Shabanbai Dzhailau

(Source: Katonkaragay – the land of legends: electronic resource / compiled by Zhumagulova Gulzira Dauletkhanovna. – Ust-Kamenogorsk: Reklamnyy daydzhest, 2024. – 176 p.)

Among the picturesque foothills of the Altai there is a pasture known as Shabanbai Dzhailau. Since time immemorial, these fertile lands belong to the Karatay clan of the Naiman tribe. Fertile meadows, clear streams and spacious valleys made Shabanbai a symbol of prosperity.

The people and these places were described in lines:

Shabanbaiday zher kaida,

Karatayday el kaida?!

Where can you find land like Shabanbai,

And people like Karatay?!

Once upon a time, skirmishes broke out between the local Karatays and the Kereys who came from China. During one of these raids, the Kereys stole a herd of horses. But not knowing the area well, they lost their way and got stuck in the swamps.

The Karatays caught up with them where they had stopped with the herd. The leader of the Kereys, a man named Shabanbai, died in the battle. Since then, the lands where the battle took place have been called Shabanbai dzhailau – Shabanbai’s pasture.