“One of the most fascinating aspects of shamanism for the student of epic poetry is the initiation of the shaman through sickness and dreams,” writes Karl Reichl in his Turkic Oral Epic Poetry. “These visions are paralleled by the initiation which epic singers experience in many traditions.” The recollections of Džanïbay Kodžekov, a Kyrgyz singer: One day … Continue reading What We’re Reading Now: Reichl’s “Turkic Oral Epic Poetry”
Just finished Hamid Ismailov's new novel Manaschi, about a conflicted half-Kyrgyz, half-Tajik man who feels increasingly fated to become a reciter of the ancient Kyrgyz epic poem, Manas. It's an oddly compelling tale in which Kyrgyz, Tajiks and Chinese laborers --- newcomers to the village which straddles Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan --- eventually come to blows in ways … Continue reading “Manaschi”: Enigmatic Adages in Hamid Ismailov’s new Novel
Multilingual CASS scholar Adili Zhumaturdu (阿地力·朱玛吐尔地) reports that his 4-volume Chinese translation of the Kyrgyz epic, Manas (玛纳斯史诗), has made it onto the list of 86 books for "popularizing multi-ethnic traditional culture" (全国推荐中华优秀传统文化普及图书名单) recommended by China's very official State Administration of Radio, Film and Television. An ethnic Kyrgyz, he worked closely with Jusup Mamay, China's last … Continue reading Ethnic ChinaLit Roundup for end January 2016
Altaic Storytelling 