There has been some controversy over the fact that the list misses out a number of “wonders”, mostly from other parts of the world not known to the ancient scholars of the first and second centuries BC who originally comprised the lists.   A competition was held to select the “New Seven New Wonders of the World” and the winners announced in July 2007.

The same people who organized that competition are currently running a similar one: The Seven wonders of the Natural World.  Many people, myself included, like making lists such as these and in his book. “Kyrgyzstan – the Word about Motherland”, Kanibek Imanaliev suggests that the Kyrgyz have seven “objects of worship”, (the word used in the Russian version translates as “sacred objects, or relics”, but I have chosen to use the term “icons” instead).  He maintains that, without these, it is impossible to fully understand the life of the Kyrgyz people.  Certainly, they each play an important role.

The Komuz is a stringed instrument, made from a single piece of wood (apricot or juniper are the favoured timbers), and plucked like a guitar. While playing it, the three strings are clasped by the left hand to the fingerboard and the right hand is used to pluck the strings in a variety of ways to draw out the sounds. It is a very old instrument – and is mentioned in Chinese Chronicles written over 2000 years ago.  There are a number of legends about the origin of the komuz.   One tells of a Kyrgyz hunter, Kambarkan, who knew the “language” of many birds and wild animals, so that he could recognise them each by their voice. Once, when he was in the forest, he heard a new and wonderful sound.  He decided to investigate and discovered two branches of a tree connected by the dried intestine of a squirrel.  The sound seemed to emanate from that “string”.  “Perhaps,” he thought to himself, “she had tried jumping from one branch of the tree to another, but cut herself open”.  Anyway, he took the string and a piece of wood from the tree and fashioned for himself a musical instrument – the Komuz … and he became known as the Father of Melody.  Another legend tells how an old komuzist befriended a nightingale … that was entranced by his playing that she asked him to teach her to sing like the komuz – giving rise to a saying that the instrument taught even the nightingale how to sing.

The Kalpak is a felt hat worn by Kyrgyz men -properly called the “Ak Kalpak” (=”white Kalpak”), is a hat usually made from four panels of white felt with traditional patterns stitched into them as decoration. It is worn by males of all ages – especially in rural Kyrgyzstan – and is a symbol of the nation. (One writer has even written that “what the baseball cap is to the Americans, the Kalpak is to the Kyrgyz”.)  There are different styles of kalpak. They can all be folded flat for storage or carrying when not being worn.  In some cases the brim may be turned up all the way around, and in some cases there is a cut in the brim so that a two-pointed “peak” can be formed. Plain white ones are often reserved for festivals and special occasions. Once intended for everyday use may have a black ‘velvet’ lining.  The most common form of Kalpak is thought to resemble the shape of the mountain Khan Tengri.

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The Yurt is the traditional dwelling of the nomadic peoples of Central Asia – including the Kyrgyz. They are found from Anatolia to Mongolia. It is not possible to say which of the ancient nomadic tribes originally developed the traditional design.  (In the 8th century, the Uighur Khaganate was established and breaking with their nomadic traditions built a walled city, Karabalasugin, on the River Orkhon – which flows into Lake Baikal in Siberia – as their capital.  Contemporary Chinese accounts record that the Khan kept a traditional felt tent erected on the roof of his palace in the city, covered in gold, perhaps as a reminder of his people’s nomadic past).  The yurt is still in use by people throughout the region and plays an important role in the lifestyle of the Kyrgyz “chaban”, or shepherd, and although styles of architecture and city planning come and go, the yurt remains a stable and lasting link with the past.

The Horse has a special place in the traditional lifestyle and culture of the Kyrgyz people as a symbol of wealth and for their practical use to a nomadic people. They are valued for their physical strength, their endurance and their stamina. Whilst the number of sheep herds exceeded that of other domesticated animals, it was the number of horses which it owned that determined the status of a household.

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The Mountains form the backbone of the country – over 94% of the country lies above 1000 meters a.s.l. and 71% above 2000 meters.  (Generally – anything above 1500 meters is counted as mountainous).  In particular, the country boasts a number of 7000-meter peaks, several of which have been climbed only in relatively recent times – and many virgin peaks – yet to be climbed.

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Lake Issyk Kul is also known as “The pearl of the Tien Shan”.  The name means “warm lake” and signifies that it never freezes over.  (This is because, lying at the bottom of a draining basin, it has no outlet and evaporation means that the water is salty – lowering the freezing point, although the very north eastern corner which is shallower and narrower may sometimes develop a thin covering of ice.)  The lake lies at 1600m a.s.l. at the bottom of a depression, ringed by mountains. At about 180km long, 60 km wide and a maximum depth of about 700 m. it is the world’s second largest mountain lake (after Lake Titicaca in South America). It is also claimed to be the world’s second most transparent lake (after Lake Baikal) with a visibility of about 20m.

Manas is the legendary hero the Kyrgyz – and the subject of the world’s longest epic.  He was a Khan (lord or chieftain) of the Kyrgyz, reputedly born in the Talas region. The narrative of the epic revolves around his exploits in trying to carve out a homeland for his people and fighting off the opposition of neighbouring hordes; consolidating his forces; his marriage to the fair and wise Kanykei – the daughter of a Samarkand khan and the future mother of his only Semetei; the burial feast for the dead chief Koketey (whose mausoleum is supposed to be at Koshoi-Kogon – near Naryn) where the opposing forces of the heroes meet each other for the first time; the great campaign victory and mortal wounding of Manas, which is followed by a civil war; the fight for the throne; the expulsion of Kanykei and the baby Semetei and finally the destruction of everything created by Manas’ hard work and struggle.

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Kanibek Imanaliev is a journalist who has written numerous articles; a book about Kyrgyzstan, (“A word about the homeland”, published in both English and Russian), novels and verse and has compiled by 10-volume edition “Kyrgyzdar”, which collects information and articles about the history, culture and ethnography of the Kyrgyz people.  He is a member of the Jogorku Kenesh, the Kyrgyz parliament.  He is married and has four children.