Kirgiz Eagle training custom

Name of China's national intangible cultural heritage: Kirgiz Eagle training custom

Applicant: Aheqi County, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region

Project No.: 1218

Project No.: Ⅹ - 143

Time of publication: 2011 (the third batch)

Category: folk customs

Region: Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region

Type: new item

Applicant: Aheqi County, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region

Protection unit: Manas research center of Aheqi County

Brief introduction to the Kirgiz Eagle training custom:

Applicant: Aheqi County, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region

The custom of taming eagles is a kind of production and living custom formed by Kirgiz people for a long time, and it is also the main living custom of nomadic people. Falcon hunting is the beginning of Falcon training.

In order to eliminate the wild nature of eagles, herdsmen generally use the method of "staying up Eagles", which is to cover the eyes of eagles, put them on a wooden stick hanging horizontally in the air, and shake the stick back and forth, so that Eagles can not stand stably and eliminate the natural wild nature of eagles. There is also a way to raise eagles. The trainer puts the meat on the leather cover of his arm to let the eagles come to peck. At the same time, he trains his ability to dive from the air to hunt.

The life span of an eagle is about 40-50 years. The Kirgiz people usually domesticate an eagle artificially for 5-7 years, and then they must release it to nature for reproduction.

As a living custom of the Kirgiz people, Falcon training played an important role in the nomadic life in the past. Now the government tries its best to improve the living conditions of farmers and herdsmen, and vigorously promotes herdsmen's settlement and earthquake resistant housing in all towns of the county, which will certainly have an impact on the nomadic life of the Kirgiz people. In addition, Falcon is a second-class protected animal of the state, and it is not allowed to be caught at will. At the same time, it is not allowed to catch at will The hunting methods of the three dynasties also had great changes, which were in conflict with the traditional national custom of taming eagles, leading to the loss of this traditional life custom.