International Journal Of Literature And Languages
51
https://theusajournals.com/index.php/ijll
VOLUME
Vol.05 Issue06 2025
PAGE NO.
51-54
10.37547/ijll/Volume05Issue06-16
History Of The Emergence Of Folklore In Uzbek
Literature
Urazbaev Muratbay Amanbayevich
Nukus State Pedagogical Institute named after Ajiniyaz 1st stage basic doctoral student, Uzbekistan
Received:
12 April 2025;
Accepted:
08 May 2025;
Published:
17 June 2025
Abstract:
This article comprehensively explores the role of oral folk creativity in the formation and development
of Uzbek literature. Through epics, legends, proverbs, riddles, fairy tales, and songs, the people’s worldview,
historical memory, and artistic perceptions have found expression. The article examines historical sources that
contain samples of Uzbek folklore, the first scholars who recorded and studied them, the distinctive features of
folklore genres, and their influence on written literature. Special attention is given to the scientific folkloristic
research that began in the early 20th century, particularly highlighting the contributions of scholars such as Hadi
Zarifov and Gozi Olim Yunusov. The article emphasizes key characteristics of oral creativity collectivity, anonymity,
oral transmission, and intergenerational continuity while revealing its theoretical and practical significance in
Uzbek literary studies.
Keywords: -
Uzbek folklore, oral folk creativity, epic, fairy tale, proverb, riddle, legend, Alisher Navoi, Hadi Zarifov,
Gozi Olim Yunusov, Uzbek literature, folkloristics, oral tradition, written literature, genres, aesthetic thinking,
mythology, folk bards, "Alpomish" epic, "Devonu lug‘otit turk".
Introduction:
In the process of Uzbek literature and its
analysis, the importance of oral folk art occupies an
important place. Folklore has been deeply studied in
Uzbek literary studies as an expression of national
thought, expressed through epics, legends, proverbs,
riddles, fairy tales, and songs. The introduction of these
elements into literary analysis and their theoretical
substantiation began at the beginning of the 20th
century and continues to this day at various stages.
Folklore occupies a special place in the development of
Uzbek literary studies. In the field of literary criticism
and theory, views on the attitude to folklore,
understanding its essence, and determining its
influence on literary processes have been formed
gradually. Especially since the beginning of the 20th
century, folklore has been studied as a literary source,
a poetic phenomenon, and one of the important layers
of artistic thought. The formation of the concept of
folklore in literary studies is connected with the
consistent systematization of scientific views on this
process.
Speaking about the history of the collection and
recording of works of Uzbek folklore, it is necessary to
recall that in the work "History of Bukhara" by the
famous historian Abu Bakr ibn Ja'far Narshakhi, who
lived and worked in the 10th century, the names of
cities and villages, historical monuments, as well as folk
tales and legends about past events are cited, and the
great scholar of the 11th century Mahmud Kashgari
traveled the land of Turkic tribes, recorded rich
materials related to folklore genres such as proverbs,
sayings, songs, legends and myths, and included them
in the work "Devonu lug'otit turk." The first collectors
of Uzbek folklore were Mahmud Zamakhshari, who
recorded proverbs and sayings and studied their
characteristics; Nasiruddin Burhanuddin Rabguzi, who
compiled the myths, legends, stories, and tales of the
ancient Khorezmians into his "Qissasi Rabguzi"; Alisher
Navoi, who reflected on the genre composition of
Uzbek folk poetry; the historian Khondamir, who
narrated folk tales about the great Uzbek poet; Darvesh
Ali Changi, who left behind materials on the diverse
genres of musical folklore; Zahiriddin Muhammad
International Journal Of Literature And Languages
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International Journal Of Literature And Languages (ISSN: 2771-2834)
Babur, who provided interesting facts about the
customs, rituals, proverbs, wise sayings, and legends of
the Uzbek people; and Sheikh Sulayman Bukhari, who
cited examples of folk songs in his compiled dictionary.
Alisher Navoi, who highly valued the unique creative
potential of our people, also effectively used the values
of almost all genres of folklore of his time. Therefore, in
the poet's works, terms such as legend, story, legend,
fairy tale, tale, epic, great ir, ayalghu, song, surud,
uzmog', chang, changa, related to the genre system of
15th-century Uzbek folklore, were widely used.
Uzbek folk oral poetic creativity, which was initially
called "folk literature," "folk literature," "oral
literature," "folk oral creativity," was first used by H.
