Traditional Kazakh Agriculture in the Research of Russian Scholars and Travelers of the 18th–19th сenturies
Традиционное казахское земледелие в исследованиях российских учёных и путешественников XVIII–XIX вв.
Toktabay A.U. Dossymbetov N.A.
1 December 2025Cherkas Global University Press
Bylye Gody
2025#20Issue 41686 - 1699 pp.
This historiographical article is dedicated to the analysis of the study of the history of Kazakh agriculture in the 18th–19th centuries based on the works of researchers-travelers and scholars of the Russian Empire. The author examines an extensive body of works by ethnographers and orientalists, travelers’ records, as well as Russian archival materials that reflect the diversity of the Kazakhs’ economic activities, debunking the outdated stereotype of a purely nomadic lifestyle of the people. The article discusses in detail the methods of farming, irrigation systems, types of cultivated crops, and their role in the life of the people, as documented in the aforementioned sources. Special attention is given to historical figures such as Kipchak Seitkul and Ablai Khan, who contributed to the development of settled agriculture among the steppe peoples. The article analyzes how various external factors and historical events influenced the spread and development of agricultural culture. The authors emphasize the need to reconsider traditional views in national historiography, drawing attention to the multifaceted economic structure of the Kazakhs, which includes nomadic, semi-nomadic, semi-settled, and settled lifestyles. Of particular importance is the study of agricultural production technology, which allows for a fuller understanding of the socio-economic processes of that time. The article also demonstrates how Kazakh agriculture was integrated into broader historical and cultural contexts of the region. The work contributes to a deeper understanding of historical processes and enriches ethnohistorical research in Kazakh studies.
archival materials , ethnographers , ethnohistorical research , history of agriculture , irrigation systems , nomadic and settled lifestyles , orientalists , researchers of the Russian Empire , Semirechye
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Institute of History and Ethnology named after Ch.Ch. Valikhanov, Almaty, Kazakhstan
Institute of History and Ethnology named after Ch.Ch. Valikhanov
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