Boktu-Kirish

Boktu-Kirish is the hero of one of the best-known Tuvan heroic epics, transmitted under the paired title 'Boktug-Kirish, Bora-Sheelei' and preserved in some seventeen recorded variants. A warrior of the open steppe, he distinguishes himself in the martial games, wrestling and mounted combat that fill the maadyrlyg tool tradition, and rides the wise, speaking horse that is a hallmark of Siberian-Turkic epic. The narrative turns on his death: slain by his enemies, he is sought out and brought back to life by his resourceful sister Bora-Sheelei, whose quest forms the heart of the tale. Performed by master singers such as Shoydak-ool Khovalyg, the epic remains a living monument of Tuvan oral literature.

Domains

• heroic valor
• martial games

Powers

• performs superhuman heroic feats
• rides a speaking warhorse

Epithets

• Боктуг-Кириш маадыр — Boktug-Kirish the heroTuvinskie geroicheskie skazaniya. Novosibirsk: Nauka, 1997. (primary)

Relations

• sibling: Bora-SheeleiBrother of the warrior-maiden Bora-Sheelei, who revives him after his death.Tuvinskie geroicheskie skazaniya. Novosibirsk: Nauka, 1997 ('Boktug-Kirish, Bora-Sheelei', brother and sister). (primary)

Sources

• Boktu-Kirish is the hero of a widely attested Tuvan heroic epic, brother of Bora-Sheelei, who is slain and then restored to life by his sister.: Tuvinskie geroicheskie skazaniya. Novosibirsk: Nauka, 1997 ('Boktug-Kirish, Bora-Sheelei'). (primary); Endangered Languages Project, 'Boktu Kirish - a Tuvan epic' (performed by Shoydak-ool Khovalyg). (secondary)