Abstract
The article is devoted to topical issues of studying kobyz traditions in the musical culture of the peoples of Turkic origin. Along with a review of various scientific studies, they examined such complex methodological issues as the definition of the historical Korkut prototype, the differentiation of the genesis of the mare instrument. The author touches upon issues related to the difficulty of knowing the historical personality of Korkut based on the folklore genre - legend. Based on the shamanic tunes of Nyshan, which, without proper scientific argument, began to be attributed to Korkut, illuminates the stage stages of the formation of maze tunes from saryn to instrumental kyui. The author is inclined to believe that the information about Korkuta as the first creator of the mare is not entirely correct, because the geography of the distribution of the mare is much wider than those peoples who know the name of Korkuta. As for musical instruments consonant with the term "kobyz," they are known not only to Kazakh, but also to the peoples of Turkic, even Slavic origin. The author concludes that first in the Middle Ages the word "kobyz" denoted a common musical instrument, and then was applied to plucked and bowed chordophones. All this leads to the fact that the historical prototype of Korkut should begin with the study of historical, ethnic and genealogical sources.