I am a grandchild of Kazakh immigrants of Kazakh descent. I don't have any family relics that I know of, only memories and stories. During the Bolshevik revolution in Russian empire, wealth was seized and redistributed. Due to this event, my relatives from both sides of the family, who used to be BAIs and BEKs or "landlords" of the Steppe, decided to flee their domains. My mother's family hid in Siberia near Kemerovo, while my father's side moved to Chu valley on the border with Kyrgyzstan. They left their domains to avoid executions or imprisonment. My parents met after both of the families moved back to Kazakhstan in Almaty, Kazakhstan. They had no legacy of their tribe (they were from the same tribe "Argyn" and owned villages nearby), except stories and lack of Kazakh language skills. Their immigrant story spins off with the stories they tell us. The only memory of Kazakh traditions left in our family are stories and tales of our family. Due to the revolution, a generation of my relatives had no education (although their parents were taught in Europe. ex. Petrograd later St. Petersburg, Moscow). There is a story of a gold nugget that was a size of horse's head that used to be symbol of my mother's family's wealth. Although I used to be skeptical about their stories, this year my grandmother went to Kemerovo and proved that their house is now a school. They built it with gems they could carry. This is my re-immigrant story.

– Yessengeldy Rakhimbekov

Relationship:  Grandchild of im/migrant Grandchild of im/migrant