The concept “hospitality” in the Kyrgyz linguistic worldview

Бюллетень науки и практики / Bulletin of Science and Practice Т. 11. №8 2025

UDC 811.161.3                                     

Бюллетень науки и практики / Bulletin of Science and Practice Т. 11. №8 2025

In the epoch of globalization there emerged new directions of linguistic research such as linguaculturology, intercultural communications, sociolinguistics, ethnolinguistics, etc. Cultural factors, essentially, reflected in language serve as a basis. The interplay of language and culture is one of the thought-provoking fields of study, since the language is regarded not only as a means of communication, but it opens horizons to recognize cultural identity of nation.

Lingua-cultural approach to language allows taking into account specific features of national language since the means of expression may alter depending on its language, culture, and traditions. A concept is a root component of any culture, which is realized by verbal sign in terms of expression, and via icon or image, notion and symbol, in terms of content. The lingual and cultural concept is a linguistic sign that carries cultural value and meaning. A concept is a multidimensional structure that reflects the process of learning, the results of human activity, his experience and knowledge about the surrounding environment, the world he exists in [1].

V. I. Karasik states the following: “The structure of concept comprises all notions that constitute a cultural factor – its original etymological form, narrowed to the core features of historical content, associations it stimulates, and positive or negative attitude or assessment, etc.” [2].

In another inspiring work, V. I. Karasik distinguishes imaginary, conceptual-cognitive, and value-oriented components by characterizing the structure of concepts of spiritual values of a man [3].

A very interesting interpretation of the linguistic worldview is given by Y. D. Apresyan [4]. He states that each natural language reflects a definite way of comprehension and organization (conceptualization) of the world. The way of conceptualization is universal on the one hand, and nationally specific on the other hand, so that individual linguistic group comprehends the world via linguistic prisms of their own. Therefore, any issues related to the concept should be considered through the prism of the language, via proverbs and saying, fiction, prominent masterpiece works, etc. based on which it is possible to give a fair, tangible and real characteristic to the mentality of people who speak in that language, in particular.

The purpose of the scientific research work is to investigate the peculiarities of the hospitality in the Kyrgyz culture through the plethora of culture-specific concepts.

The theoretical basis of the research work lies on lingua-cultural concepts about national and cultural uniqueness of the linguistic picture of a world of the Kyrgyz people, the value of the linguistic signs, and national and cultural behavioural characteristic traits, as well.

Kyrgyz proverbs and saying, and examples from various literature genres and styles associated and correlated to hospitality were studied as a subject of research.

Studies on language and culture have always been the core subject of many research works, since inalienable and immutable interplay plays a crucial role in intercultural communication, learning languages, and establishing ties on an international level within various spheres of human beings’ life. Lingua-cultural descriptive approach based on semantic and conceptual analysis of the proverbs and expressions used in the Kyrgyz language, in various literary works by prominent classical writers of the Kyrgyz literature, was used. This approach allows to describe the concept “hospitality” as of lingua-cultural nature, and distinguish universal (politeness, gladness, abundant table, honour, guest’s politeness, respect and gratitude to hosts) and specific national features (rituals and etiquette expressed in Kyrgyz customs and traditions of reception).

In Kyrgyz culture hospitality may be expressed by polite greetings, respect shown towards guests, guest reception, mimicry, gestures on a behaviouristic level, and gift-giving. Hospitality greatly influences human beings’ behaviour and relations constituting the core of setting communication between people.

Hospitality plays a supreme role in hierarchy of the national values. This is a custom that has penetrated the lifestyle of people since ancient time. Even though it has been practiced throughout the world. Some scholars develop the idea that hospitality has a supreme power that influences human beings and relations between people. If we consider ancient Indian tribes viewed hospitality as one type of ritual of scarifying. For example, education - ritual of sacrifying for Brakhma (Sanskrit), ritual of tarpana (Sanskrit) – Vedic practice of offering a sacrifice for ancestors, Vedic practice khoma (Sanskrit) – sacrifice for Gods. It is stated that a visitor or a guest should be given a place to sit on or rest, some water to drink, and some food after a long journey. A guest who comes nearly at nightfall should be offered a stay overnight, and served some food [5].

