).{{Cite book|url=https://oxfordre.com/asianhistory/display/10.1093/acrefore/9780190277727.001.0001/acrefore-9780190277727-e-60|title=Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Asian History|first=Joo-Yup|last=Lee|chapter=The Kazakh Khanate |date=26 April 2019|via=oxfordre.com|doi=10.1093/acrefore/9780190277727.013.60 |isbn=978-0-19-027772-7 }}{{Cite web|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/338291376|title="Kazakh Khanate." In The Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Asian History. Ed. David Ludden. New York: Oxford University Press.}} These Uzbeks (also called Tatars by the Muscovites and Ottomans) arose from the merging of various tribes of Turkic and Mongol origin in the 13th and 14th centuries in the Qipchaq Steppe. It was from this Jochid/Özbeg ulus (Golden Horde) that the Kazakh identity emerged when the nomads of the eastern Qipchaq Steppe became divided into the Kazakhs and the Shibanid Uzbeks at the turn of the 16th century. Seen from a broader perspective, the Kazakhs belonged to the Chinggisid uluses, others being the Shibanid Uzbeks, Crimean Tatars, Manghits/Noghays, and Chaghatays (Moghuls and Timurids), who shared a common language (Turkic), political ideology (based on Mongol traditions), royal lineage (Chinggisids), ethnic identity, and religion (Sunni Islam), and who still dominated much of the vast region stretching from the Crimea in the west to the Tien Shan Mountains in the east, and from southern Siberia in the north to northern India in the south during the post-Mongol period.

One of the earliest mentions of the Kazakhs in Western literature was in Sigismund von Herberstein's Notes on Muscovite Affairs (1549):{{citation needed|date=February 2025}}

{{Text and translation

| {{lang|la|Vltra Vuiatkam & Cazan, ad Permiæ vicinia Tartari habitant, qui Tumenskij, Schibanskij, & Cosatzkij vocantur.}}

| Beyond Vuiatkam and Cazan, in the vicinity of Permia, dwell the Tartars, who are called Tumenskij, Schibanskij, and Cosatzkij.

}}

In the 17th century, Russian convention seeking to distinguish the Qazaqs of the steppes from the Cossacks of the Imperial Russian Army suggested spelling the final consonant with "kh" instead of "q" or "k", which was officially adopted by the USSR in 1936.Постановление ЦИК и СНК КазАССР № 133 от 5 February 1936 о русском произношении и письменном обозначении слова «казак»

• Kazakh - {{lang|ru|Казах}}, /kazax/
• Cossack -  {{lang|ru|Казак}}, /kazak/

The Ukrainian term Cossack probably comes from the same Kipchak etymological root, meaning wanderer, brigand, or independent free-booter.{{cite web |url=http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=Cossack |title=Online Etymology Dictionary: Cossack |website=Etymonline.com |access-date=2 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151003175721/http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=Cossack |archive-date=3 October 2015 |url-status=live}}{{cite encyclopedia |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Cossack |title=Cossack | Russian and Ukrainian people |publisher=Encyclopædia Britannica |date=28 May 2015 |access-date=2 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924190103/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Cossack |archive-date=24 September 2015 |url-status=live}}

Like many people who live a nomadic lifestyle, Kazakhs keep an epic tradition of oral history which goes back centuries. It is most commonly relayed in the form of song (kyi) and poetry (zhyr), which typically tell the stories of Kazakh national heroes.

The Kazakh oral tradition is sometimes has political themes. The highly influential Kazakh poet Abai Qunanbaiuly viewed it as the ideal way to transmit the pro-Westernization ideals of his colleagues. The Kazakh oral tradition has also overlapped with ethnic nationalism, and has been used to transmit pride in Kazakh identity.{{cite book |last1=Dubuisson |first1=Eva Marie |title=Living Language in Kazakhstan: The Dialogic Emergence of an Ancestral Worldview |date=2017 |publisher=University of Pittsburgh Press |isbn=978-0-8229-8283-8 |page=181 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0nUqDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT181 |language=en |access-date=13 February 2023 |archive-date=9 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230409180401/https://books.google.com/books?id=0nUqDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT181 |url-status=live }}{{cite book |last1=Breed |first1=Ananda |last2=Dubuisson |first2=Eva-Marie |last3=Iğmen |first3=Ali |title=Creating Culture in (Post) Socialist Central Asia |date= 2020 |publisher=Springer Nature |isbn=978-3-030-58685-0 |page=145 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xTMLEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA145 |language=en |access-date=13 February 2023 |archive-date=13 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230213053046/https://books.google.com/books?id=xTMLEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA145 |url-status=live }}{{cite book |last1=Kudaibergenova |first1=Diana T. |title=Rewriting the Nation in Modern Kazakh Literature: Elites and Narratives |date=2017 |publisher=Lexington Books |isbn=978-1-4985-2830-6 |page=210 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZxLnDQAAQBAJ&pg=PA210 |language=en |access-date=13 February 2023 |archive-date=13 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230213053037/https://books.google.com/books?id=ZxLnDQAAQBAJ&pg=PA210 |url-status=live }}

{{Main|Zhuz}}

[[File:Жуз.svg|thumb|250px|right|Approximate areas occupied by the three Kazakh jüz in the early 20th century.

In modern Kazakhstan, tribalism is fading away in business and government life. However, it is still common for Kazakhs to ask each other about the tribe they belong to when they become acquainted. It is more of a tradition than a necessity now, and there is no hostility between tribes. Kazakhs, regardless of their tribal origin, consider themselves one nation.

Modern-day Kazakhs who still remember their tribes know that their tribes belong to one of the three jüz, a term roughly translatable as "horde" or "hundred":

• The Senior Horde (also called Elder or Great) (Uly juz)
• The Middle (also called Central) (Orta juz)
• The Junior (also called Younger or Lesser) (Kishi juz)

There is much debate surrounding the origins of the Hordes. Their age in extant historical texts is unknown, with the earliest mentions in the 17th century. The Turkologist Velyaminov-Zernov believed that it was the capture of the important cities of Tashkent, Yasi, and Sayram in 1598 by Tevvekel (Tauekel/Tavakkul) Khan that separated the Qazaqs, as they possessed the cities for only part of the 17th century.Russian, Mongolia, China in the 16th, 17th, and early 18th centuries. Vol II. Baddeley (1919, MacMillan, London). Reprint – Burt Franklin, New York. 1963 p. 59 The theory suggests that the Qazaqs then divided among a wider territory after expanding from Zhetysu into most of the Dasht-i Qipchaq, with a focus on the trade available through the cities of the middle Syr Darya, to which Sayram and Yasi belonged. The Junior juz originated from the Nogais of the Nogai Horde.

{{Main|Kazakh language|Kazakh alphabet}}

File:Idioma kazajo.png

The Kazakh language is a member of the Turkic language family, as are Uzbek, Kyrgyz, Tatar, Uyghur, Turkmen, modern Turkish, Azerbaijani and many other living and historical languages spoken in Eastern Europe, Central Asia, Xinjiang, and Siberia.

