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(Source: Shygys Kazakstannyn anyzdary, ertegileri = Legends, legends of East Kazakhstan. – Semey : Artex, 2018. – 122 b.)
A long time ago, in a large valley between mountains, the slopes of which were covered with dense forest, succulent grasses grew thickly. Kazakhs drove cattle there for summer pastures. An elderly local shepherd and his sheep came out to those places one day.
A restless lamb, merke, ran in the flock, which means “born in winter” in Kazakh, that is, half a year old (born in the last cold weather and grew up by autumn). There was no sweetness with this zealous lamb. He was always trying to sneak away from the shepherd. What was the old man to do? The steppe is wide: you can’t get around it all, you can’t measure it with a lasso, you can’t look at it with an eye… He was tired of chasing a playful fugitive, his legs were tired. And then the shepherd decided to rein in the excessively naughty lamb. As a punishment, the old man hammered a peg into the ground, tied the animal on a long rope and went further with his herd to the neighboring lawn.
The lamb sighed, looked down. He didn’t want to be alone at all. He wanted to be with everyone together. Besides, he was unbearably thirsty. But there was nothing to do, he had to tread on the spot. And he began to think how to get away from the leash as soon as possible.
Trampled-trampled, and began to twitch, and impatiently hit the ground with his young hoof. He beat the earth, beat it, and achieved his release. He managed to swing the peg and pull it out of the ground. And from the hole formed in the ground, spring water gushed out in a stream.
The lamb got drunk on ice water, but at the same time soaked its hooves, and then completely — into the water! I almost choked, but I got out. He shook his curly fur and cheerfully rushed after his master. Just in time for the transition to a new place. The shepherd was so pleased with him that he did not scold him. And the lamb slowly joined the native herd and began to nibble grass as if nothing had happened, which surprised the old man a lot… That’s how nice it turned out!
Meanwhile, the clean water of the underground spring kept coming. Soon it flooded the whole pasture and flooded the mountain valley, and a beautiful lake was formed in that place. The water in it was a bluish-emerald shade. It resembled a huge shiny silver pendant that shone and shimmered under the rays of the sun in the dark frame of the wooded mountains. Its waves splashed to the delight of everyone. People were eager to see him, absorb the life-giving moisture of the fresh mountain air and joyfully touch the luxurious velvet of the taiga.
In memory of the stubborn lamb, the locals nicknamed their reservoir Markakol — “Winter lamb Lake” (“merke” — a young lamb, “kohl” – “lake”). And about purposefulness and perseverance, the people put together such a proverb: “To a stubborn oarsman, the shore also sails.”
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