Test motive in Kyrgyz epics

Turks are a nation that has established numerous states throughout history. The struggles they have undertaken with the neighboring countries in the geographies they live in have made them a society that is always ready to fight. This lifestyle has also influenced their characters over time, thus giving rise to countless epics. The epics of the Kyrgyz, who are neighbors with the Kalmyks and Chinese in the geography they live in, are very rich. Kyrgyz Turkish epics, which shed light on the culture and lifestyle of the period in which they emerged, draw attention with their rich motif structure. The fact that the Kyrgyz Turkish epics are more efficient in terms of motifs than in terms of numbers has allowed us to study test motifs in particular. In the examinations, it has been determined that the number of test motifs contained in the Boston epic is noticeably higher than other Kyrgyz epics. It is very strong in terms of the test motif of epics such as Coodarbeşim, Kız Darıyka, Kocacas; On the other hand, it has been observed that epics such as Cañıl Mırza, Şırdakbek, Er Eşim are weak in terms of the presence of test motifs. From this point of view, it has been seen that the volume of the epic, the journey of the epic hero and the marriage tests of the heroes increase the number of test motifs. At the same time, it has been determined that the Kyrgyz Turkish epics have a very good motif under the headings of marriage, intelligence and tasks that require search and search. In the light of these data, it has been concluded that the Kyrgyz epics have a very rich structure in terms of test motifs. With this study, it is aimed to eliminate the deficiency in the field and to contribute to the field. In our study, document analysis method, which is a qualitative examination method, was applied. With this method, 21 Kyrgyz epics in 17 Kyrgyz epic books published by the Turkish Language Association Publications, which were translated into Turkish language, were examined according to Stith Thompson's Folk Literature Motif Index and the data obtained were classified.