Abstract
The relevance of the study is determined by the need to analyze Kazakh and Karakalpak traditional costume from the perspective of visual semiotics as a sign system through which clan and tribal identity is represented and transmitted within the historical and cultural space. The conscious selection of distinctive markers in clothing can be regarded as a semiotically significant act, that is, as a sign demonstrating an individual’s clan affiliation. Hence, the aim of the study is to identify, describe, and analyze clan and tribal markers as signs of a woman’s identity and belonging, based on the example of the Kazakh kimeshek and the Karakalpak kiymeshek. The article employs a set of interdisciplinary methods, combining historical-ethnographic, art historical, and cultural approaches. Results. Folklore data, materials from fiction, ethnographic sources, and information provided by traditional costume artisans suggest that visually most Kazakhs were once able to distinguish representatives of one clan (and possibly sub-clan) from another by specific details of their clothing. These markers, conventionally termed here as clan and tribal markers, are expressed in certain technological features of production, decorative elements of headdresses, methods of turban wrapping, the cut and decoration of outer garments, as well as in visually perceptible details of jewelry. In this function, both Kazakh and Karakalpak traditional costumes may be regarded as a kind of visual passport demonstrating a particular clan and tribal identity.