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Astana the Capital of Kazakhstan and Astanas in Siberia as a Linguistic-Cultural Aspect  

 

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formation of its space in terms of not only ethnic but territorial 

communities. Especially notable is the individual’s personality, with its 

socio-cultural specificity, from which the concept “regional identity” can be 

defined.  

To some extent, mythological stories about astanas have many 

similarities with the fairy tales and stories known as “Dastans” told by 

Siberian Turks about sacred sites and sacred areas. According to the legend 

of the 366 “awliya” or saints (which exists in different versions from 

Bukhara and Arabia) the students of Ishan Bahauddin Hokhcha, the 

founder of the Naqshbandiyya Sufi brotherhood, came to Siberia to spread 

Islam. The mystical number 366 emphasizes their special metaphysical 

status.  

The awliya are a reflection of Sufi notions of the hierarchy of “hidden 

saints” (which, as a rule number 366). The Islamic tradition refers to them 

as Holy Keepers of the the Universe. Sufis believe that the awliya hold 

hidden knowledge about the structure of the universe, the laws of motion 

and the causal relationships between the “thin” world of energy and psyche 

and the “rough” material world.  

Awliya train people to properly formulate their thoughts and control 

their inner world. They are the messengers of the sacred world to the world 

of humans. Ordinary people ascribe to them extraordinary psychic abilities. 

From this perspective, the legend of these saints acquires special 

significance. Indeed, folklore in many respects penetrates the inner world of 

the people, the world of images and representations. As researchers have 

noted, the philosophical basis of the Sufi Naqshbandiyya brotherhood 

includes the classical theology “wahdat ash-shuhud,” defined by Ahmed 

Farooqi Sirhindi (1564-1624), one of its spiritual founders, as the belief that 

“all that is in this world is the creation of Allah.”

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The Karagay region yurts in Tobolsk province were “strongholds of 

Sufism,” “centres of the Muslim district,” “a kind of residence of Siberian-

Tatar or Siberian-Bukharian Hajj, one way or another associated with the 

Naqshbandiyya congregation.”

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 Medieval Arab scholars interpreted the 

inhabitants of Siberia differently to modern Russian and European 

researchers. Their perception of Siberia was more mythologized. The 

authros believe that this is due to its greater distance from the Arab East. In 

addition, the name Siberia-Ibiria indicates the predominance of fantastical 

interpretation, tales of the Great Silk Road, etc. 

In the first half of the 14

th

 century, the area was known to Arab authors 

by the toponym Ibir-Sibir. For example, Ibn Fadlallah Elomari, a 

                                                 

15

 Sayfulina et al. 2013, p. 494. 

16

 Belich 1997, p. 55-73. 

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I. S. Karabulatova, E. N. Ermakova, G. A. Shiganova 

 

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contemporary of the Uzbek Khan of the Golden Horde (1312-1341), used 

this toponym not as a paired name, but as two separate independent names or 

as Sibir and Ibir, stating that “the borders of Sibir and Ibir touch the 

boundaries of Сhataysk,” i.e. the Chinese border.

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 Another Arab scholar of 

the first half of the 14

th

 century, Mesalek-al-Absar, inscribed Siberia and Iberia 

as Siberia-and-Aberia, while Ibn-Arab-Shah (1388-1450) gave their names as 

Abir-and-Sabir.

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All schools of Sufism preach peace and harmony between the self and 

Allah. For a Sufi believer, a multi-faceted, happy man who bases his life on 

the requirements of the Koran is an ideal person. A good example can be 

found in dervishes, those who have withdrawn from worldly goods and all 

the temptations of life, overcoming “nafs,” (i.e. greed, base desires) for the 

sake of knowing the Truth, and thus becoming closer to Allah. To acquire 

higher knowledge and understanding, the Sufi must develop superior 

abilities; such abilities can be found through real-imaginary journeying in the 

semi-mythical Siberia. 

We live in a world of cultural codes which date back to archetypal 

ideas, or deeply-based oppositions. Different readings can lead to 

disagreement on religious grounds.

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 Thus, the 366 awliya could be 

perceived as bearers of the mystical consciousness of the “hidden saints,” 

resulting from the transition from the mundane world to the sacred one. 

Sufi notions of the hierarchy of saints suggest they are like hidden heavenly 

domes stretching out over the world, filling it with special psychic powers. 

Tyumenian astanas are places of worship, they encapsulate the lofty ideals 

of the Turkic peoples; Tyumen Christian monasteries are places of 

pilgrimage for Slavic peoples; and Tyumen forests and mountains are where 

the Ugric people worship the heavenly forces. Not accidentally, blue is the 

colour of the flag of the Tyumen region, symbolising the sky and high 

ideals. The Turkic peoples of the Tyumen region believe the blue sky is the 

residence of the god Tengri, whose name itself means sky. The Ugric 

peoples of northern Tyumen also believe that the supreme god Numi 

Torun lives in the sky; indeed, Torun represents the sky. The 

representatives of these groups believe the sky is a living being.  

To date, more than 50 places of burial (astanas) of the awliya are 

known, located in Uvatsky, Tobolsk, Vagaysky, Yarkovsky, Tyumen and 

Yalutorovsk, in the south of the Tyumen region.

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 Although the Siberian 

astanas are an integral and important part of the local cult of the saints, they 

                                                 

17

 Ibid. 

18

 Tizenhauzen 1941, p. 234. 

19

 Gregg 2014, p. 36-51. 

20

 Karabulatova 2009, p. 176. 

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