Zarifov (1934-1935) and became widely popular as
"folklore," "Uzbek folklore." Uzbek folk oral poetic
creativity is an example of the art of oral speech,
consisting of many genres, artistically reflecting the life,
history, dreams, aspirations, worldview of the people,
performed and passed down from mouth to mouth,
from generation to generation in the process of
performance.
It should also be noted that in the history of recording
samples of Uzbek folklore, an important place is
occupied by the legends cited in the work of Zahiriddin
Muhammad Babur "Baburnama," folk proverbs and
sayings included in Gulhani's "Zarbulmasal," fragments
of folk songs cited in the work of Sheikh Sulayman
Bukhari "Lug'ati chigatoyi va turkiy usmoniy" in order to
clarify the essence of words, and Muqimi's work
"Sayohatnoma," written in the style of songs of oral folk
art. [1.12-13]
Moreover, the Avesta is a historical and immortal book
that embodies the earliest examples of folklore and
provides many themes for later folklore and written
literature. [2.8]
While examples of folklore works common to the
Uzbek people have been passed down from mouth to
mouth to subsequent generations, some have reached
us through various history books, Orkhon-Yenisei
monuments, Mahmud Kashgari's work "Devoni lug'otit-
turk," and other sources. These rich examples of oral
creativity became an important foundation for the
emergence, formation, and development of written
literature. [3.6]
Folklore has a syncretic character, emdiving elements
characteristic of all art forms, in which words, melodies,
and dance are performed in harmony in certain types.
Folklore artistically reflects the life, history, and fate of
the people. In the essence of folklore works, the
worldview of the people, from primitive mythological
concepts to perfect religious beliefs, gradually
emerges. Folklore works, as an art form of speech,
stand out from similar examples of written literature
and other types of art in a number of respects. These
characteristics of folklore primarily lie in the fact that it
is collective (collective) creation, therefore the author
of folklore samples is the general public, their specific
creator is an unknown anonymity, which is inherent in
them and is passed down orally from generation to
generation among the people, created and performed
orally, observing traditions in performance and
creativity, having variants during the performance
process and versions over time. On this basis,
collectivism, anonymity, verbalization, traditionality,
variability, and versionality are indicated as
characteristic features of folklore.
The history of the formation of Uzbek folklore studies,
which is currently carrying out large-scale fundamental
research in the field of collecting and systematizing oral
folk art, implementing mass and academic publications,
began in the 1920s.
G.O. Yunusov, who headed folklore and ethnographic
expeditions organized by the Uzbek Board of
Education, was one of the initiators of collecting and
popularizing examples of oral folk art. He identified folk
bakhshis such as Fozil Yuldosh ugli, Ergash Jumanbulbul
ugli. G.O.Yunusov was the first in the history of Uzbek
epic studies to record excerpts from the epic
"Alpamysh" from the poets Fazil Yuldash ogly and
Hamrakul bakhshi in the summer of 1922. In his article
"Knowing the People Among Uzbeks" ("Turkiston,"
December 18, 1922), he was the first in folklore studies
to write "Alpomish." He reflected on the epics "Gorogli"
and "Yusuf and Ahmad," and compared the epic
"Alpomish" to such remarkable masterpieces of world
literature as "Odyssey" and "Iliad." G.O. Yunusov visited
Tashkent, Syrdarya, and Samarkand regions, where he
recorded many songs, fairy tales, legends, proverbs,
riddles, and stories, and, along with conducting
observations on Uzbek ritual folklore, collected rich
ethnographic materials. The scholar also created a
methodological guide for collectors of Uzbek folklore.
G.O.Yunusov's articles "A Word or Two About the
Lullaby" ("Maorif va o'qitg'uvchi," 1926, No6),
"Examples of Folk Literature," "Classic Feelings in Oral
Literature" occupy an important place in the history of
folklore studies as the first experiments in the scientific
study of oral folk art.
