central asia pt2:Kazakhstan

my sweety, let's get started to go to Kazakhstan. a beautiful central asian country. i read the history of kazakhstan as follows, it is pretty interesting. this overview is a nice introduction of kazakhstan. how this country came from. where these people came from. take a look.
The origin of the Kazakhs as a people continues to be debated. What is certain is that the Mongol Hordes, moving westward, swept the Turkic peoples of Central Asia into the Kipchak Plain and beyond to what is today Eastern Europe. Two and a half centuries later, after the division of the Golden Horde, the Uzbeks and Kazakhs left Crimea and Kazan and settled in the region between the lower Volga and the Aral Sea. Soon after that, the Uzbeks invaded the cities of Samarqand and Bukhara, established themselves as masters of Central Asia, and went their own way. The Kazakhs, who commanded a large territory between Lake Balkhash and the Volga, remained in the area. Divided into three zhuzes, each occupied a portion of the Kazakh territory. Kazakhstan's topography is varied, made up of dry steppe, semi-deserts, and mountain forests. The Ust Urt Caspian Depression and the Ural Plateau form the western and northwestern parts of the republic. The Tien Shan peaks rest in the east and southeast, leading to the central uplands formed by dried-up salt lakes.
In the 18th century, the land of the Kazakhs was conquered by Russia; it underwent a period of profound Russification. The tribulation of the Kazakhs, as a people determined to remain independent but experience the benefits of modern living, is documented in Abai’s Path. In 1916, led by Amangeldi Imanov, the Kazakhs rebelled against Imperial Russia, but were defeated. They rebelled again, in 1918-1921 (Alash Orda), against the Communists; they were defeated again in the early 1920’s, this time by the Red Army.
Kazakhstan became a Soviet Republic, after a major purge, in 1936. Encouraged by the Soviet government, during the 1950’s and 1960’s, Kazakhstan became the center of an agricultural experiment usually referred to as the "Virgin Lands" program. Soviet citizens from all around the nation helped transform Kazakhstan's northern pastures into wheat fields.
In 1991, Kazakhstan became independent and joined the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). In 1992, Kazakhstan joined the United Nations.

http://www.angelfire.com/rnb/bashiri/Kazakhstan/Kazakh.html