KAZAKH ORNAMENT AS A REFLECTION OF THE NATIONAL CODE

Abstract. This study explores how ornament has shaped and continues to shape the structure of the national code. The authors examine the historical evolution of ornament – from its sacred symbolic role to its transformation into a modern visual sign – while identifying the causes of its semantic decline and its absorption into mass visual culture. Drawing on the works of A. Kh. Margulan, Kh. A. Argyngbayev, U. Dzhanibekov, Sh. Zh. Tokhtabayeva, and contemporary researchers, the study shows that ornament in Kazakh tradition functioned as a form of visual literacy, reflecting the mythological thinking, social relations, and worldview of nomadic culture. Special attention is given to the motif qoshqar muiz (“ram’s horn”) as an archetypal element of the national code. The authors notes a growing tendency in contemporary cultural space toward the loss of ornament’s sacred meaning and its mechanical application devoid of understanding of its original symbolism. At the same time, museum, educational, and stage practices in Kazakhstan demonstrate a counter-movement – a return to the authentic meanings of traditional forms and their reinterpretation within the framework of visual identity and interdisciplinary cultural dialogue.