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Abstract

The art of verbal dueling exists in many societies and cultures, where it serves both as a form of entertainment and as a mechanism for managing tensions between individuals or communities.

The performers may be poets, sages, or ordinary individuals who employ either prepared or improvised speech, delivered in a public setting. This act of public speaking provides a platform for expressing collective concerns, resolving disputes, and voicing criticism against those in power.

This paper aims to explore the role of aqyns in Kyrgyz society from a diachronic perspective, focusing on their position between the people and the authorities, their role in the circulation of ideas throughout the 19th and 20th centuries, and to present reflections on the voice of aqyns today in an independent Kyrgyzstan, where political power is reshaping the principles and symbols of society.

This brief presentation will also serve as an introduction to the panel as a whole.