In the holy manuscripts dated XV-XVII BC, there is evidence of the supreme hospitality of Jutes of that time. They used to invite home strangers and voyagers, let them wash their hands, and even did not sit at the same table with their guests to dine but treated food and beverages as a sign of deep respect towards them [6].

Caucasian people considered it good manners to defend the merits and honour of a guest by all means [5].

Profound French anthropologist, L. Lévy-Bruhl in his work on the lifestyle and culture of people stated that kindness and contentment of a host belonging to lower strata of the population are explained “first and foremost by fear to burn the fire of hatred and discontent in the hearts and minds of guests who were not treated well or shown hospitality”. Denial may furthermore become the reason for everlasting and growing bad intentions and adversaries [5].

Sacral and semi-sacred motives of hospitality are closely related to those adhered to by representatives of civilized societies all over the globe. According to anthropologist, ethnologist L.Morgan, who is known for establishing the study of kinship systems and a comprehensive theory of social evolution, hospitality is the emergence of social-economic relations of early tribal system: “The law of hospitality may be explained by collectivistic approach in owning and cultivating lands, and in utilizing household products, where there is a definite number of communities” [5].

Thus, the hospitality shown among members of society is a so-called vestige of economic relations that characterizes tribal society and is connected with religious prejudice and philosophy of life. Hospitality is culture-specific realia, therefore is considered as characteristic feature of all cultures, no matter of historical spacial frames, geographical peculiarities, and social economy [7]. A distinguished feature of hospitality lies in the necessity of a human being to set contacts and ties with other members of the community. The essential value of hospitality represents the beliefs of a man about types of behaviour and preferences that constitute values of etiquette behaviour: respect, tact, honour, gracefulness, benevolence, and goodwill, which in its turn bears a common seme “recognition of values of other people”. There is the following definition of hospitality in an explanatory dictionary of the Kyrgyz language: hospitality — n. expectation of guests, willingness to receive and honour guests, the showing respect and honour .

Let us consider the componential structure of the concept “меймандостук” (hospitality) in the Kyrgyz language. It consists of two lexemes: “мейман” (from Persian “meyman”) — a guest and “достук” (from Persian “döst”) – friendship, which means friendship or to be hospitable to a guest/guests. In the Kyrgyz language, the lexeme “конок” (a guest) is a synonym of “мейман” and commonly used in speech consisting of a verb stem “кон” (конуу) – v. 1. Lower down, land (bird, plane); 2. Stay, settle (nomad); 3. To stay overnight [8].

The words “мейман” and “конок” are synonyms in the Kyrgyz language, and they form the expressions “мейманчылоо” or “коноктоо”, the semantic general meaning of which is to treat guests and be hospitable towards them, whilst expressions “мейман тосуу” – receive guests, and “конок тосуу” – guest reception, literally mean to receive guests.

The organization and structure of a situation with definite roles and responsibilities given to each side allow enhanced confidence, mutual relations, and respect in the social surrounding. Recognition of essence value of hospitality grounds the emergence of rules and norms of guest reception etiquette.

European scholars who deal with research related to hospitality among people in Central Asia highly estimate it as a type of the highest virtue of Muslims. Hospitality plays a great role in traditional consciousness. A head of the family should have a highly tolerant behaviour towards guests, for example:

Конок бар жерде береке бар (Krg.) (Where there is a guest there is a feast);

Даам таткан жериңе миң жолу салам айт (Krg.) (Always extend your regards to home where you were treated well);

Конок өз ырыскысы менен келет (Krg.) (A guest comes with his happiness and wellness);

Мехмон уклар эшикдан, ризки келар тешикдан (Uzb.) (The guest enters the door, and wellbeing comes from every hole with him);

Конагынын алтынын алма, алгысын ал (Kaz.) (Don’t take gold from your guest, but take his/her gratitude).

