ARTICLE
30 April 2026

On the Craftsmanship of Kyrgyz Horse Gear in Aheqi County, Kizilsu Kyrgyz Autonomous Prefecture, Xinjiang

Tuoxia Wang1*
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1 Xinjiang Calligraphers Association of Xinjiang Federation of Literary and Art Circles, Urumqi 830000, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China
CAS 2026 , 2(2), 36–43; https://doi.org/10.26689/CAS.v2i2.15406
© 2026 by the Author(s). Licensee: Bio-Byword Scientific Publishing Pty Ltd, Australia. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License ( https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ )
Abstract

Aheqi County, Kizilsu Kyrgyz Autonomous Prefecture, is located in the southern Xinjiang region. The Kyrgyz ethnic group belongs to the Xinjiang nomadic ethnic group, and the craft of horse harness is a traditional craft of the nomadic ethnic group. In the course of historical development, the craft of horse gear has been continuously updated, iterated, and improved, making it an important cultural heritage of the Kyrgyz ethnic group. The traditional horse equipment culture of the Kyrgyz ethnic group still retains its unique ethnic artistic style and cultural characteristics. Horses not only have practical life functions and meet the needs of nomadic production and life, but also carry unique cultural values in the process of ethnic development, making important contributions to regional civilization and ethnic cultural inheritance. The unique natural geographical environment and the outstanding manual creation ability of the Kyrgyz people have laid a solid foundation for the birth and long-term development of horse harness craftsmanship. Relying on the natural advantages of using local materials and adhering to the traditional craftsmanship of pure handmade production, the craft of horse gear has gradually settled into a highly representative classic traditional handicraft category of the Kyrgyz ethnic group, deeply integrated into the daily life and cultural system of the ethnic group, and become an indispensable and important part of national culture.

Keywords
Aheqi County, Kezhou, Xinjiang
Kyrgyz ethnic group
Horse harness craftsmanship
References

[1]   Compilation Team for “A Brief History of the Kyrgyz Ethnic Group,” 1986, A Brief History of the Kyrgyz Ethnic Group, Urumqi: Xinjiang People’s Publishing House, 47 + 51.

[2]   Gusupu Mamayi, Adili Jumaturdi, 2009, Manas (Part 1), Urumqi: Xinjiang People’s Publishing House, 606.

[3]   He J, 2004, Kizilsu Kyrgyz Autonomous Prefecture Chronicles, Urumqi: Xinjiang People’s Publishing House, 162+215.

[4]   Revision Editorial Committee of the Collected Materials on Social and Historical Surveys of China’s Ethnic Minorities, 2009, Social and Historical Survey of the Kirgiz Ethnic Group (Rev. ed.), Nationalities Publishing House, 43.

[5]   Gusupu Mamayi, Adili Jumaturdi, 2009, Manas (Part 1), Urumqi: Xinjiang People’s Publishing House, 612.

[6]   Editorial Committee of the Complete Collection of Chinese Ethnic Minority Designs, 2019, Complete Collection of Chinese Ethnic Minority Designs: Kyrgyz Volume, Taiyuan: Shanxi People’s Publishing House, 183.

[7]   Editorial Committee of A Concise History of the Kyrgyz, 2008, A Concise History of the Kyrgyz (Rev. ed.), Minzu Publishing House, 193.

[8]   He Y, 2006, A Journey at Your Fingertips: Travels Exploring the Handicrafts of China’s Ethnic Minorities, Xinjiang People’s Publishing House, 168.

Conflict of interest
The author declares no conflict of interest.
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