Kazakh belongs to the Kipchak (Northwestern) group of the Turkic language family.{{Cite web |title=Kazakh |url=https://celcar.indiana.edu/materials/language-portal/kazakh/index.html |access-date=24 September 2023 |website=Center for Languages of the Central Asian Region |language=en-US}} Kazakh is characterized, in distinction to other Turkic languages, by the presence of {{IPA|/s/}} in place of reconstructed proto-Turkic {{IPA|*/ʃ/}} and {{IPA|/ʃ/}} in place of {{IPA|*/tʃ/}}; furthermore, Kazakh has {{IPAslink|d͡ʒ}} where other Turkic languages have {{IPAslink|j}}.

Kazakh, like most of the Turkic language family lacks phonemic vowel length, and as such there is no distinction between long and short vowels.

Kazakh was written with the Arabic script until the mid-19th century, when a number of educated Kazakh poets from Muslim madrasahs incited a revolt against Russia. Russia's response was to set up secular schools and devise a way of writing Kazakh with the Cyrillic alphabet, which was not widely accepted. By 1917, the Arabic script for Kazakh was reintroduced, even in schools and local government.

In 1927, a Kazakh nationalist movement sprang up against the Soviet Union but was soon suppressed. As a result, the Arabic script for writing Kazakh was banned and the Latin alphabet was imposed as a new writing system. In an effort to Russianize the Kazakhs, the Latin alphabet was in turn replaced by the Cyrillic alphabet in 1940 by Soviet interventionists. Today, there are efforts to return to the Latin script, and in January 2021 the government announced plans to switch to the Latin alphabet.{{Cite web |date=12 October 2021 |title=Kazakhstan's alphabet switch reflects wider societal changes |url=https://emerging-europe.com/news/kazakhstans-alphabet-switch-reflects-wider-societal-changes/ |access-date=24 September 2023 |website=Emerging Europe |language=en-GB}}

Kazakh is a state (official) language in Kazakhstan. It is also spoken in the Ili region of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in the People's Republic of China, where the Arabic script is used, and in western parts of Mongolia (Bayan-Ölgii and Khovd province), where Cyrillic script is in use. European Kazakhs use the Latin alphabet.

File:Population structure of Turkic-speaking populations in the context of their geographic neighbors across Eurasia.PNG

Genomic research confirmed that Kazakhs originated from the admixture of several tribes.{{Cite journal |last1=White |first1=Anna E. |last2=de-Dios |first2=Toni |last3=Carrión |first3=Pablo |last4=Bonora |first4=Gian Luca |last5=Llovera |first5=Laia |last6=Cilli |first6=Elisabetta |last7=Lizano |first7=Esther |last8=Khabdulina |first8=Maral K. |last9=Tleugabulov |first9=Daniyar T. |last10=Olalde |first10=Iñigo |last11=Marquès-Bonet |first11=Tomàs |last12=Balloux |first12=François |last13=Pettener |first13=Davide |last14=van Dorp |first14=Lucy |last15=Luiselli |first15=Donata |date=December 2021 |title=Genomic Analysis of 18th-Century Kazakh Individuals and Their Oral Microbiome |journal=Biology |language=en |volume=10 |issue=12 |pages=1324 |doi=10.3390/biology10121324 |pmid=34943238 |pmc=8698332 |issn=2079-7737|doi-access=free }}Li Bo; Zheng Yin. 5000 Years of Chinese History. p. 767.{{Cite journal |last1=Zhabagin |first1=Maxat |last2=Sabitov |first2=Zhaxylyk |last3=Tarlykov |first3=Pavel |last4=Tazhigulova |first4=Inkar |last5=Junissova |first5=Zukhra |last6=Yerezhepov |first6=Dauren |last7=Akilzhanov |first7=Rakhmetolla |last8=Zholdybayeva |first8=Elena |last9=Wei |first9=Lan-Hai |last10=Akilzhanova |first10=Ainur |last11=Balanovsky |first11=Oleg |last12=Balanovska |first12=Elena |date=22 October 2020 |title=The medieval Mongolian roots of Y-chromosomal lineages from South Kazakhstan |journal=BMC Genetics |volume=21 |issue=1 |page=87 |doi=10.1186/s12863-020-00897-5 |issn=1471-2156 |pmc=7583311 |pmid=33092538 |doi-access=free }}{{Cite journal |last1=Khussainova |first1=Elmira |last2=Kisselev |first2=Ilya |last3=Iksan |first3=Olzhas |last4=Bekmanov |first4=Bakhytzhan |last5=Skvortsova |first5=Liliya |last6=Garshin |first6=Alexander |last7=Kuzovleva |first7=Elena |last8=Zhaniyazov |first8=Zhassulan |last9=Zhunussova |first9=Gulnur |last10=Musralina |first10=Lyazzat |last11=Kahbatkyzy |first11=Nurzhibek |last12=Amirgaliyeva |first12=Almira |last13=Begmanova |first13=Mamura |last14=Seisenbayeva |first14=Akerke |last15=Bespalova |first15=Kira |date=2022 |title=Genetic Relationship Among the Kazakh People Based on Y-STR Markers Reveals Evidence of Genetic Variation Among Tribes and Zhuz |journal=Frontiers in Genetics |volume=12 |page=801295 |doi=10.3389/fgene.2021.801295 |issn=1664-8021 |pmc=8777105 |pmid=35069700|doi-access=free}} Kazakhs have predominantly East Eurasian ancestry, and harbor two East Asian-derived components: one dominant component commonly found among Northeastern Asian populations (associated with the Northeast Asian "Devil’s Gate Cave" sample from the Amur region), and another minor component associated with historical Yellow River farmers, peaking among northern Han Chinese. According to one study, West Eurasian related admixture among Kazakhs is estimated at 35% to 37.5% in two Kazakh populations.{{cite journal|last1=Zhao|first1=Jing|last2=Wurigemule|last3=Sun |first3=Jin|last4=Xia|first4=Ziyang|last5=He|first5=Guanglin|last6=Yang|first6=Xiaomin|last7=Guo|first7=Jianxin|last8=Cheng|first8=Hui-Zhen|last9=Li|first9=Yingxiang|last10=Lin|first10=Song|last11=Yang|first11=Tie-Lin|date=16 November 2020|title=Genetic substructure and admixture of Mongolians and Kazakhs inferred from genome-wide array genotyping|url=https://doi.org/10.1080/03014460.2020.1837952|journal=Annals of Human Biology|volume=47|issue=7–8|pages=620–628 |doi=10.1080/03014460.2020.1837952|issn=0301-4460|pmid=33059477|s2cid=222839155}} Another study estimated a lower average Western admixture of slightly less than 30%.Kidd et al. 2009, Am J Hum Genet. 11 December 2009; 85(6): 934–937. {{doi|10.1016/j.ajhg.2009.10.024}}{{cite journal|last1=Kairov|first1=Ulykbek |last2=Molkenov|first2=Askhat|last3=Rakhimova|first3=Saule|last4=Kozhamkulov|first4=Ulan|last5=Sharip|first5=Aigul|last6=Karabayev|first6=Daniyar|last7=Daniyarov|first7=Asset|last8=H.Lee|first8=Joseph|last9=D.Terwilliger|first9=Joseph|last10=Akilzhanova|first10=Ainur|last11=Zhumadilov|first11=Zhaxybay|date=4 February 2021|title=Whole-genome sequencing data of Kazakh individuals|journal=BMC Research Notes|volume=14|issue=1|pages=45 |doi=10.1186/s13104-021-05464-4|issn=1756-0500|pmc=7863413|pmid=33541395|doi-access=free}} These results are inline with historical demographic information on northern Central Asia.{{cite journal |last1=Yunusbayev |first1=Bayazit |last2=Metspalu |first2=Mait |last3=Metspalu |first3=Ene |last4=Valeev |first4=Albert |last5=Litvinov |first5=Sergei |last6=Valiev |first6=Ruslan |last7=Akhmetova |first7=Vita |last8=Balanovska |first8=Elena |last9=Balanovsky |first9=Oleg |last10=Turdikulova |first10=Shahlo |last11=Dalimova |first11=Dilbar |date=21 April 2015 |title=The Genetic Legacy of the Expansion of Turkic-Speaking Nomads across Eurasia |journal=PLOS Genetics |language=en |volume=11 |issue=4 |pages=e1005068 |doi=10.1371/journal.pgen.1005068 |issn=1553-7404 |pmc=4405460 |pmid=25898006 |doi-access=free}} Neighboring Karakalpaks, Kyrgyz, Tubalar, and the Xinjiang Ölöd tribe, have the strongest resemblance to the Kazakh genome.{{cite journal|last1=Seidualy|first1=Madina|last2=Blazyte|first2=Asta|last3=Jeon|first3=Sungwon|last4=Bhak|first4=Youngjune|last5=Jeon|first5=Yeonsu|last6=Kim|first6=Jungeun|last7=Eriksson|first7=Anders|last8=Bolser|first8=Dan|last9=Yoon|first9=Changhan|last10=Manica|first10=Andrea|last11=Lee|first11=Semin|date=1 May 2020|title=Decoding a highly mixed Kazakh genome|url=https://doi.org/10.1007/s00439-020-02132-8|journal=Human Genetics|language=en|volume=139|issue=5|pages=557–568|doi=10.1007/s00439-020-02132-8|issn=1432-1203|pmc=7170836|pmid=32076829|access-date=7 January 2022|archive-date=9 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230409180403/https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00439-020-02132-8|url-status=live}}