The tradition of hospitality was enhanced by a custom named “адат” (habit, custom). Among the Kyrgyz and Kazakh, it was considered to be a violation of ethical norms and behaviour if someone refused to receive guests. There is a notion in the Kyrgyz consciousness that a guest is someone sent by God. Any stranger who randomly approached the yurt of the Kyrgyz on his long way could stay overnight there. A severe nomad lifestyle could not guarantee safe and refined conditions for a voyager since they might need to stay overnight in winter or rain, or when the weather is stormy, cold, or extremely cold. We can refer to Zh. Bokonbaev’s lines in his masterwork “Дүйшөнкул” where the hospitality of people is demonstrated in a scene when three men on horseback approach a house along the road:

Үч атчан киши эл жата жолдун боюндагы үстүнө чөп үйүлгөн тамга кайрылышты.<...>Суук күчтүү, кар аттын омуроосунан. Тамдын эшигине бастырып келишти да: « Үйдө киши барбы? – дешти. <>Бир маалда боз чепкенин желбегей жамынып, кепичти жалаң кийип бирөө чыгып: « Ким », - деди. – « Кудайы конокпуз » . – « Жакшы болот, үйдө бала-чака да жок эле, эй, Каныкүл, чык, меймандардын атын ал » , - деди. Өзү келип, бир аттын жылоосунан кармады [9].

Three horse-riders approached a house with a dry hay on a roof along the road. <...>It was a severe winter with dense and heavy snow nearly 1.5 m. high. Having approached closer, three wayfarers asked if there was anybody home. The owner responded in question: “Who are you?” They answered: “We are travelers, in the name of God”. “Oh, please, welcome. Kalykul, go and take the horses to the stable”, — says the owner approaching guests to take the reins of one of the guests by himself (tr. by Kinalieva).

According to the unwritten rules of hospitality, the Kyrgyz people were to welcome the voyagers or wayfarers, on barefoot or horseback, treat them food and beverages, supply them with place to stay overnight, and feed their horses as well. Such a polite and kind attitude and benevolent treatment was done sincerely without any compensation from the side of guests or travelers.

T. Kasymbekov describes the tolerant interpersonal relations between travelers and the owner of the house in his Broken Sword. One of the characters – Tenirberdi — invites the caravan into the yurt so that they can have some rest and food. In response, wayfarers politely denied the invitation referring to their long and exhausting journey, and lack of time (they might anticipate that the owner might not have enough promenade for the whole caravan):

• -    Түштөнүп өткүлө, бай акелер! Бул салт эрежеси .

• -    Жер алыс эле, жол алыс эле . // - Please, be my honorable guests, dears. Have some rest and food. Let’s follow our tradition. / - We appreciate it. We have a long way ahead (tr. by Kinalieva) [10].

The way they responded is a generally accepted way of polite and gentle denial of an invitation, as a rule, showing their appreciation and respect to the host.

The Kyrgyz, just like the other people in Central Asia, have always shown hospitality not only to the representatives of their community but to other nations as well. The degree of tolerance and patience towards people not belonging to their community or strangers, may reflect the degree of honour and veneration shown to other cultures and norms of behaviour. It should be noted, that there are some requirements related to the conduct and ethics of guests as well, for instance, greeting all members of the family, asking about the health state of members in general, sharing with news or expressing gratitude for hospitality. It is considered disrespectful if a guest denies an invitation and refuses to try some treats offered. A guest should indeed be polite and delicate, and show respect to the owner as well:

Конок койдон жоош (A guest should be as humble as a lamb).

Nowadays, this tradition is practiced widely among Kyrgyz families. People used to lay the table to discuss some problems or just simply share news. After the greeting ceremony when each side has already asked about the well-being of each other, they start talking about the main issue or deal. More often due to a lack of time, a guest may be in a hurry, then the owner of the house politely offers treats to try and taste a bit. It may be some bread, боорсок (fried pieces of dough), beverage, or something else: Нан ооз тийиңиз. Даам татып чыккыла (Please, try some bread. Taste some food.).

These sayings are widely used by people and have a clear reflection in literary works: Куттуу үйдөн куру чыкпайт деген сөз бар эмеспи, даам татып чык, балам [11]. // My son, please, do not leave my house with empty hands. At least, please, taste some food, my dear (tr. by Kinalieva).

Bread — is a sacred food for the Kyrgyz. It might be explained by nomad life and big families, exhausting labour needed to cultivate grain and make bread, severe seasons in mountainous areas, wars, and famine. History shows that people always bargain meat for bread since the Kyrgyz people were nomads and did not cultivate grain crops in old times. The phrase set in speech and everyday life — Нан ооз тийиңиз (lit. Try some bread) — preconditions the interest and tolerance of a hospitable host towards the issues of a comer or any condition of a guest. Most issues were resolved over the dinner table. As it says Нан — улук or Нандан улуу тамак жок (There is nothing greater than the bread). Let’s consider another example taken from Danikeev’s work:

Камбар эки колун жая бата кылды да алды менен нандан ооз тийип: “Ээ, нандан улуу барбы?” — деди жөн жөну жок эле [12]. // Kambar raised his hands to pronounce words of blessing: “Oh, there is nothing greater than the bread itself?” — he uttered (tr. by Kinalieva).

