Bride kidnapping in Northern Kyrgyzstan as the initial stage of subjectivity-forming process Bride kidnapping in Northern

Abstract

Kyz ala kachuu (Kyrgyz: кыз ала качуу) translated as “to take a young woman and run away” is a form of women kidnapping for marriage purposes in Kyrgyzstan (Kyrgyz Republic). This term applies to either of the performed actions: kidnapping with permission from the future wife, and without her consent. In this article, I propose an anthropological interpretation of bride kidnapping, using the concept of ‘person-making’. In my analysis, I go beyond the act of kidnapping itself, which I present as part of a wider social process. Drawing on my fieldwork in Northern Kyrgyzstan, I show that marriage through kidnapping is the first stage in the social process of building female subjectivity and the way ofreproduction of Kyrgyz families. The reproduction takes place through the acquisition, familiarization, and constitution of subjectivity resulting from the collective agency of all the family members.