A study on allele frequency and genetic polymorphism by Katsuyama et al., found that Kazakhs cluster together with Japanese people, Hui people, Han Chinese, and Uyghurs in contrast to West Eurasian reference groups.{{Cite journal |last1=Katsuyama |first1=Y. |last2=Inoko |first2=H. |last3=Imanishi |first3=T. |last4=Mizuki |first4=N. |last5=Gojobori |first5=T. |last6=Ota |first6=M. |date=May 1998 |title=Genetic relationships among Japanese, northern Han, Hui, Uygur, Kazakh, Greek, Saudi Arabian, and Italian populations based on allelic frequencies at four VNTR (D1S80, D4S43, COL2A1, D17S5) and one STR (ACTBP2) loci |url=https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9618060/ |journal=Human Heredity |volume=48 |issue=3 |pages=126–137 |doi=10.1159/000022793 |issn=0001-5652 |pmid=9618060 |s2cid=46853437 |access-date=14 April 2022 |archive-date=14 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220414121353/https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9618060/ |url-status=live }}

A 2020 genetic study on the Kazakh genome, by Seidualy et al., found that the Kazakh people formed from highly mixed historical Central Asian populations. Ethnic Kazakhs were modeled to derive about 63.2% ancestry from an East Asian-related population, specifically from a Northeast Asian source sample (Devil’s Gate 1), 30.8% ancestry from European-related populations (presumably from Scythians), and ~6% ancestry from a broadly South Asian population. Overall, Kazakhs show their closest genetic affinity with other Central Asian populations, namely the Kalmyks, Karakalpaks, Kyrgyz, and Altaians, but also Mongolians and Tuvans.{{Cite journal |last1=Seidualy |first1=Madina |last2=Blazyte |first2=Asta |last3=Jeon |first3=Sungwon |last4=Bhak |first4=Youngjune |last5=Jeon |first5=Yeonsu |last6=Kim |first6=Jungeun |last7=Eriksson |first7=Anders |last8=Bolser |first8=Dan |last9=Yoon |first9=Changhan |last10=Manica |first10=Andrea |last11=Lee |first11=Semin |date=1 May 2020 |title=Decoding a highly mixed Kazakh genome |url=https://doi.org/10.1007/s00439-020-02132-8 |journal=Human Genetics |language=en |volume=139 |issue=5 |pages=557–568 |doi=10.1007/s00439-020-02132-8 |issn=1432-1203 |pmc=7170836 |pmid=32076829 |access-date=7 January 2022 |archive-date=9 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230409180403/https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00439-020-02132-8 |url-status=live }}

According to mitochondrial DNA studies{{cite web|url=https://elibrary.ru/item.asp?id=9184531|title=Полиморфизм митохондриальной ДНК в казахской популяции|access-date=1 September 2019|archive-date=21 June 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200621132543/https://www.elibrary.ru/item.asp?id=9184531|url-status=live}} (where sample consisted of only 246 individuals), the main maternal lineages of Kazakhs are: D (17.9%), C (16%), G (16%), A (3.25%), F (2.44%) of East-Eurasian origin (55%), and haplogroups H (14.1), T (5.5), J (3.6%), K (2.6%), U5 (3%), and others (12.2%) of West-Eurasian origin (41%).

Gokcumen et al. (2008) tested the mtDNA of a total of 237 Kazakhs from Altai Republic and found that they belonged to the following haplogroups: D(xD5) (15.6%), C (10.5%), F1 (6.8%), B4 (5.1%), G2a (4.6%), A (4.2%), B5 (4.2%), M(xC, Z, M8a, D, G, M7, M9a, M13) (3.0%), D5 (2.1%), G2(xG2a) (2.1%), G4 (1.7%), N9a (1.7%), G(xG2, G4) (0.8%), M7 (0.8%), M13 (0.8%), Y1 (0.8%), Z (0.4%), M8a (0.4%), M9a (0.4%), and F2 (0.4%) for a total of 66.7% mtDNA of Eastern Eurasian origin or affinity and H (10.5%), U(xU1, U3, U4, U5) (3.4%), J (3.0%), N1a (3.0%), R(xB4, B5, F1, F2, T, J, U, HV) (3.0%), I (2.1%), U5 (2.1%), T (1.7%), U4 (1.3%), U1 (0.8%), K (0.8%), N1b (0.4%), W (0.4%), U3 (0.4%), and HV (0.4%) for a total of 33.3% mtDNA of West-Eurasian origin or affinity.Omer Gokcumen, Matthew C. Dulik, Athma A. Pai, Sergey I. Zhadanov, Samara Rubinstein, Ludmila P. Osipova, Oleg V. Andreenkov, Ludmila E. Tabikhanova, Marina A. Gubina, Damian Labuda, and Theodore G. Schurr, "Genetic Variation in the Enigmatic Altaian Kazakhs of South-Central Russia: Insights into Turkic Population History." American Journal of Physical Anthropology 136:278–293 (2008). {{doi|10.1002/ajpa.20802}} Comparing their samples of Kazakhs from Altai Republic with samples of Kazakhs from Kazakhstan and Kazakhs from Xinjiang, the authors have noted that "haplogroups A, B, C, D, F1, G2a, H, and M were present in all of them, suggesting that these lineages represent the common maternal gene pool from which these different Kazakh populations emerged."

