Title: An Owl Feather

General Information about Item:

• Ritual, Superstition
• Language: Kazakh
• Culture of Origin: Kazakh
• Informant: JN
• Date Collected: 11-05-2021

Informant Data:

JN was born and brought up in Kazakhstan. She is ethnically Kazakh and enjoys learning about different cultures and mastering various languages. She is a junior at Dartmouth College and studies biomedical engineering. She can speak 4 languages: English, Russian, Kazakh and German. In her free time, she enjoys singing and playing piano.

Contextual Data

Cultural Context: Kazakhs are historically nomadic people, so nomadic practices related to livestock have been central to their culture for a long time. Islam arrived in Kazakhstan during the 8th century, and Islamic religious beliefs combined with the animistic beliefs of the local nomadic cultures and shamanic traditions. Kazakhstan was also part of the Soviet Union before gaining independence in 1991, so its culture has been greatly influenced by its neighbor, Russia, as well. Nowadays, Kazakhstan’s modern culture is influenced by the West and all of the above mentioned cultures. The devil, demons and evil spirits are the most popular supernatural creatures that are believed to bring distress in Kazakh culture. 

Social Context: When she was a child, JN had headwear with an owl feather attached to it. Later, she found out the real purpose of this feather from her parents, who are Muslim and believe in the existence of the devil, demons, evil spirits and other supernatural beings. JN has a few Kazakh friends who have had a similar item.

Item: 

In order to protect children from the evil supernatural creatures and the evil eye, a feather or an entire wing of an owl is put near a child’s bed, cradle or is attached to headwear. This feather or wing is believed to ward off demons, evil spirits and keep them away from the child.

Collector’s name: Amina O.