Kyrgyzstan, country of Central Asia.  It is bounded by Kazakhstan on the northwest and north, by China on the east and south, and by Tajikistan and Uzbekistan on the south and west.  Most of Kyrgyzstan’s borders run along mountain crests.  The capital is Bishkek (known from 1862 to 1926 as Pishpek and from 1926 to 1991 as Frunze).

The Kyrgyz, a Muslim Turkic people, constitute nearly three-fourths of the population.  The history of the Kyrgyz in what is now Kyrgyzstan dates at least to the 17th century.  Kyrgyzstan, known under Russian and Soviet rule as Kirgiziya, was conquered by tsarist Russian forces in the 19th century.  Formerly a constituent (union) republic of the U.S.S.R., Kyrgyzstan declared its independence on 31^stAugust 1991.

The country has an area of 77,181 square miles, and a population of 5.2 M.  Data from a 2007 National Statistics Committee report indicated the following ethnic breakdown: Kyrgyz, 67%; Uzbeks, 14.2%; Russians, 10.3%; Dungans (ethnic Chinese Muslims), 1.1 %; Uighurs (ethnic Turkic Muslims), 1%; and other ethnicities, 6%.

Islam is the most widely held faith.  Official sources estimated that 80% of the population is Muslim.  Almost all the Muslims are Sunni; (86.6% Sunnis, 0.56% Shias) there are approximately one thousand Shi’a.  According to SARA, as of May 2007 there were 1,650 mosques, of which 1,623 were registered.  There also were seven institutes for higher Islamic teaching.  According to recent official estimates, 11% of the population is Russian Orthodox, although some experts believe the figure could be as low as 8%.  The country has 44 Russian Orthodox churches, 1 Russian Orthodox monastery for women, and 1 parochial school, as well as 2 Russian Old Believer churches.

Other religious groups account for a smaller percentage of the population.  The Protestant Church of Jesus Christ is the largest group, with an estimated 11,000 members, of whom ≈40% are ethnic Kyrgyz.  The overall Protestant population includes 48 registered Baptist churches, 21 Lutheran, 49 Pentecostal, 35 Presbyterian, and 43 “Charismatic,” as well as 49 JWs and 30 Adventist communities.  There are three RC churches, and the small Jewish community has one synagogue and organizes internal cultural studies and humanitarian services, chiefly food assistance for the elderly and persons with disabilities regardless of faith.  One Buddhist temple serves the small Buddhist community.  There are 12 registered Baha’i houses of worship.  During the reporting period, SARA approved the registration of an additional 2 religious institutions and 19 religious organizations, both Islamic and Christian.

Islam is practiced widely throughout the country in both urban and rural areas.  Russian Orthodoxy typically is concentrated in cities with a larger ethnic Russian population.  Other religious groups more commonly practice in the cities where their smaller communities tend to be concentrated.  There is a correlation between ethnicity and religion; ethnic Kyrgyz are primarily Muslims, while ethnic Russians usually belong to either the Russian Orthodox Church or one of the Protestant denominations.  However, some Christian pastors noted a growing number of ethnic Kyrgyz converts to Christianity.  While there are no data available on active participation in formal religious services, a significant number of Muslims and Russian Orthodox adherents appear to be nominal believers and do not practice their faith actively.  Religious practice in the south is more traditional and devout than in other regions.