In every sample of Kazakhs, D (predominantly northern East Asian, such as Japanese, Okinawan, Korean, Manchu, Mongol, Han Chinese, Tibetan, etc., but also having several branches among indigenous peoples of the Americas) is the most frequently observed haplogroup (with nearly all of those Kazakhs belonging to the D4 subclade), and the second-most frequent haplogroup is either H (predominantly European) or C (predominantly indigenous Siberian, though some branches are present in the Americas, East Asia, and northern and eastern Europe).

{{main|Y-DNA haplogroups in Kazakh tribes}}

In a sample of 54 Kazakhs and 119 Altaian Kazakh, the main paternal lineages of Kazakhs are: C (66.7 and 59.5%), O (9 and 26%), N (2 and 0%), J (4 and 0%), R (9 and 1%) respectively.{{cite journal |vauthors=Zerjal T, Wells RS, Yuldasheva N, Ruzibakiev R, Tyler-Smith C |title=A genetic landscape reshaped by recent events: Y-chromosomal insights into central Asia |journal=Am. J. Hum. Genet. |volume=71 |issue=3 |pages=466–482 |date=September 2002 |pmid=12145751 |pmc=419996 |doi=10.1086/342096 }}

A total of 464 representatives of the Western Kazakh tribes of Kazakhstan (Western Kazakhs, n = 405) and Uzbekistan (Karakalpakstan Kazakhs, n = 59) were examined by the Yfiler Plus set. The data are available in the YHRD under accession numbers YA006010 and YA006009. Genetic analysis (AMOVA and MDS) did not show significant differences between the two groups (Kazakhstan and Karakalpakstan Kazakhs) in terms of Y-chromosome diversity. Both groups are characterized by haplogroup C2a1a2 as a founder effect, which dominated two of the three tribes: Alimuly (67%), Baiuly (74.6%), and Zhetiru (25.8%).{{Cite journal |last1=Ashirbekov |first1=Yeldar |last2=Sabitov |first2=Zhaxylyk |last3=Aidarov |first3=Baglan |last4=Abaildayev |first4=Arman |last5=Junissova |first5=Zukhra |last6=Cherusheva |first6=Alena |last7=Saidamarova |first7=Viktoriya V. |last8=Sharipov |first8=Kamalidin |last9=Ramankulov |first9=Yerlan |last10=Zhabagin |first10=Maxat |date=October 2022 |title=Genetic Polymorphism of 27 Y-STR Loci in the Western Kazakh Tribes from Kazakhstan and Karakalpakstan, Uzbekistan |journal=Genes |language=en |volume=13 |issue=10 |pages=1826 |doi=10.3390/genes13101826 |pmid=36292713 |pmc=9601638 |issn=2073-4425 |doi-access=free }}

The study analyzed haplotype variation at 15 Y-chromosomal short-tandem-repeats obtained from 1171 individuals from 24 tribes representing the three socio-territorial subdivisions (Senior, Middle and Junior zhuz) in Kazakhstan to comprehensively characterize the patrilineal genetic architecture of the Kazakh Steppe. In total, 577 distinct haplotypes were identified belonging to one of 20 haplogroups; 16 predominant haplogroups were confirmed by SNP-genotyping. The haplogroup distribution was skewed towards C2-M217, present in all tribes at a global frequency of 51.9%. The structure analysis of the 1164 individuals indicated the presence of 20 ancestral groups and a complex three-subclade organization of the C2-M217 haplogroup in Kazakhs, a result supported by the multidimensional scaling analysis. Additionally, while the majority of the haplotypes and tribes overlapped, a distinct cluster of the O2 haplogroup, mostly of the Naiman tribe, was observed.{{Cite journal |last1=Khussainova |first1=Elmira |last2=Kisselev |first2=Ilya |last3=Iksan |first3=Olzhas |last4=Bekmanov |first4=Bakhytzhan |last5=Skvortsova |first5=Liliya |last6=Garshin |first6=Alexander |last7=Kuzovleva |first7=Elena |last8=Zhaniyazov |first8=Zhassulan |last9=Zhunussova |first9=Gulnur |last10=Musralina |first10=Lyazzat |last11=Kahbatkyzy |first11=Nurzhibek |last12=Amirgaliyeva |first12=Almira |last13=Begmanova |first13=Mamura |last14=Seisenbayeva |first14=Akerke |last15=Bespalova |first15=Kira |date=2021 |title=Genetic Relationship Among the Kazakh People Based on Y-STR Markers Reveals Evidence of Genetic Variation Among Tribes and Zhuz |journal=Frontiers in Genetics |volume=12 |pages=801295 |doi=10.3389/fgene.2021.801295 |issn=1664-8021 |pmc=8777105 |pmid=35069700 |doi-access=free }}

{{Main|Demographics of Kazakhstan}}

{{Unreferenced section|date=December 2022}}

File:Map of the Kazakhs Diaspora in the World.svg

{{Main|Kazakhs in Russia}}

File:Мухаммед-Салих Бабаджанов (1834-1871).png

File:Valikhanov.jpg and Fyodor Dostoyevsky]]

In Russia, the Kazakh population lives primarily in the regions bordering Kazakhstan. According to latest census (2002) there are 654,000 Kazakhs in Russia, most of whom are in the Astrakhan, Volgograd, Saratov, Samara, Orenburg, Chelyabinsk, Kurgan, Tyumen, Omsk, Novosibirsk, Altai Krai and Altai Republic regions. Though ethnically Kazakh, after the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, those people acquired Russian citizenship.

{{Main|Kazakhs in China}}

File:Kazakhs people.jpg, China, 1987]]

Kazakhs migrated into Dzungaria in the 18th century after the Dzungar genocide resulted in the native Buddhist Dzungar Oirat population being massacred.

Kazakhs, called "{{linktext|lang=zh-Hans|哈萨克|族}}" in Chinese ({{zh|p=Hāsàkè Zú |l=Kazakh nationality}}) are among 56 ethnic groups officially recognized by the People's Republic of China. According to the census data of 2020, Kazakhs had a population of 1,562,518, ranking 18th among all ethnic groups in China. Thousands of Kazakhs fled to China during the 1932–1933 famine in Kazakhstan.

