Musicology Commons^™

Karakalpak Dastans, Arzu Azimova

Eurasian music science journal

Both all over Central Asia area and Karakalpakstan epic art is represented in the genre of dastan. Dastan can be defined as a comprehensive poetic legend, a story combining in itself prose, verses, and music. In given article such dastans are considered as «Almapys», «Gor ogli» («Kor-ogli»), «Edige», «Ashik Garib», «Shokhsanam and Garib» and also having local distribution such as «Kirk Kiz», «Maspatsha», «Sharyar», «Koblan». Karakalpak dastans, as many Central Asian dastans, are based on alternation of prosaic and poetic sections. Tradition bearers of epic performance in Karakalpakstan are jirau and bakhshi (baksis).