ATraditional dressIndependent states
Elechek
The white wrapped headdress of married Kyrgyz women, UNESCO heritage since 2023.
The elechek is wrapped like a turban from thin white cloth 15–30 metres long, covering the head, neck, shoulders and back over a skullcap.
A bride first puts it on at her wedding, and it marks a woman as married and a mother. The cloth also had practical uses — swaddling a baby born on a migration, binding a wound or serving as a shroud.
In 2023 UNESCO inscribed "Elechek, Kyrgyz female headwear: traditional knowledge and rituals". Today it is worn at festivals, weddings and on stage.
Sources
Updated: October 3, 2026