Kyrgyz Turks living in the Pamir Plateau in the northern region of Afghanistan were forced to leave Afghanistan after the Soviet Union invaded their country in 1979. Upon the decision taken by the council of elders called Aksakal; It is decided that the Kyrgyz must migrate in order to survive. Following this decision, the Kyrgyz first go to Pakistan. Kyrgyz people, who are used to the plateau climate, cannot get used to the hot weather of Pakistan and therefore decide to go to Turkey. Following the request for help sent to the Turkish Embassy, 1,150 Kyrgyz people were brought to Adana with their khan, Rahmankul Khan, by Turkish plane. It is then distributed to different parts of Malatya and Van. The Kyrgyz people brought to Van were placed in houses built in the Altındere neighborhood of Erciş district. At the request of the Kyrgyz people, the name of Altındere village was changed to Ulupamir. Today, approximately 3,850 Kyrgyz Turks live in Ulupamir village. The definition of identity basically boils down to people asking “who are you?” It is an indicator of the answer to the question. Identity involves both a person's self-definition and the identification of social categories that together reflect individuals' membership in a group. Definitions of a Kyrgyz citizen living in Ulupamir village, such as "I listen to Kyrgyz/Turkish music, I sing it or I am a member of a music group" are indicators of being a community member and being included in the group. One of the determining factors of ethnicity is culture and language. In this context, traditions in the cultural continuity of ethnic communities will be transferred to future generations with the significant contribution of music, which is a product of oral culture. Musical knowledge is needed to define ethnicity, portray its cultural characteristics, convey, explain and share the values and lifestyles of the community. In this context, determining the ethnic and musical identity of the Ulupamir Kyrgyz is of great importance in transferring the culture to future generations.
Van Ulupamir, Kyrgyz, Ethnic Musical