Edige

Edige is one of the most esteemed oral epics of the Karakalpaks, a Turkic-speaking people, who live on the mouth of the Amu Darya and the shores of the Aral Sea. Edige is a historical personage from the time of Timur at the turn of the 14th to the 15th century. The singer, Jumabay Bazarov, was the last Karakalpak singer of heroic epics who stood in an entirely oral tradition. In this edition and translation an attempt has been made to capture as much of his oral performance as possible, including the singer's dialect features and his musical style.