Complete with text, video clips, and translated wedding songs, Köçümkulkïzï describes her traditional Kyrgyz wedding in Kyrgyzstan. While the article is not about Islam, the marriage was solemized by a mullah and a grandmother gave a special blessing. That blessing is captured in one of the video clips and is described as follows: "The groom’s grandmother gave a special blessing to us and all of us said “Oomiyin!” (Amen!) by stroking our faces with both palms." The following quote lists the main customs and rituals observed in the wedding, including the Islamic marriage ceremony:
Among the main customs and rituals were: kalïng, paying of the bride price by the groom’s parents; slaughtering of a horse for the feast; kiyit kiygizüü, a gift exchange (mostly clothes from head to toe) between the in-laws; öpkö chaptï, a ritual with a newly slaughtered goat’s raw lung which is used to hit the backs of the bride and the groom who sit back to back; koshok aytuu, singing of the wedding song; sep berüü, giving the bride’s dowry and loading it onto a camel; kïz uzatuu, viewing of the girl/bride; offering of koumiss to the köch, nomadic movement (in our case it was a wedding “köch” or caravan) from pasture to pasture; kelin kirgizüü, welcoming the bride to her new home; sep jayuu, displaying her dowry for people to see, nike kïyuu; a Muslim ceremony carried out by a mullah to legalize the marriage between the couple.Contents: Why a “Traditional” Wedding?; My Nomadic Childhood; Weddings during the Soviet Period; Video Clips.
Descriptors: 2000s, CA studies, description, e-article, K, Kyrgyz, Kyrgyzstan, marriage, observation, post-Soviet, rituals, video, women.
