Bishkek, formerly known as Pishpek and Frunze, is the capital and largest city of Kyrgyzstan. Bishkek is also the administrative centre of the Chüy Region. Bishkek is situated near the border with Kazakhstan and has a population of 1,074,075, as of 2021. Bishkek is the primate city of Kyrgyzstan—it is the sole metropolis in the country, and about 17% of all inhabitants of the country live in Bishkek's metropolitan area.
The history of the Kyrgyz people and the land now called Kyrgyzstan goes back more than 3,000 years. Although geographically isolated by its mountainous location, it had an important role as part of the historical Silk Road trade route. Turkic nomads, who trace their ancestry to many Turkic states such as the First and Second Turkic Khaganates, have inhabited the country throughout its history. In the 13th century, Kyrgyzstan was conquered by the Mongols; subsequently it regained independence but was invaded by Kalmyks, Manchus, and Uzbeks. In 1876, it became part of the Russian Empire, remaining in the USSR as the Kirghiz Soviet Socialist Republic after the Russian Revolution. Following Mikhael Gorbachev's democratic reforms in the USSR, in 1990 pro-independence candidate Askar Akayev was elected president of the SSR. On 31 August 1991, Kyrgyzstan declared independence from Moscow, and a democratic government was subsequently established.
Kyrgyzstan is a landlocked nation in Central Asia, west of the People's Republic of China. Less than a ninth the size of Kazakhstan, at 199,951 square kilometers, Kyrgyzstan is one of the smaller Central Asian states. The national territory extends about 900 km (560 mi) from east to west and 410 km (250 mi) from north to south.
Kyrgyzstan, officially the Kyrgyz Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Asia, lying in the Tian Shan and Pamir mountain ranges. Bishkek is the capital and largest city of the country. Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Tajikistan to the south, and China to the east and southeast. Ethnic Kyrgyz make up the majority of the country's 7 million people, followed by significant minorities of Uzbeks and Russians.
Kyrgyz music is nomadic and rural, and is closely related to Turkmen and Kazakh folk forms. Kyrgyz folk music is characterized by the use of long, sustained pitches, with Russian elements also prominent.
Osh is the second-largest city in Kyrgyzstan, located in the Fergana Valley in the south of the country and often referred to as the "capital of the south". It is the oldest city in the country and has served as the administrative center of Osh Region since 1939. The city has an ethnically mixed population of 322,164 in 2021, comprising Kyrgyz, Uzbeks, Ukrainians, Koreans, and other smaller ethnic groups.
The culture of Kyrgyzstan has a wide mix of ethnic groups and cultures, with the Kyrgyz being the majority group. It is generally considered that there are 40 Kyrgyz clans, symbolized by the 40-rayed yellow sun in the center of the flag. The red lines inside the sun visualise the crown of a yurt, the traditional dwelling of nomadic farmers, once the main population of the Central Asian area. The dominant religion of Kyrgyzstan is Sunni Islam (91%). The Russian population is Russian Orthodox.
Kochkor-Ata is a Kyrgyz town located northwest of the major city Jalal-Abad in Kyrgyzstan. Its population was 17,476 in 2021. The town is located along the major Bishkek-Osh route, approximately 3 miles from the Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan border. The settlement Kochkor-Ata was established in 1952 in regard with discovery and exploitation of Izbaskent oil field. In 2003, it was granted town status.
Human rights in Kyrgyzstan improved after the ouster of President Askar Akayev in the 2005 Tulip Revolution and the installment of a more democratic government under Roza Otunbayeva. While the country is performing well compared to other states in Central Asia, many human rights violations still take place. While LGBT rights have been declining in recent years, freedom of press has been improving.
Manas International Airport is the main international airport in Kyrgyzstan, located 25 kilometres (16 mi) north-northwest of the capital, Bishkek.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Kyrgyzstan: Kyrgyzstan – sovereign country located in Central Asia. Landlocked and mountainous, Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Tajikistan to the southwest, and China to the east.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in Kyrgyzstan face significant challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Both male and female same-sex sexual activities are legal in Kyrgyzstan, but same-sex couples and households headed by same-sex couples are ineligible for the same legal protections available to opposite-sex married couples.
Tyntchtykbek Kadyrmambetovich Tchoroev (Chorotegin) (Kyrgyz: Тынчтыкбек Чороев, is a Kyrgyz historian, publicist and journalist. President of the Kyrgyz History Society, Doctor of History, Professor of the Kyrgyz State National University named after Jusup Balasagyn. Tchoroev is well known as an independent history researcher, Turkologist and journalist. Until September 2011, he worked as a broadcaster at Radio Azattyk, i.e. Kyrgyz Service of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. He was chairman of the Board of the Muras Foundation under the Office of the President of the Kyrgyz Republic.
Christianity has a long history in Kyrgyzstan, with the earliest archaeological remains of churches belonging to the Church of the East in modern-day Suyab dating back to the 7th century. By the 9th century an archdiocese of the Church of the East cared for the Christians of Kyrgyzstan and adjacent areas in eastern Turkestan. Although primarily Turkic there was also an Armenian community in what today is Kyrgyzstan by the 14th century. By the 15th century, however, there were no longer ecclesiastical structures of any church caring for what is today Kyrgyzstan and Islam gained the ascendancy amongst the Kyrgyz people.
The International Film Festival Kyrgyzstan - Land of Short Films is an annual film festival held to celebrate short films from the former Soviet Union. The 5th Annual International Film Festival Kyrgyzstan - Land of Short Films was held December 12–15, 2015 in Bishkek, Kyrgyz Republic.
The Kyrgyz Economic University, is a Kyrgyz public university located in Bishkek. Specializing in economics and international relations, it is one of the best universities in Kyrgyzstan and one of the best in Central Asia in economics. It was founded in 1953.
The Kyrgyz anti-LGBT propaganda law has been enacted on 14 August 2023. The bill was introduced on 17 March 2023 and will come into effect on 30 August 2023. The official title of the law is "On introducing amendments to several legal acts of the Kyrgyz Republic". It consists of amendments to the Code of Misdemeanors, the law "On measures to prevent harm to children's health, physical, intellectual, mental, spiritual and moral development in the Kyrgyz Republic", and the law "On Mass Media". The law expands the definition of "information harmful to the health and development of children" to include information that "denies family values, promotes non-traditional sexual relationships, and encourages disrespect for parents or other family members" and subjects those who disseminate such information among minors to fines.
Urkuya Salieva was a political activist and communist organizer during the development of the Kirghiz Autonomous Socialist Soviet Republic. She has been described as one of the first Kyrgyz advocates of women's rights. She was assassinated in 1934.
Kasymaly Jantöshev was a Kyrgyz writer and playwright. Jantöshev is regarded as one of the most important Kyrgyz writers, and is considered to be one of the founders of Kyrgyz drama and theatre. Many of his works portray the transformation of Kyrgyz society during the 20th-century, and contain socialist themes. One of Jantöshev's novels, Kanybek, has become part of Kyrgyzstan's cultural heritage, and remains very popular within the country.
Oksana Shatalova is a visual artist, art critic, writer and curator from Kazakhstan.