Another custom that merits a deep interest is the tradition of seating guests on honorable places at the table: төр — is a place opposite the door where usually respected elder people sit. When the elder people occupy their places, the others may sit on their seats according to status and age hierarchy. The expression Эр карыса — төр means that honorable seats are for elderly and respected. In case, the elder one is late those who came earlier move downwards to make a place for him or her to sit, politely saying Төргө өтүңүз or Жогору өтүңүз (Please, move forward to the place of honour). The knowledge about the proxemic distribution of seats depending on status and age is formed and acquired throughout lifelong experience.

In Kyrgyz culture hospitality is also expressed by mimicry and gestures on a behavioristic level. For instance, a host family should always meet guests with smiles on their faces and kindly greet them inviting them home, and the greeting ritual is often accompanied by a firm handshake, kisses, and hugs. The following proverb states exactly about the mood and intentions of a host towards guests: Үй ээсинин кабагы — меймандын сүйгөн тамагы (The host’s mood and attitude are as delicious as food and dishes treated).

More often in cases when there are too many people, guests may be seated separately - men on the one side and women on the other. They never start eating until the host invites them to start a feast. The first who starts to taste the food is the eldest among the guests, and then other guests may start eating. The eating ceremony usually starts with tasting bread, since it is the greatest and most sacred for the Kyrgyz.

In the Kyrgyz culture the animal slaughtering (sheep, lamb, cow, and horse; depending on the number of guests) is the main part of hospitality, and expresses a deep respect of the owner of a house to distinguished and respectable guests, i.e. some kind of a gesture of respect and honour. This is an indispensable element of the guest-reception ceremony. It is of deep interest to specialists in the field of ethnographic study and research, the ritual of slaughtering an animal with бата (bata) , the ritual of looking at Kaaba when slaughtering, the way how the Kyrgyz distribute устукан/жилик ( ustukan, jilik), pieces of meat or bones with meat, among guests. They are traditionally classified as honorable and not, for men and women, and so- called neutral pieces. Moreover, it requires special knowledge and skills to serve the meat pieces according to guests’ age, gender, title, status, etc. [13]. Zh.Niyazova denotes that the process of serving and distributing the meat is a part of the etiquette ritual: “Distribution of meat characterizes organization of culture. It serves as an inner mechanism that protects the wholeness of culture itself. The Kyrgyz has never chopped the meat into small pieces but rather divided it into pieces in joints to have bones with meat. Ustukans were served to guests depending on guests’ age, gender, and status” [14].

Types of ustukans are distributed in a descending order starting from thigh-bone ( жамбаш ), tibia or shin-bone ( жото жилик/чүкөлүү жилик ), femur bone ( кашка жилик ), spoke bone or radius bone ( кар жилик ), shoulder blade ( далы ), bigger ribs ( карчыга ), smaller in size ribs without fat ( кара кабырга ), tail vertebrae ( куймулчак ), chest bone ( төш ), and part of a shoulder bone ( күң жилик ). There are following “jiliks”: cervical vertebrae ( моюн ), thoracic vertebrae ( арка омуртка ), lumbar vertebrae ( бел омуртка ), and cannon ( шыйрак ), that are left for the host family, and are not served to guests [15]. The head ( баш ) is served to the youngest in some parts of a country (usually to the youngest man in a family), but to the eldest and honorable guest in most parts of Kyrgyzstan.

It is highly important to serve the right piece of meat to the guest otherwise he or she may be offended, and even insulted by mistreatment. Often the elder tastes a piece of his part and gives it to someone younger among guests giving his “bata” ( бата ), good wishes or blessings. It is called “keshik” ( кешик ). The Kyrgyz people believe that keshik can bring a good luck, and transfer knowledge, wisdom and talent of an elder who shares his meat. It is a common habit to take away the meat, in order to share it with other members of the family and relatives later, after returning home.

