Shyrdak

What it is

A shyrdak is a covering of felt, laid on the floor or hung on a wall, and it is usually made by hand somewhere in Central Asia. Kazakhs call the same kind of rug a syrmak. The look of it comes from two layers of felt in contrasting colours, one laid over the other; the maker marks a design on the upper layer in chalk and cuts it through. The piece lifted out is not thrown away. It is set into the other rug in reverse, so a pair of rugs appears, each the mirror of its neighbour, its colours swapped.

From fleece to felt

The wool of about five sheep goes into a single rug, and local sheep differ in how soft and strong their fleece is. Makers prefer wool clipped in autumn, because the animals have spent spring and summer grazing on fresh plants in the mountains. The fleece is dried and beaten until it fluffs up, which also loosens dirt and matted clumps. Then it is sorted, washed, dried and dyed. Felting follows, and every stage is done by hand, which is why one rug takes a long time. Traditionally this work belonged to women.

Patterns and meaning

Design carries much of the shyrdak's purpose. Makers use shapes that hold information and, by tradition, a protective power. A triangle known as tumar appears often, and so does a border called suu, the word for water, drawn in black and white; people treat it as a charm against harm. Other motifs praise and wish well to whoever receives the rug, and makers picture the world near them: water, goat horns, a yurt. In Kazakhstan, images of sheep and shepherds turn up frequently. Colours are set against one another, red against green, yellow against black, brown against white.

Older history

Felt making in Eurasia goes back to the close of the Bronze Age, when people of the region herded sheep, goats and horses as they moved with their animals. In the early Iron Age their way of life took on its familiar shape, with portable tents covered in felt, along with weapons, horse gear, clothing and objects of felt, hide and wood. Burial mounds in the mountains of the Altai, in eastern Kazakhstan and in Mongolia have given up household goods, farming tools and weapons, among them felt carpets worked in mosaic, applique and quilting. These finds show both fine skill and a developed sense of beauty.

Today and recognition

Kyrgyzstan is where the craft is most alive, though both Kyrgyz and Kazakh people make shyrdaks. Finished rugs are also sold to visitors, which brings makers income and puts the work in front of people from outside the region. Recognition came in 2012, when UNESCO added shyrdak and ala-kiyiz, another felt carpet of Kyrgyzstan, to its list of intangible cultural heritage in need of urgent safeguarding. For makers this is a warning as much as an honour. The knowledge is judged to be at risk, and the listing asks for steps to keep it going.

How Shyrdak is kept

Women are the traditional makers, working by hand from start to finish. Wool is clipped in autumn, dried, beaten and sorted, then washed, dried and dyed. The dyed wool is felted into flat sheets. Two sheets in contrasting colours are layered, and the pattern is drawn on the top one in chalk. The maker cuts along the drawing, sharpening the knife as it dulls, and lifts out the shapes. Those cut pieces go into the second rug in reverse, so the two rugs mirror each other. Each rug is soaked, rolled and pressed until the pattern holds, then left to dry.

When and where

There is no fixed day for making a shyrdak; the work follows the sheep. The best fleece is taken at the autumn shearing, after the animals have grazed through spring and summer in the mountains, and the felt is then worked by hand over many hours.

Shyrdaks belong to the Kyrgyz and Kazakh peoples of Central Asia, and Kyrgyzstan is the country where the tradition stays strongest. Kazakhs make them as well, and old felt carpets of this kind have come out of burial mounds in the Altai mountains, in eastern Kazakhstan and in Mongolia.

What Shyrdak means

For those who make and use them, shyrdak patterns are not decoration alone. The shapes are read as messages: the suu, or water, border in black and white is treated as a talisman that turns away evil, and the triangle called tumar carries similar protective weight. Makers work blessings and good wishes for the person who will receive the rug into the design. The motifs also picture the everyday world of a herding family, water, goat horns, a yurt, sheep and shepherds, so a shyrdak speaks of where it comes from.

Questions people ask about Shyrdak

See also

OvooA stone cairn on a peak or pass, circled by travellers and honoured in sky worshipBatokIndigenous Filipino tattooing, once worn as dress, rank and a rite of passageBrigid's crossA cross of woven rushes or straw, made for Saint Brigid's Day on the first of FebruaryDreamcatcherA hand-woven hoop from Anishinaabe tradition, hung above a cradle to protect a child

Good reading and sources

• Ala-kiyiz and Shyrdak, art of Kyrgyz traditional felt carpetsUNESCO, Heritage listing
• Ala-kiyiz and Shyrdak, art of Kyrgyz traditional felt carpetsUNESCO, Article

• Shyrdak on WikipediaEncyclopedia
• Wikidata recordOpen data

It may contain mistakes. Traditions differ from one family, village and community to the next, and the people who keep them know them best. If something is wrong, tell us. Last refreshed 2026-10-05.