Despite being one of the largest countries in Asia and the largest landlocked country in the world, Kazakhstan’s own natives do not dominate its population. The Kazakhs share this big piece of land with many other nationalities. Among them are Tatars, Germans, Uzbeks and Russians. This results in a rich diversity of culture where East meets West.

This combination of nationalities is partly due to the mass deportations of ethnic minorities to the country from Stalin’s rule. Currently, the northern part of the country is populated mostly by Russian and Ukranian majorities, while the Kazakhs are prevalent to the south. The word "Kazakh" means "a free and independent nomad" in ancient Turkish. Kazakhs have travelled along the steppes of Kazakhstan from western China to the southern border of

Russia for centuries. It is important to note that the people of Kazakhstan, inclusive of all ethnic groups living in the country, are called Kazakhstani. Only people of the Kazahk ethnic group are called Kazahks. If you are not sure of someone’s ethnic background, it is safest to refer to them as Kazakhstanis.

Once a nomadic people, the Kazakhs have a very hierarchical society.

For centuries,

Kazakhstan was a country of herders and nomads, and had tribes as the basis for their societies for centuries. These tribes were constituted of family members and elders. These family groups banded together to withstand the harsh environment and to protect their land from outsiders. Strong family ties are evident even to this day, and old people always have a higher position in their families, and are expected to make decisions for the best interests of the family,

just as they had done so many hundreds of

years ago. Just like the

traditional Chinese or Japanese, marriages are very important for the Kazakhs. Arranged marriages between tribes are very vital in that they help secure peace and stability between two families. To this day, the Kazakhs say ‘the matchmaking lasts a thousand years, while the

son-in-law only lasts a hundred. Arranged marriages are still a norm in Kazakhstan.

Having a nomadic background, the Kazakhs are very articulated towards animal husbandry. Many of their practices and customs are connected in some way to their livestock. Up to this day, good manners require a person to first ask the health of a man’s livestock before moving on to the other subjects.

A yurt is the traditional Kazakh dwelling, made of willow wood covered with varying thicknesses of felt. An open top allows smoke from a hearth inside the yurt to escape, and flap located near the top allows one to control the temperature and draft escaping from the top. It can be assembled and disassembled in less than an hour, which is

ideal for a very mobile race.

Today, post-Soviet Kazakhstan is a thriving hub of mixed Eastern and Western influences. Some major contributors in these influences are its Chinese neighbors and its former Russian masters. After the dissolution of the Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic, the politically confused nation slowly made significant economic progress, in large part to its substantial oil and mineral reserves.

Being a nation with a large number of ethnic minorities and groups, Kazakhstan maintains a freedom of religion. Islam is the dominant religion in Kazakhstan, followed by Russian Orthodox Christianity. Other religions that are popular in Kazakhstan are Judaism, Buddhism and The Latter Day Saints.

Kazakhstan has cultivated a strong interest in sports, having achieved some success in weightlifting, ice hockey and boxing. It has also won eight Olympic gold medals in the 2004 Olympics, the largest tally for any nation in Western Asia.

Football and cycling is very popular in Kazakhstan. For

football, the Kazakhstan Super League is the top level competition for the sport in the country. Also, many professional cyclists that compete in European circuits like the Tour de France come from Kazakhstan.

When you visit Kazakhstan today, nomadic is probably the last the word that will come to mind. It is like a European country in an Asian setting, especially in Astana, Kazakhstan’s capital. It is hard to imagine that this sophisticated place was once a mixture

of different peoples, all trying to survive the environment and each other, that managed to stand up even after the collapse of the Soviets, and went on to become one of Asia’s leading countries.