The culmination point in the guest-having feast is a well-known traditional dish of the Kyrgyz people — бешбармак (beshbarmak), a finely boiled meat mixed with noodles and topped with шорпо (shorpo (а meat broth) or чык (chyk (onion sauce) and чучук (chuchuk (horsemeat sausage). During the eating ceremony, all the people usually hold pleasant discussions on various topics and communicate with each other without being in a hurry. According to tradition, all guests wash their hands before and right after they finish eating the main dish. The handwashing ritual is done when a least son or son-in-law of the family holds a bowl and a jar with warm water before the meal in a clockwise order, and warmer water after eating in an anticlockwise order to wash off the fatty remains. Guests usually pronounce good wishes or give their blessings pronouncing “bata”: Кудайым тилегиңди берсин! (Let your praying be heard by God!);

Өмүрүң узун болсун! (Live long!);

Көп жаша! (Live long!);

Бактылуу бол! (Be happy!), etc.

Thus, we can say that the ritual of handwashing is of dual nature — first, demonstrates respect and honour towards guests, and second — is a way to receive elders’ good wishes and blessings ( bata ), that are still worthy among the Kyrgyz community, carries a totemic sense, and is evidence of faith in the magical power of words. The main blessing ( bata ) by elders is given to the host family at the end of the reception as a whole. Bata — pronouncing good wishes (blessing) is the most valuable notion of the cultural ritual. In the very end of the good wishes and blessings an elder man or woman who pronounces words, says оомийин (oomiyin) with raised arms palms open moving over the face downwards as a final part of the verbal and non-verbal ritual of giving good wishes.

Good wishes and blessings are classified in accordance with their lexical and semantic meaning used correspondingly in various situations:

• а)    cliché:

Бактылуу бол! (Be happy!); Өмүрлүү бол! (Live long!); Тилегиңе жет! (Let your praying be heard by God!);

• b)    phraseological units:

Алдыңарды мал, артыңарды бала бассын! (Have lots of offspring, and plenty of cattle!); Кармашкан колуңар бекем болсун! (As you tie the knot!);

Бешик боосу бек болсун! (Let the baby in cradle grow healthy and wealthy!);

Кырманыбыз нанга толсун, казаныбыз ашка толсун! (Have a rich and plentiful harvest, and a rich and abundant table!).

• c)    long rhymes:

“Эр Төштүк,

Анык шумкар көздүү бол, Адам таппас сөздүү бол, Байсалдуу жүгүң бузулбас, Бак баштаган көчтүү бол, Кыдыр болсун жолдошуң, Кыйын күн башта болбосун, Чегеси бол элиңдин, Эгеси бол жериңдин, Каалоосу бол калкыңдын, Ажосу бол журтуңдун, Ишиңди Кудай оңдосун, Ийгиликтер жолдосун, Ооматка толсун өмүрүң, Оорубасын көңүлүң, Учугуң терең улансын, Урпактарыӊ кубансын, Оомийин!” [16].

“Er Töshtük,

Бюллетень науки и практики / Bulletin of Science and Practice Т. 11. №8 2025

Let your glance be hawkish and sharp, Let you be eloquent, wise, and smart. Let your wealth be sound and firm, With happy people living in turn.

Head the tribe, and kith and kin, Let good fortune be with you akin. Heavenly days in light and delight, Let you be the ruler of your land, precise. Be the wanted man of your clan, Be the ruler of your people, man.

Amen!” [16].

It is a common tradition to invite guests on any occasion in order to receive blessings from elders, since the Kyrgyz people believe that бата (bata) may bring success, happiness, and good luck. There are many proverbs and sayings in the Kyrgyz language related to giving “bata”, for example: Бата менен эл көгөрөт, жамгыр менен жер көгөрөт (Good wishes make a man successful; rain makes a land fertile).

