The Role Of Albasty In Kazakh Mythology

2. Woman as a destroyer: interpretation of character of Albasty as demonized image of the Mother Umai
Another important image of the role of women in Kazakh society can be found through the analysis of evil creatures in Kazakh mythology. The character of Albasty (demonic woman) can be considered as one of the most common among them, since she is quite widespread in a variety of myths, legends and folk tales.
Albasty is a demonic woman creature, usually depicted as an old ugly woman or young woman with blond hair and long breasts that she can throws them at her back. She is considered being harmful mostly for women, especially when they are pregnant or at times they are going to give a birth. According to Kazakh legends, Albasty that wants to harm a woman giving a birth watches for her in the evenings, when a woman walks alone. That is why, at night when a woman is going to give a birth, she goes out into the yard with a midwife, and another woman occupies her bed, so that Albasty could not sneak in there and hide . If Albasty succeeds, she is the first to give her breast to a newborn, who either dies

Moreover, he compares her with Aphrodite, as Albasty often appears naked, accompanied by wild beasts, as the Greek goddess of love and fertility did . Comparison of Albasty with goddesses of hunt and fertility leads to the logical assumption that the main character that is comparable to original functions of Albasty’s feminine origin is Turkic fertility goddess Umai . These claims might also be supported by the fact that Albasty is also known with her love for horses: “at the night she rides them, and braids their manes” . And as it was mentioned above, the Great Mother Umai is known for her patronage of horses and wives of the great batyrs, who looked after the great