This project documents the endangered practice of constructing livestock enclosures from compressed yak dung (köŋ) in the remote Ak-Say Valley, Kyrgyz Republic. Due to modernization and the introduction of alternative materials, only two families currently maintain this tradition. The project aims to record and preserve the full operational sequence—from dung accumulation under yaks’ hooves, to drying, construction, and use of the walls as both enclosures and fuel storage.
Fieldwork will involve photo, video, and audio documentation of each stage; interviews with elders and current practitioners; community engagement through an ashar (mutual help event); and archival research. Spatial analysis using GIS will map enclosure distribution and landscape integration. The project incorporates both ethnographic and ethnoarchaeological methods to contribute to sustainable heritage documentation and understanding of high-altitude adaptation practices.
PI: Talgat Dzhumashev
Collaborator: Dr. Geoffrey Hobbis
Location of research: Ak-Say Valley, At-Bashy District, Naryn Region, Kyrgyz Republic
Host Institution: Center Polis Asia (Esimde)
Top banner image: Dung blocks cut and turned on their sides to dry, with dung walls and mountains in the background. Photo credit: Talgat Dzhumashev.