In 1925-1928, devotees of our national values, such as
Gozi Olim Yunusov, Hodi Zarifov, Abdulla Alavi,
organized the identification of folk bakhshis,
storytellers, and singers, the recording of works from
their repertoire, and recorded folk epics from Fozil
Yuldash ogly, Pulkan shoir, Ergash Jumanbulbul ogly,
Nurmon Abduvoy ogly, Berdi bakhshi, Abdulla shoir,
and many other bakhshis. Mahmud Zarifiy, son of Iso
International Journal Of Literature And Languages
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International Journal Of Literature And Languages (ISSN: 2771-2834)
Ernazar, undertakes this honorable task. Amateur
folklore collectors such as Fotima (whose full name has
not yet been determined), Tovfiq Mustafboyev,
Bahrom Ibrohimov, Muqim Hamzabekov, Nazarqosim
Mirzayev, and Husayn Karimiy were also involved. The
materials collected during that period laid the
foundation for the creation of the Folklore Archive of
the Institute of Language and Literature of the
Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Uzbekistan,
where masterpieces of Uzbek oral folk art are stored
today. The formation of Uzbek folklore studies as a
science of a philological direction is directly related to
the scientific activity of H. Zarifov.
H.T. Zarifov is a scholar who made a great contribution
to the recording, collection, publication, and study of
folklore works, the founder of Uzbek folklore studies.
On the basis of the "Research Office for Ethnography,
Folklore and Archaeology," organized on his initiative in
1928, the Folklore Department of the Institute of
Language and Literature was subsequently created.
H.T. Zarifov, as the head of this department, devoted
his entire life to the collection and scientific study of
Uzbek folk oral art. H.T.Zarifov, who began his scientific
activity as a folklorist as a collector, identified such
great artists of the word as Fozil Yuldosh ugli, Ergash
Jumanbulbul ugli, Pulkan and Islom shoir, and collected
their creative heritage. Epics recorded from these
bards, such as "Alpomish," "Yodgor," "Jahongir,"
"Rustam," "Ravshan," "Ochildov," "Hasan Batrak,"
"Yusuf and Ahmad," "Avaz's Marriage," "Mardikor,"
"Shayboniyxon," are among the most remarkable
examples of Uzbek epics. [4.118-120]
Folklore has been used in world and Uzbek literature
since ancient times. This process occurred differently
in different periods. In particular, although Uzbek
written literature has mastered the use of genre, plot,
meter, and rhyme from folklore, it has harmonized and
developed artistically based on certain laws. Thus, the
sphere of influence of myths, legends, narratives, and
many other folklore genres on Uzbek poetry expanded.
Folklore genres such as "Alla" and "Yor-yor" began to
penetrate Uzbek poetry during the independence
period. This, in turn, gave rise to new forms of
folklorism in the poetry of this period.
Most examples of genres in Uzbek folklore are
distinguished by the fact that they have reached a
classical state at the level of artistic and aesthetic
thinking. Therefore, when discussing Uzbek mythology,
it is necessary to separate and reconstruct the
mythological concepts underlying folk epics and fairy
tales from the plot, leading motifs, and characters of
these works. Uzbek folklore is distinguished by the
richness and diversity of its genre structure. In this
regard, it is necessary to pay special attention to the
fact that among the genres common to all peoples of
the world - fairy tales, proverbs, riddles - there are
genres specific only to Uzbek folk art, such as askiya,
lof. The diversity of genres of Uzbek folklore is also
closely related to the activities of creators and their
professionalization. In particular, the performance of
such genres as dastan, fairy tale, oral askiya requires
special training, training from a specific mentor. The
performance of these genres ensures the emergence of
special schools, their formation and development
within their own traditions. [5.21]
Folklore, by its very nature, is an artistic expression of
people's lives, revealing the most subtle aspects of the
human spiritual world. Epics and legends are valued as
historical memory of the people, and proverbs and
riddles as examples of folk wisdom. It is precisely due
to these aspects that folklore manifests itself as an
important source in Uzbek literature. Today, folklore is
of current importance not only as a historical source,
but also as a source of inspiration for modern literary
processes. By conveying the rich heritage of folk art to
the younger generation, deeply understanding and
studying it, as well as effectively using it in written
literature, it serves to enhance national identity and
spirituality. Folklore has not only literary, but also
pedagogical, educational, aesthetic, and cultural
significance, occupying a firm place in the
consciousness of the people. Therefore, the study of
oral folk art, its systematic analysis and integration into
modern literature is one of the important scientific and
spiritual tasks facing Uzbek literary studies. Research
and studies conducted in this area serve as an
important factor in a deeper understanding of the rich
artistic heritage of our people, its preservation and
transmission to future generations.
In conclusion, oral folk art is the root, foundation, and
source of inspiration of Uzbek literature, which, due to
its relevance, artistic richness, historical and cultural
significance, has not lost its significance not only in the
past, but also today. Scientific research and literary
analysis based on it enrich the science of literary
studies and play an important role in understanding
national identity.
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