Abstract

The paper is devoted to a comprehensive analysis of nomadic pastoralism at the turn of the 19th–20th centuries under conditions of a systemic crisis of the traditional way of life. The relevance of the study is determined by the need to establish the reliability of the scale of the ethnos’ socio-economic adaptation to colonial modernization and its integration into market relations. The primary source base of the research consists of the “Materials on Kyrgyz Land Use…”, which encompass a substantial body of data covering 25 uyezds across six regions of Kazakhstan.

The present article is an expanded and supplemented version of the paper "The nomadic Kazakh population of Kazakhstan..." (2022), broadening its geographical and analytical scope. The scientific novelty of the research lies in the introduction into scholarly discourse of previously unpublished calculated data regarding the Akmolinsk and Chimkent uyezds. Furthermore, a comprehensive revision of statistical indicators was conducted for several administrative units to eliminate identified methodological discrepancies.

The research methodology is based on statistical-economic analysis and a comparative approach. A key stage of the work involved converting various livestock species into a single equivalent (the conventional unit of a sheep) and calculating provision indicators per individual and per household.

During the study, statistical indicators were compared with normative criteria for household viability established in historiography (N.E. Masanov, Yu.N. Kanyashin, S.E. Tolybekov, B.S. Suleimenov). It was established that the critical self-sufficiency threshold (100–150 sheep per household) served as a defining factor in social differentiation. The results of the analysis revealed profound regional heterogeneity: 64% of the investigated uyezds were in a zone of economic risk, barely reaching the level of physiological survival.

A direct correlation was identified between a region's geographical location and the level of livestock concentration. The highest indicators (over 200 head) were recorded in the northern uyezds (Kustanay, Atbasar, Pavlodar, Omsk), which is attributed to favorable ecological conditions for extensive animal husbandry. Conversely, in regions with low livestock provision (southern and eastern uyezds), forced economic diversification was observed, manifesting in a transition to agriculture and various trades. The author concludes that the deficit of livestock resources acted as a catalyst for the formation of a multi-structural economic model in the studied uyezds.