In 1936, after Sheng Shicai expelled 30,000 Kazakhs from Xinjiang to Qinghai, Hui led by General Ma Bufang massacred their fellow Muslim Kazakhs, until there were 135 of them left.{{cite book|author=American Academy of Political and Social Science|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=m98sAAAAIAAJ|title=The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science|volume= 277|publisher=American Academy of Political and Social Science|year=1951|page=152|access-date=28 June 2010}}{{cite book|author=American Academy of Political and Social Science|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NnY5AAAAMAAJ|title=Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science| volume= 276–278|publisher=American Academy of Political and Social Science|year=1951|page=152|access-date=28 June 2010|archive-date=9 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230409180412/https://books.google.com/books?id=NnY5AAAAMAAJ|url-status=live}}{{cite book|author=American Academy of Political and Social Science|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2t5VAAAAYAAJ|title=The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science|volume= 277|publisher=American Academy of Political and Social Science|year=1951|page=152|quote=A group of Kazakhs, originally numbering over 20000 people when expelled from Sinkiang by Sheng Shih-ts'ai in 1936, was reduced, after repeated massacres by their Chinese coreligionists under Ma Pu-fang, to a scattered 135 people.|access-date=29 September 2012|archive-date=9 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230409180405/https://books.google.com/books?id=2t5VAAAAYAAJ|url-status=live}}

From Northern Xinjiang, over 7,000 Kazakhs fled to the Tibetan-Qinghai plateau region via Gansu and were wreaking massive havoc so Ma Bufang solved the problem by relegating Kazakhs to designated pastureland in Qinghai, but Hui, Tibetans, and Kazakhs in the region continued to clash against each other.{{when|date=December 2015}}{{cite book|author=Hsaio-ting Lin|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=osn1WrRCelcC&pg=PA112|title=Tibet and Nationalist China's Frontier: Intrigues and Ethnopolitics, 1928–49|year= 2011|publisher=UBC Press|isbn=978-0-7748-5988-2|page=112}} Tibetans attacked and fought against the Kazakhs as they entered Tibet via Gansu and Qinghai.{{citation needed|date=December 2015}}{{when|date=December 2015}} In northern Tibet, Kazakhs clashed with Tibetan soldiers, and the Kazakhs were sent to Ladakh.{{when|date=December 2015}}{{cite book|author=Hsaio-ting Lin|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=osn1WrRCelcC&pg=PA231|title=Tibet and Nationalist China's Frontier: Intrigues and Ethnopolitics, 1928–49|date= 2011|publisher=UBC Press|isbn=978-0-7748-5988-2|pages=231–|access-date=28 September 2020|archive-date=9 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230409180456/https://books.google.com/books?id=osn1WrRCelcC&pg=PA231|url-status=live}} Tibetan troops robbed and killed Kazakhs {{convert|400|mi|km|order=flip|abbr=off}} east of Lhasa at Chamdo when the Kazakhs were entering Tibet.{{when|date=December 2015}}{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=p-LQAAAAMAAJ|title=Blackwood's Magazine|publisher=William Blackwood|year=1948|page=407|access-date=28 September 2020|archive-date=9 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230409180559/https://books.google.com/books?id=p-LQAAAAMAAJ|url-status=live}}{{Cite book|last=Devlet|first=Nadir|url=https://www.academia.edu/4534001|title=Studies in the Politics, History and Culture of Turkic Peoples |pages=192|language=en|access-date=4 December 2017|archive-date=21 July 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210721061408/https://www.academia.edu/4534001|url-status=live}}

In 1934, 1935, and from 1936 to 1938, Qumil Elisqan led approximately 18,000 Kerey Kazakhs to migrate to Gansu, entering Gansu and Qinghai.{{cite book|author=Linda Benson|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ntpwAAAAMAAJ|title=The Kazaks of China: Essays on an Ethnic Minority|publisher=Ubsaliensis S. Academiae|year=1988|isbn=978-91-554-2255-4|page=195|access-date=28 September 2020|archive-date=9 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230409180412/https://books.google.com/books?id=ntpwAAAAMAAJ|url-status=live}}

In China there is one Kazakh autonomous prefecture, the Ili Kazakh Autonomous Prefecture in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region and three Kazakh autonomous counties: Aksai Kazakh Autonomous County in Gansu, Barkol Kazakh Autonomous County and Mori Kazakh Autonomous County in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.{{citation needed|date=December 2015}}

At least one million Uyghurs, Kazakhs and other Muslims in Xinjiang have been detained in mass detention camps, termed "reeducation camps", aimed at changing the political thinking of detainees, their identities, and their religious beliefs.{{cite news|date=4 December 2018|title=Central Asians Organize to Draw Attention to Xinjiang Camps|work=The Diplomat|url=https://thediplomat.com/2018/12/central-asians-organize-to-draw-attention-to-xinjiang-camps/|access-date=25 December 2018|archive-date=24 June 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190624233805/https://thediplomat.com/2018/12/central-asians-organize-to-draw-attention-to-xinjiang-camps/|url-status=live}}{{cite news|date=9 December 2018|title=Majlis Podcast: The Repercussions Of Beijing's Policies In Xinjiang|publisher=Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL)|url=https://www.rferl.org/a/majlis-podcast-the-repercussions-of-beijing-s-policies-in-xinjiang/29646102.html|access-date=25 December 2018|archive-date=22 January 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200122060446/https://www.rferl.org/a/majlis-podcast-the-repercussions-of-beijing-s-policies-in-xinjiang/29646102.html|url-status=live}}{{cite news|date=12 November 2018|title=Families Of The Disappeared: A Search For Loved Ones Held In China's Xinjiang Region|publisher=NPR|url=https://www.npr.org/2018/11/12/665597190/families-of-the-disappeared-a-search-for-loved-ones-held-in-chinas-xinjiang-regi|access-date=25 December 2018|archive-date=3 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191203003919/https://www.npr.org/2018/11/12/665597190/families-of-the-disappeared-a-search-for-loved-ones-held-in-chinas-xinjiang-regi|url-status=live}} But authorities in China have defended that the detention centers were in fact vocational education & training centers set up to deradicalize radicalized residents against the "3 evil forces" of religious extremism, terrorism and separatism.{{cite news|date=16 October 2018|title =Xinjiang official defends 'education centres' for Uighur Muslims|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-45872356}}

File:Kazakh Eagle Hunters.JPG, Mongolia]]

In the 19th century, the advance of the Russian Empire troops pushed Kazakhs to neighboring countries. In around 1860, part of the Middle Jüz Kazakhs came to Mongolia and were allowed to settle down in Bayan-Ölgii, Western Mongolia and for most of the 20th century they remained an isolated, tightly knit community.

Ethnic Kazakhs (so-called Altaic Kazakhs or Altai-Kazakhs) live predominantly in Western Mongolia in Bayan-Ölgii Province (88.7% of the total population) and Khovd Province (11.5% of the total population, living primarily in Khovd city, Khovd sum and Buyant sum). In addition, a number of Kazakh communities can be found in various cities and towns spread throughout the country. Some of the major population centers with a significant Kazakh presence include Ulaanbaatar (90% in khoroo #4 of Nalaikh düüreg),"Education of Kazakh children: A situation analysis". Save the Children UK, 2006 [http://www2.ohchr.org/English/bodies/cerd/docs/ngos/soc.pdf] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304193058/http://www2.ohchr.org/English/bodies/cerd/docs/ngos/soc.pdf|date=4 March 2016}} Töv and Selenge provinces, Erdenet, Darkhan, Bulgan, Sharyngol (17.1% of population total)[http://mauc.org.mn/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=40&Itemid=90 Sharyngol city review] {{dead link|date=June 2011}} and Berkh cities.

