Properties

Code (ISO-3)	kir
Code (ISO-2)	ky
Self name	Kirghiz
Words in dictionary	979
Examples	16

Linguistics

Text direction	LTR
Alphabet	Cyrillic and Latin
Characters	A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
Numbers	0123456789
punctuation	!"#$%&'()*+,-./:;<=>?@[\]^_`{|}~«°»–—‘’“”…
End-of-clause markers	!.?
End-of-sentence markers	!,.;?
Word delimitation	Space

History

Kyrgyz are a Turkic ethnic group found primarily in Kyrgyzstan.

There are several etymological theories on the name "Kyrgyz." First, the name Kyrgyz may mean "forty girls" (кырк + кыз), a reference to the Manas epic unifying forty small tribes against the Chinese on one side and the Muslim expansion on the other. This is symbolized by the yellow sun in the center of the flag of Kyrgyzstan, which has 40 rays referring to forty Kirghiz tribes. Next, a meaning of "forty tribes" (кырк + ууз) which makes more direct sense. Finally, a meaning with totally different word formulation (кыргыс, adj.), meaning "imperishable", "inextinguishable" or "undying". This version has an obvious popular appreciation. Historical evidence for many conflicts with other peoples also supports this theory.