The hospitality of the Kyrgyz people is also expressed in gift-giving. Both, the host family and guests give each other various gifts (candies, cloth, fruits, beverages, meat, cookies and bakery, household stuff, etc.). A gift stands for an etiquette meaning symbolizing the goal of a visit or ceremony. The gifts are also prepared in accordance with age, status, gender belonging, degree of kingship, and relation between the host and guests. The tradition of gift-giving widely practiced by both sides — a host family and a guest/guests is considered to be an indispensable ritual, so as an exchange with delicious treats and sweets. This is a means of regulation of interaction and relations between the participants of communication [14]. In case a guest comes for the first time, the host family usually gives symbolic presents as kalpak and shirt for men, and shawl and a piece of fabric, or a table set dish for women, etc. Headdress is considered to be a meaningful and valuable present. For big events that have a greater significance, sides prepare traditional clothes with national embroidery or expensive fur coats which are called кийит (kiyit). The following elements of traditional clothes are used as “kiyit” — traditional headdress for men ( калпак ), traditional warm coat for men and women ( чапан ), silken shawls for women ( жоолук ), traditional outerwear for men and women ( чепкен ), fur coat, headdress with natural fur ( тебетей ), etc. In the dictionary by K.Yudakhin it is stated that “kiyit” is an ethnic gift in the form of clothes” [8].

The essence of the gift-giving procedure lies in the fact that later on, in some other situation, a person who gives gifts may be in the place of a guest to receive them from others. According to this tradition, a person who receives a gift should give a more valuable present in response when his turn comes [14].

This custom more or less symbolizes an expression of deep honour and respect for each other. We can witness it in the following proverbs:

Куттуу үйдөн куру чыкпайт (A guest of a grace-filled house will always leave it with a gift);

Сылыктыктын белгиси – алыш-бериш, ынтымактын белгиси – барыш-келиш (A sign of respect is a gift-giving and receiving gifts, and a sign of unity is visiting and receiving guests);

Сыйдын чеги болбойт (There is no boundaries of showing respect).

T. Kasymbekov in his work Cынган кылыч (Broken Sword) describes a scene when a hunter Sarybai presents to his relative Tenirberdi a lynx fur as a gift. Then, Tenirberdi having nothing to give in response immediately, promised to pay the “debt” in autumn. He prepared some grain for Sarybai’s horses, and millet to make bozo (a traditional Kyrgyz beverage). The author states that gift-giving symbolizes honour and deep respect, and moreover, as a sort of bargain between two or more people: Тартуу алып келүү, ага ылайык кийит тартуу элетте сыйлашуунун белгиси , <...> бул түбү кишилердин ортосундагы алыш-бериш алакасы, ич-ара жүргүзгөн соодасы өңдүү ... [10] // A gift-giving or presenting worthy clothes to each other in communities, is a sign of respect, <…> and it is probably some kind of mutual barter interaction and trade relations between them… (tr. by Kinalieva).

The tradition of giving clothes as кийит-кийгизүү (kiyit kiygizuu – а gift-giving in clothes), sometimes, may be unsuccessful, since one side may not be satisfied by gifts given to them and as a result of it may be offended, and even sides may argue. Z. Sooronbaeva in her work Жакасыз көйнөк (Jakasyz koinok (A dress without a collar) depicts the tradition of gift-giving (clothes) on the third day of the feast when the groom’s family were about to leave the bride’s house, in one episode of her book. Groom’s mother Bubukan disliked that her daughter was given a dress without a collar. She regarded it as a sign of disrespect towards her only daughter, thus to her personally. Hence, the groom’s family openly demonstrated their abhorrence of the gifts and a reception organized by the bride’s family as a whole. The newly married couple and their relatives were nearly to argue with each other, severely.

Үй ээлери эки күндон бери конок болуп жаткан кудаларын узатуу мезгили да келип калды. Кийиттер коюлуп бүттү. Бүбүкан өзүнүн кызына тийген көйнөктү койнуна алып ары салып, бери салып карап көрдү да, көңүлсүз ортого ыргытып койду . “Жалгыз кызымды сыйлабаганыңар – мени сыйлабаганыңар, кудагый. Жакасы жок көйнөк кийгендей, мында башы жок, тексиз киши бар бекен!?” [17] // It was time to say farewell to their guests after a couple of days of feasting in there. Gifts were already distributed among guests. Bübükan took the dress given to her only daughter touching it to and fro and threw it in the middle of a room showing her grievance: “Your disrespect towards my only daughter means that you do not respect me either, kudagyi (address to a bride’s mother). Is there anyone to wear a dress with no collar who has no ancestors? Isn’t she worthy of your honour?” – she uttered. (tr. by Kinalieva)

Thus, we may say that gift-giving, which primarily was measured as a sign of honour and respect, can cause disrespect and adversary, on the contrary. Nowadays, both sides agree beforehand about the details of the gift-giving ceremony in order not to unwillingly offend each other and avoid possible misunderstandings among relatives-in-law. More often people prefer contemporary solutions that fit the needs and interests of sides giving a properly chosen present or a definite amount of money.

