The Attitude of Kazakhstani Millennials to Images with Traditional Overtones

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to use questionnaires and interviews to gain insight into how the young generation in Kazakhstan perceives images with traditional overtones. Respondents were exposed to images of female figures with Central Asian facial features dressed in traditional Kazakh clothing, a male hunter holding a golden eagle, and a nomad's tent set against the backdrop of a steppe landscape. These images of pre-Soviet nomadic life—preliminarily designated by the interviewees as traditional Kazakh images—may serve as further attestation to "localization" by means of distancing from Soviet-era symbols. Qualitative and quantitative analysis are used to reveal the attitude of Generation Y individuals toward these images with Kazakh traditional overtones. Research analysis is used to map the preference of Kazakhstani youth as a response to the nationalization policy of the Nazarbayev regime. The findings lead to the important discovery that Kazakhstani cultural representation, which is essentially based on Kazakh pre-Soviet ethnic representation, is nonetheless shared by Kazakhstani youth of varying ethnicities.