See Kazakh Americans page

As of the beginning of 2021, more than 821,000 ethnic Kazakhs lived in Uzbekistan.{{Cite news |title=Численность казахов в Узбекистане за последние 32 года практически не изменилась |url=https://rus.azattyq.org/a/31421417.html |access-date=12 December 2022 |website=Радио Азаттык |date=21 August 2021 |language=ru |archive-date=12 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221212173120/https://rus.azattyq.org/a/31421417.html |url-status=live }} They live mostly in Karakalpakstan and northern Uzbekistan.

During the Qajar period, Iran bought Kazakh slaves who were falsely masqueraded as Kalmyks by Khivan and Turkmen slave traders.{{cite web|last=electricpulp.com|title=BARDA and BARDA-DĀRI iv. From the Mongols – Encyclopaedia Iranica|url=http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/barda-iv|website=iranicaonline.org|access-date=26 August 2016|archive-date=4 July 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160704064546/http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/barda-iv|url-status=live}}{{cite book|author1=Keith Edward Abbott|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1f9tAAAAMAAJ&q=Kuzzauks+|title=Cities & trade: Consul Abbott on the economy and society of Iran, 1847–1866|author2=Abbas Amanat|publisher=Published by Ithaca Press for the Board of the Faculty of Oriental Studies, Oxford University|year=1983|isbn=978-0-86372-006-2|page=20|access-date=14 November 2020|archive-date=9 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230409180415/https://books.google.com/books?id=1f9tAAAAMAAJ&q=Kuzzauks+|url-status=live}}

Kazakhs of the Aday tribe inhabited the border regions of the Russian Empire with Iran since the 18th century. The Kazakhs made up 20% of the population of the Trans-Caspian region according to the 1897 census. As a result of the Kazakhs' rebellion against the Russian Empire in 1870, a significant number of Kazakhs became refugees in Iran.

Iranian Kazakhs live mainly in Golestan Province in northern Iran.{{cite web|title=گلستان|url=http://www.anobanini.ir/travel/fa/golestan/cat-227|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120228184505/http://www.anobanini.ir/travel/fa/golestan/cat-227/|archive-date=28 February 2012|access-date=5 February 2012|publisher=Anobanini.ir}} According to ethnologue.org, in 1982 there were 3000 Kazakhs living in the city of Gorgan.{{cite web|title=Ethnologue report for Iran|url=http://www.ethnologue.com/show_country.asp?name=iran|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120204023910/http://www.ethnologue.com/show_country.asp?name=iran|archive-date=4 February 2012|access-date=5 February 2012|publisher=Ethnologue.com}}{{cite web |url=http://www.golestanstate.ir/layers.aspx?quiz=page&PageID=23 |title= پایگاه اطلاع رسانی استانداری گلستان|website=www.golestanstate.ir |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091207144216/http://www.golestanstate.ir/layers.aspx?quiz=page&PageID=23 |archive-date=7 December 2009}} Since the fall of the Soviet Union, the number of Kazakhs in Iran decreased because of emigration to their historical motherland.{{cite web|title=قزاق|url=http://jolay.blogfa.com/85093.aspx|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091025195710/http://jolay.blogfa.com/85093.aspx|archive-date=25 October 2009|access-date=5 February 2012|publisher=Jolay.blogfa.com}}

Kazakhs fled to Afghanistan in the 1930s escaping Bolshevik persecution. Kazakh historian Gulnar Mendikulova cites that there were between 20,000 and 24,000 Kazakhs in Afghanistan as of 1978. Some assimilated locally and cannot speak the Kazakh language.

According to official figures, 13,000 ethnic Kazakhs from Afghanistan have immigrated to Kazakhstan since the early 1990s.{{Cite web |last=Kazakhstan |first=U. S. Mission |date=3 June 2022 |title=2021 Report on International Religious Freedom: Kazakhstan |url=https://kz.usembassy.gov/2021-report-on-international-religious-freedom-kazakhstan/ |access-date=1 February 2025 |website=U.S. Embassy & Consulate in Kazakhstan |language=en-US}}

As of 2021, there are about 200 Kazakhs remaining in Afghanistan according to Kazakhstan's foreign ministry. Locals claim that many live in Kunduz and others in Takhar Province, Baghlan Province, Mazar-i-Sharif and Kabul.

Afghan Kypchaks are a group of Taymani Aimaqs who are of Kazakh origin. They mainly reside in Obe district to the east of the western Afghanistan's province of Herat, between the rivers Farāh Rud and Hari Rud.{{citation needed|date=February 2025}}

Turkey received refugees from among the Pakistan-based Kazakhs, Turkmen, Kirghiz, and Uzbeks numbering 3,800 originally from Afghanistan during the Soviet–Afghan War.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=B5AgAQAAMAAJ|title=News Review on South Asia and Indian Ocean|date=July 1982|publisher=Institute for Defence Studies & Analyses |page=861}} Kayseri, Van, Amasya, Çiçekdağ, Gaziantep, Tokat, Urfa, and Serinyol received via Adana the Pakistan-based Kazakh, Turkmen, Kirghiz, and Uzbek refugees numbering 3,800 with UNHCR assistance.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pWWzAAAAIAAJ|title=Problèmes politiques et sociaux|publisher=Documentation française.|year=1982|page=15|access-date=28 September 2020|archive-date=9 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230409180412/https://books.google.com/books?id=pWWzAAAAIAAJ|url-status=live}}

In 1954 and 1969, Kazakhs migrated into Anatolia's Salihli, Develi and Altay regions.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RCkkAQAAIAAJ|title=Espace populations sociétés|publisher=Université des sciences et techniques de Lille, U.E.R. de géographie|year=2006|page=174|access-date=28 September 2020|archive-date=9 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230409180416/https://books.google.com/books?id=RCkkAQAAIAAJ|url-status=live}} Turkey became home to refugee Kazakhs.{{cite book|author=Andrew D. W. Forbes|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IAs9AAAAIAAJ&pg=PA156|title=Warlords and Muslims in Chinese Central Asia: A Political History of Republican Sinkiang 1911–1949|date=1986|publisher=CUP Archive|isbn=978-0-521-25514-1|pages=156–}}{{cite book|author=Andrew D. W. Forbes|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IAs9AAAAIAAJ&pg=PA236|title=Warlords and Muslims in Chinese Central Asia: A Political History of Republican Sinkiang 1911–1949|date= 1986|publisher=CUP Archive|isbn=978-0-521-25514-1|pages=236–|access-date=31 August 2016|archive-date=9 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230409180423/https://books.google.com/books?id=IAs9AAAAIAAJ&pg=PA236|url-status=live}}

The Kazakh Turks Foundation (Kazak Türkleri Vakfı) is an organization of Kazakhs in Turkey.{{cite web|title=Kazakh Turks Foundation Official Website|url=http://www.kazakturklerivakfi.org/index.php?limitstart=118|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160913180046/http://www.kazakturklerivakfi.org/index.php?limitstart=118|archive-date=13 September 2016|website=Kazak Türkleri Vakfı Resmi Web Sayfası}}

{{Main|Culture of Kazakhstan}}

{{Unreferenced section|date=December 2022}}

{{Main|Kazakh cuisine}}

File:Horsemeat platter.jpg served traditionally as an appetizer.]]

