Ornament as a Sign of Nonverbal Communication: Evidence from Design Collections of Kazakh and Tuvan Clothing
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.25178/nit.2026.3.19Keywords:
Kazakh culture, Tuvan culture, traditional clothing, ethnic ornament, ornamental motif, symbolism, stylization, designer clothes, Vyacheslav Dongak, Zhanna Bayteliyeva, Marat YerimbetovAbstract
The article examines ornament in contemporary Kazakh and Tuvan costume as a specific form of nonverbal communication that reflects the mental characteristics of the two ethnic groups and points to their genetic and cultural-historical interconnectedness. The empirical base consists of stage costume collections created by Kazakh designers Zhanna Bayteliyeva and Marat Yerimbetov and Tuvan designer Vyacheslav Dongak. Ornament is interpreted as a complex sign system in which each element of the pattern and its color scheme is correlated with ancient philosophy, worldviews, and modes of representing the world, and is saturated with religious, ritual, and magical content.
Using content analysis together with descriptive and comparative-contrastive methods, the study identifies the semantic load of stylized visual motifs and the symbolism of Kazakh and Tuvan patterns and systematizes their lexico-semantic types. It is shown that Kazakh ornament in contemporary design practices undergoes reinterpretation: while losing its direct protective and magical functions, it retains high informative value and serves as a marker of ethnic identity and cultural continuity.
The analysis establishes that Tuvan ornament, shaped by Buddhist ritual-magical tradition and by various nomadic and sedentary artistic cultures, preserves a pronounced syncretism and complexity of cultural codes. In designer collections it functions as a visual carrier of cultural memory and as a nonverbal communicator of ethnic belonging.
Comparative analysis of Kazakh and Tuvan ornament systems reveals shared Turkic roots and similarities in structural elements, as well as differences in dominant motifs and compositional principles. The article concludes that ethnic ornament in modern designer costume is a key visual “translator” of nonverbal communication that simultaneously manifests the cultural kinship of the two Turkic-speaking peoples and articulates their specific ethnocultural identities.
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For citation:
Narozhnaya V. D., Kadeyeva M. I., Mainy Sh. B. and Kanayeva L. S. Ornament as a Sign of Nonverbal Communication: Evidence from Design Collections of Kazakh and Tuvan Clothing. New Research of Tuva, 2026, no. 3, pp. 325-345. (In Russ.) DOI: https://doi.org/10.25178/nit.2026.3.19
Author Biographies
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Valentina D. Narozhnaya Zhanibekov South Kazakhstan Pedagogical University
Doctor of Philology, Acting Professor, Department of Russian Language and Literature, Zhanibekov University.
Postal address: 13 Bаytursynov Str., 160012, Shymkent, Kazakhstan.
Email: vdn53ru@gmail.com
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Mayra I. Kadeyeva Zhanibekov South Kazakhstan Pedagogical University
Candidate of Philological Sciences, Associate Professor, Department of Russian Language and Literature, Zhanibekov University.
Postal address: 13 Bаytursynov Str., 160012, Shymkent, Kazakhstan.
Email: kadeyevamaira@gmail.com
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Shenne B. Mainy Tuvan State University
Candidate of Cultural Studies, Senior Researcher, Laboratory of Ethnology and Linguoculturology, Tuvan State University.
Postal address: 9/B Mongusha Sata St., 667000 Kyzyl, Russia.
E-mail: shenne85@mail.ru
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Лаззат С. Канаева Zhanibekov South Kazakhstan Pedagogical University
Senior Lecturer, Department of Translation Studies and Foreign Languages, Zhanibekov University.
Postal address: 13 Bаytursynov Str., 160012, Shymkent, Kazakhstan.
Email: Kanayeva_80@mail.ru
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