As was mentioned earlier in the article, politeness is expressed in many ways, including invitations to stay overnight or have some rest, when the owner certainly will treat guests with dishes or beverages. Kyrgyz people never deny providing a place for a guest to sleep overnight. This is described in Ch. Aitmatov’s works, for example:

Байтемир, таң калдыбы-жокпу билгизбеди, салабатын жазбай колумду кысты. “Коноктун келгени – ырыс келгени” [18]. // Baitemir showed no surprise. “A welcome guest you will be then,”- he said with simple dignity, and shook my hand [19]; Шаарлык кыргыздар ата-салтын унутуп бараткан бейм. Менин да үй-жайым бар, дасторконум жайлуу. Конок төшөгүм салынуу. Атайы мени издеп келген соң, жол боюнан кайра тарткан болобу. Түнөп алып, эртең үйдөн жөнөөрсүз [18]. // City people are forgetting our customs. I have a home, a family, a dastorkon and a place to sleep. Since you've come to see me, you will leave my house tomorrow, and not before you have rested after your journey [19].

There is one more ritual of farewell to guests аттанар аяк (attanar ayak) or кетер аяк (keter ayak). It is a common tradition when the host usually treats their guests with traditional beverages like kymyz (a traditional drink, fermented mare’s milk) or bozo (a traditional drink from fermented boiled millet), right before the guests leave the house. It is a common habit to make this ritual open air in the yard outside the house. This is a sign of honour in the Kyrgyz consciousness as well. Thus, great honour and deep respect toward guests allow us to say that the Kyrgyz people are generous and courteous. They may slaughter some animal for the sake of guests, cook delicious dishes in honour of them, give presents, and always show tolerance and respect until they leave their home. And there is no way to show disrespect or unwillingness to treat them with food and place to stay overnight, even though they visit them in a daytime or late evening without any agreement done beforehand. Hospitality, humane and tolerance are seen in cases when a host receives guests as a rule with a rich plentiful table laid and bed made for them. Therefore, hospitality is a national character trait. There is variety of customs and rituals in the Kyrgyz guestreception ceremony, as seating the guest according to their age and status, treating with bread and bakery, sheep slaughtering in honour of guests, giving “bata” (pronouncing good wishes and blessings) after hand-washing ceremony, and “bata” given by elders in the end of the feast, giftgiving, expressing gratitude for the host family members, offering a place to sleep overnight, farewell to guests).

In conclusion, we may say that the Kyrgyz people preserved the guest-having ceremony maintaining customs and traditions of hospitality, thus, strengthening national specific norms of behavior – адат (adat), unwritten rules in hospitality that should be adhered to by all people, in interpersonal relations as well. Throughout a long period of history, the Kyrgyz people unconditionally were under the influence of various factors – if one cultural component was totally eliminated, the other has been changed, and the third remain stable. However, the status of guest and guest-reception ceremony remained originally unchangeable. Nowadays, hospitality is still considered as an indispensable part of the Kyrgyz culture, where guests are shown high respect and honour through the realization of various rituals, articulating the full potential of the concept and philosophy of life.

The lingua-cultural peculiarities of national character may be expressed in various ways. It is certain, that there might be a lot of things in common in cultures belonging to one geographical area or origins, although we should be aware of peculiarities to avoid misunderstanding in communication. The essential value of hospitality represents the beliefs of a man about relations, types of behaviour and preferences, which constitute values of etiquette behaviour: respect, tact, honour, gracefulness, benevolence, and goodwill.

In conditions of globalization and intense development of international relations people recognize the necessity of etiquette and diplomacy applicable in specific situations. The theoretical and fact-based material of the work, which consists of proverbs and sayings, and culture specific vocabulary, that, in its turn, reflects culture, stereotypes and traditions of hospitality of the Kyrgyz community, will promote deep learning of the culture, national character, and cultural values of the Kyrgyz people. The results of this research work may be recommended to be used as an additional resource for those dealing with intercultural communication, country studies, sociolinguistics and ethnolinguistics.

Бюллетень науки и практики / Bulletin of Science and Practice Т. 11. №8 2025