Traditional Kazakh cuisine revolves around lamb and horse meat, as well as a variety of dairy milk products. For hundreds of years, Kazakhs were herders who raised fat-tailed sheep, Bactrian camels, and horses, relying on these animals for transportation, clothing, and food. The cooking techniques and major ingredients have been strongly influenced by the nation's nomadic way of life. For example, most cooking techniques are aimed at long-term preservation of food. There is a large practice of salting and drying meat so that it will last, and there is a preference for sour milk, as it is easier to save in a nomadic lifestyle.

Besbarmak, a dish consisting of boiled horse or lamb meat, is the most popular Kazakh dish. Besbarmak is usually eaten with a boiled pasta sheet, and a meat broth called shorpa, and is traditionally served in Kazakh bowls called kese. Other popular meat dishes are Qazı (which is a horse meat sausage that only the wealthy could afford), shuzhuk (horse meat sausages), kuyrdak (also spelled kuirdak, a dish made from roasted horse, sheep, or cow offal, such as heart, liver, kidneys, and other organs, diced and served with onions and peppers), and various horse delicacies, such as zhal (smoked lard from horse's neck) and zhaya (salted and smoked meat from horse's hip and hind leg). Pilaf (palaw) is the most common Kazakh rice dish, with vegetables (carrots, onions, or garlic) and chunks of meat. The national drinks are kumys (fermented mare's milk) and tea.

{{main|Kazakh clothing}}

File:Kazakh girls wear traditional Kazakh costumes.JPEG

Traditional Kazakh clothing is often made of materials suited to the region's extreme climate and the rural Kazakh's nomadic lifestyle.[https://books.google.com/books?id=jAu9ttUqiJoC&q=clothing+&pg=PA110] Fergus, Michael and Jandosova, Janar, "Kazakhstan: Coming of Age," Stacey International, 2003, p. 216. {{ISBN|978-1900988612}} It is commonly decorated with elaborate ornaments made from bird beaks, animal horns, hooves and feet.{{Cite web|url=http://www.kazakhembus.com/content/kazakh-traditional-clothing-past-and-present|title=Kazakh Traditional Clothing: Past and Present|website=www.kazakhembus.com|language=en|access-date=10 August 2017|archive-date=1 July 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170701024814/http://www.kazakhembus.com/content/kazakh-traditional-clothing-past-and-present|url-status=dead}} Although contemporary Kazakhs usually wear Western dress, they wear more traditional clothing for holidays and special occasions.[https://books.google.com/books?id=Z8rd4LRKrdUC&q=clothing+&pg=PA59] Waters, Bella "Kazakhstan in Pictures," Twenty First Century Books; 2nd edition, 2007, p. 37. {{ISBN|978-0822565888}}

File:Kazakh wedding 3.jpg in a mosque]]

In the late 14th century, the Golden Horde propagated Islam in its state. Islam in Kazakhstan peaked during the era of the Kazakh Khanate, especially under rulers such as Ablai Khan and Kasym Khan. Another wave of conversions among the Kazakhs occurred during the 15th and 16th centuries via the efforts of Sufi orders.{{Cite book|last1=Bennigsen|first1=Alexandre|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nO0NAQAAMAAJ|title=Muslims of the Soviet Empire: A Guide|last2=Wimbush|first2=S. Enders|date=1986|publisher=Indiana University Press|isbn=978-0-253-33958-4|page=70|language=en|access-date=5 July 2021|archive-date=9 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230409180506/https://books.google.com/books?id=nO0NAQAAMAAJ|url-status=live}} During the 18th century, Russian influence toward the region rapidly increased throughout Central Asia. Led by Catherine, the Russians initially demonstrated a willingness in allowing Islam to flourish as Muslim clerics were invited into the region to preach to the Kazakhs, whom the Russians viewed as "savages" and "ignorant" of morals and ethics.Khodarkovsky, Michael. Russia's Steppe Frontier: The Making of a Colonial Empire, 1500–1800, p. 39.Ember, Carol R. and Melvin Ember. Encyclopedia of Sex and Gender: Men and Women in the World's Cultures, p. 572 However, Russian policy gradually changed toward weakening Islam by introducing pre-Islamic elements of collective consciousness.Hunter, Shireen. "Islam in Russia: The Politics of Identity and Security", p. 14 Such attempts included methods of eulogizing pre-Islamic historical figures and imposing a sense of inferiority by sending Kazakhs to highly elite Russian military institutions. In response, Kazakh religious leaders attempted to bring in pan-Turkism, though many were persecuted as a result.Farah, Caesar E. Islam: Beliefs and Observances, p. 304 During the Soviet era, Muslim institutions survived only in areas that Kazakhs significantly outnumbered non-Muslims, such as non-indigenous Russians, by everyday Muslim practices.Farah, Caesar E. Islam: Beliefs and Observances, p. 340 In an attempt to conform Kazakhs into Communist ideologies, gender relations and other aspects of Kazakh culture were key targets of social change.

In more recent times, however, Kazakhs have gradually employed a determined effort in revitalizing Islamic religious institutions after the fall of the Soviet Union. Most Kazakhs continue to identify with their Islamic faith,Page, Kogan. Asia and Pacific Review 2003/04, p. 99 and even more devotedly in the countryside. Those who claim descent from the original Muslim soldiers and missionaries of the 8th-century command substantial respect in their communities.Atabaki, Touraj. Central Asia and the Caucasus: transnationalism and diaspora. Kazakh political figures have also stressed the need to sponsor Islamic awareness. For example, the Kazakh Foreign Affairs Minister, Marat Tazhin, recently emphasized that Kazakhstan attaches importance to the use of "positive potential Islam, learning of its history, culture and heritage."{{Cite web|url=http://www.inform.kz/showarticle.php?lang=eng&id=154837|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20071020120928/http://www.inform.kz/showarticle.php?lang=eng&id=154837|url-status=dead|title=inform.kz | 154837|archivedate=20 October 2007}}

Pre-Islamic beliefs, such as worship of the sky, the ancestors, and fire, continued to a great extent to be preserved among the common people, however. Kazakhs believed in the supernatural forces of good and evil spirits, of wood goblins and giants. To protect themselves from them and from the evil eye, Kazakhs wore protection beads and talismans. Shamanic beliefs are still widely preserved among Kazakhs, as well as the belief in the strength of the bearers of that worship, the shamans, which Kazakhs call bakhsy. Unlike the Siberian shamans, who used drums during their rituals, Kazakh shamans, who could also be men or women, played (with a bow) on a stringed instrument similar to a large violin. At present both Islamic and pre-Islamic beliefs continue to be found among Kazakhs, especially among the elderly. According to 2009 national census 39,172 ethnic Kazakhs are Christians (0.4% of all Kazakhstani Kazakhs).{{cite web|url=http://www.stat.kz/news/Pages/n2_12_11_10.aspx |script-title=ru:Итоги национальной переписи населения 2009 года (Summary of the 2009 national census) |language=ru |publisher=Agency of Statistics of the Republic of Kazakhstan |access-date=21 May 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130612063733/http://www.stat.kz/news/Pages/n2_12_11_10.aspx |archive-date=12 June 2013 }}

Kazakhs are known for their hospitality, and so many Kazakh traditions are based on this ethnic feature. Some traditions have been lost, but some have been rediscovered. Below are some of the traditions that continue to play a role in the modern Kazakh society:

Konakasy (Kazakh: қонақасы; "konak" – guest, "as" – food) – a tradition to welcome a guest and make his stay as enjoyable as one can by providing food, lodge, entertainment. Depending on the circumstances under which a guest had come from, he is either called "arnayy konak" (Kazakh: арнайы қонақ) – a specially invited guest, "kudayy konak" (Kazakh: құдайы қонақ) – a casual traveller, or "kydyrma konak" (Kazakh: қыдырма қонақ) – an unexpected visitor.

