COUNTRY PROFILE: KYRGYZSTAN
November 2005
COUNTRY
Formal Name: Kyrgyz Republic (Kyrgyz Respublikasy).
Short Form: Kyrgyzstan.
Term for Citizen(s): Kyrgyzstani(s).
Capital: Bishkek.
Other Major Cities: Jalalabad, Kara-Balta, Karakol, Osh, and Tokmok.
Independence: Kyrgyzstan recognizes August 31, 1991, the date on which Kyrgyzstan declared its separation from the Soviet Union, as its official day of independence.
Public Holidays: New Year’s (January 1), Russian Orthodox Christmas (January 7), Kurban Ait (Feast of the Sacrifice, movable date according to Islamic calendar), International Women’s Day (March 8), Nooruz (Kyrgyz New Year, March 21), Labor Day (May 1), Victory Day (May 9), Independence Day (August 31), and Eid al Fitr (end of Ramadan, movable date according to the Islamic calendar).
Flag: The flag of Kyrgyzstan has a red field with a yellow sun in the center,
whose rays represent the 40 Kyrgyz tribes; in the center of the sun is
a red ring crossed by two sets of three lines, a stylized representation of
the roof of the traditional Kyrgyz yurt.