Traditional medicine in the Atyrau Region of Kazakhstan

This thesis study deals with the folk medicine tradition of Kazakh Turks living in the Atyrau Region. The research area covers the central city of Atyrau, villages affiliated to these districts like Makhambet, Aktogay and Saritogay. In the introduction section, the aim, method and boundaries of the study were determined; the concepts of folk doctor and folk medicine were defined; the historical development of folk medicine worldwide and especially within the Turkish cultural circle was examined. In this context, a general assessment of the Kazakh folk medicine tradition was presented . In the first section, the issue of how Kazakh folk doctors operating in the Atyrau Region were named was discussed, based mainly on field research data. In this context, the socio-cultural profilesof people benefiting from folk medicine were analyzed. In addition, the processes of becoming a folk doctor were evaluated within the framework of the influence of the shamanic tradition. The second section focuses on examining the visit rituals included in the folk medicine practices of the Kazakh Turks of the Atyrau Region. The third section systematically presents various treatment methods used in the treatment of diseases. The fourth and final section details the types of diseases treated and the treatment practices applied to them. The conclusion section presents the findings obtained from the collected field data and the analysis of these findings; the obtained data are interpreted within the general framework of the folk medicine tradition. The sources used in the study are listed in an orderly manner in the bibliography section. Since it is a study based on field research, information about the source persons and sample photographs visualizing the findings are presented in the appendix.