Korimdik (Kazakh: көрімдік; "koru" – to see) – a tradition of presenting a person with a gift to congratulate him on a gain in his life. The custom is called korimdik, if a gain is related to a person or an animal (e.g. seeing a person's daughter-in-law or a newborn animal for the first time), and baygazy (Kazakh: байғазы), if the gain is material.

Shashu (Kazakh: шашу – to scatter) – a tradition to shower heroes of an occasion with sweets during some festivity. Kazakhs believe that collected delights bring luck.

Bata (Kazakh: бата – blessing) – a form of poetic art, typically given by the most respected or the eldest person to express gratitude for the provided hospitality, give blessing to a person who is about to enter a new phase in life, go through a challenging experience or travel.

Tusau kesu (Kazakh: тұсау кесу – to cut ties) – a tradition to celebrate the first attempts of a child to walk. The legs of a child are tied with a string of white and black colors symbolizing the good and the bad in life. The tie is then cut by a female relative who is energetic and lively in nature, so that the child acquires her qualities. After the string has been cut, it is burnt.

Kyz uzatu (Kazakh: қыз ұзату) – the first wedding party organized by the parents of a bride. The literal translation is "to see off a daughter".

Betashar (Kazakh: беташар; "bet" – face, "ashu" – to open) – the custom (often done at the wedding) to lift a veil from the face of a bride. Today it the mullah who is invited to perform an improvised song, in which he mentions relatives of the groom. During his performance, a bride has to bow every time she hears a name. After the song, the mother of the groom lifts the veil.{{cite web|url=http://www.bilu.kz/gostepriimstvo.php|title=Обычаи гостеприимства|website=www.bilu.kz|access-date=7 November 2019|archive-date=7 November 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191107153603/http://www.bilu.kz/gostepriimstvo.php|url-status=dead}}

Shildehana (Kazakh: шілдехана) – celebration of a birth of a child.

Suinshi (Kazakh: сүйінші) – a tradition to give present to someone who has brought good news.{{cite web|url=https://visitkazakhstan.kz/ru/about/78/|title=Обряды, традиции и обычаи. Самые популярные и широко распространённые виды спорта казахского народа.|website=visitkazakhstan.kz|access-date=11 November 2019|archive-date=11 November 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191111025317/https://visitkazakhstan.kz/ru/about/78/|url-status=dead}}

One of the most commonly used traditional musical instruments of the Kazakhs is the dombra, a plucked lute with two strings. It is often used to accompany solo or group singing. Another popular instrument is kobyz, a bow instrument played on the knees. Along with other instruments, both instruments play a key role in the traditional Kazakh orchestra. A notable composer is Kurmangazy, who lived in the 19th century. After studying in Moscow, Gaziza Zhubanova became the first woman classical composer in Kazakhstan, whose compositions reflect Kazakh history and folklore. A notable singer of the Soviet epoch is Roza Rymbaeva, she was a star of the trans-Soviet-Union scale. A notable Kazakh rock band is Urker, performing in the genre of ethno-rock, which synthesises rock music with the traditional Kazakh music.

{{Main|List of Kazakhs}}

• Chala Kazakh
• Kazakh Americans
• Kazakh Canadians
• Ethnic demography of Kazakhstan

{{reflist}}

{{Commons category|Kazakh people}}

• [http://www.elim.kz/ Kazakh tribes] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220308160201/https://www.elim.kz/ |date=8 March 2022 }}
• ‘Contemporary Falconry in Altai-Kazakh in Western Mongolia’The International Journal of Intangible Heritage (vol. 7), pp. 103–111. 2012. [http://www.ijih.org/volumeMgr.ijih?cmd=volumeView&volNo=7&manuType=02]
• ‘Ethnoarhchaeology of Horse-Riding Falconry’, The Asian Conference on the Social Sciences 2012 – Official Conference Proceedings, pp. 167–182. 2012. [https://web.archive.org/web/20131203091424/http://iafor.org/offprints/acss2012-offprints/ACSS2012_offprint_0271.pdf]
• ‘Intangible Cultural Heritage of Arts and Knowledge for Coexisting with Golden Eagles: Ethnographic Studies in “Horseback Eagle-Hunting” of Altai-Kazakh Falconers’, The International Congress of Humanities and Social Sciences Research, pp. 307–316. 2012. [https://web.archive.org/web/20131203001924/http://www.analytrics.org/Documents/HSS_Actes_Proceedings_2012.pdf]
• ‘Ethnographic Study of Altaic Kazakh Falconers’, Falco: The Newsletter of the Middle East Falcon Research Group 41, pp. 10–14. 2013. [https://web.archive.org/web/20151017084620/http://www.mefrg.org/images/falco/falco41.pdf]
• ‘Ethnoarchaeology of Ancient Falconry in East Asia’, The Asian Conference on Cultural Studies 2013 – Official Conference Proceedings, pp. 81–95. 2013. [https://web.archive.org/web/20141218143204/http://www.iafor.org/offprints/acas2013-offprints/ACAS_2013_Offprint_0108.pdf]
• Soma, Takuya. 2014. 'Current Situation and Issues of Transhumant Animal Herding in Sagsai County, Bayan Ulgii Province, Western Mongolia', E-journal GEO 9(1): pp. 102–119. [https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/ejgeo/9/1/9_102/_pdf]
• Soma, Takuya. 2015. Human and Raptor Interactions in the Context of a Nomadic Society: Anthropological and Ethno-Ornithological Studies of Altaic Kazakh Falconry and its Cultural Sustainability in Western Mongolia. University of Kassel Press, Kassel (Germany) {{ISBN|978-3-86219-565-7}}.

{{Kazakhstan topics}}

{{Turkic peoples}}

{{Ethnic groups in Kazakhstan}}

{{European Muslims}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kazakh}}

Category:Ethnic groups in Russia

Category:Ethnic groups in Kazakhstan

Category:Ethnic groups in Kyrgyzstan

Category:Ethnic groups in Mongolia

Category:Ethnic groups in Tajikistan

Category:Ethnic groups in Turkmenistan

Category:Ethnic groups in Uzbekistan

Category:Muslim communities of Russia

Category:Turkic peoples of Asia

Category:Ethnic groups in Iran

Category:Modern nomads

Category:Pastoralists

Category:Nomadic groups in Eurasia