In any country, parents care about the future and well-being of their children. One of the most important customs of the Kyrgyz before organizing a wedding for their son is “Soiko saluu”, as the ceremony of putting on earrings is called. This ceremony is held at the home of the future bride, where the future groom’s side comes, the groom’s mother puts on earrings on the future bride of her son, usually the groom’s side also comes with a “kalym”, this is the name of the ransom paid by the groom to the bride’s parents, each region has its own certain amount of “kalym “: Naryn – 100-130 thousand soms; Chui – 80-100 thousand soms; Osh, Jalal-Abad – 100-130 thousand soms; Batken – 90-100 thousand soms; Issyk-Kul – 70-100 thousand soms; Talas – 160-180 thousand soms.
Future “kudalar“, which means matchmakers, get acquainted a few months before the wedding, so that there is enough time to prepare the wedding. As a rule, the acquaintance takes place at the house of the future bride or in a restaurant where the bride’s parents are invited by the groom’s parents, that is, the groom’s side pays for dinner.
The wedding lasts several days, at first they organize “Kyz uzatuu“, which translates as “Giving a girl in marriage.” Usually this is an alternative to a wedding, when the bride has many relatives and it is not possible to invite everyone to the main celebration, because the places allocated by the groom’s side are not enough. The party is financed by the bride. The bulk of the guests are also from her side.
Finally, the day of the wedding itself comes. Only in Kyrgyzstan, you can bring $ 100 wrapped in an envelope to a wedding and give it to the groom, and after a while be doubly happy seeing the same money at your wedding. This system is called in Kyrgyzstan the “extra” system, which serves as material assistance to the organizers of the wedding. The hottest wedding season in Kyrgyzstan is considered the end of summer and the beginning of autumn, usually at this time Kyrgyzstans begin to organize large-scale wedding events, as this is also considered a good time to sell livestock, vegetables and fruits.
It is customary to invite all relatives, friends, friends of relatives, former classmates, colleagues, and also neighbors to the wedding, so the number of guests exceeds a hundred people. According to the principle of additional feedback, each invited guest must give their contribution to the host – on average, from 2 to 10 thousand soms. If you bring five thousand soms to the wedding of a relative today, he will bring at least 5 thousand soms to your wedding. It’s like an interest-free loan. In fact, Kyrgyz people who go to weddings always “owe” money, or other people “owe” them. Many of Kyrgyzstans, so as not to forget, also keep a notebook in which they indicate how much money the groom’s parents or the groom himself should bring to their future wedding. Also at the wedding are “okul ata” and “okul apa” (godparents) of the newlyweds. “Okul ata” and “okul apa” can only be a married couple. They are appointed by the groom’s side for the bride. It’s like her named parents who will support her in a new family. Only the parents of the groom or the groom himself can choose them.
After the end of all the previous events, the bride’s parents invite their daughter, son-in-law and matchmakers to visit. This meeting is called “torkulotuu“, which means that now the path of the newly-made wife to the parental home is open. Before this event, she cannot go home according to tradition, but in modern realities there are exceptions. Again, a few hot dishes and again presents as a gift. Acquaintance of matchmakers in a closer and more comfortable environment.
