Kyrgyz Horse
# Kyrgyz Horse

The Kyrgyz Horse or Kirgiz Horse is a traditional breed of small horse from the Kyrgyz Republic (Kyrgyzstan). Kyrgyz people associate it with their nomadic $past.^{:12}$ During the Soviet era of Kyrgyz history, the Kyrgyz Horse was cross-bred with imported foreign breeds, including Don and Thoroughbred strains, to create a new and larger breed, the Novokirgiz or New $Kirgiz.^{:489}$

## History

In the late nineteenth century there were some two million Kyrgyz horses in the area that is now Kyrgyzstan. During the Soviet era, the traditional Kyrgyz horse was cross-bred with larger but weaker imported foreign breeds, including Don and Thoroughbred strains, to create a new breed, the Novokirgiz or New $Kirgiz.^{:489}$ Numbers of the traditional native breed were greatly reduced, but have since shown some recovery. The population of the Kyrgyz breed was last reported to DAD-IS in 2002, when the total population was 78 300 head. In 2007 its conservation status was recorded by the FAO as "not at $risk".^{:74}$

An association for the protection of the Kyrgyz Horse, the Fondation Kyrgyz Ate, was set up in Bishkek in the early twenty-first century. A breed standard was drawn up, based partly on a description found in archives in Saint Petersburg, and was approved by the national ministry of $agriculture.^{:14}$

## Characteristics

The Kyrgyz Horse is a small mountain horse. It is sure-footed and agile, with the necessary stamina and endurance for the mountain $environment.^{:14}$ The coat may be dark or $grey.^{:480}$

## Use

The Kyrgyz Horse is used as a riding horse, for horse-racing, and as a light harness horse. It is important for production of meat and $milk.^{:480}$ Horsemeat production in Kyrgyzstan in 2002 was 24 800 tonnes, about one eighth of the total meat produced in that $year.^{:14}$ The mare's milk is often fermented to make $kumis.^{:14}$

With traditional mounted games such as kok-boru (also known in Kyrgyzstan as ulak-tartysh), oodarysh (mounted wrestling) and kyz-kuumai (meaning roughly "chase the girl"), the Kyrgyz Horse may be perceived as a symbol of the pre-Soviet nomadic past of Kyrgyz people, and thus as an element of post-Soviet Kyrgyz culture and national $identity.^{:14}$

