Interesting Choora Inscription

RobT · 19th September 2021, 10:28 PM

Hi All,

I just picked up this choora which I believe is very recently made. The hilt scales and ears are plastic (made to imitate butterscotch amber perhaps?). Other than the choice of hilt material, the knife is traditionally made. The workmanship and functionality are commensurate with good quality 19th century chooras. The sheath (also traditionally made) is brown leather wrapped wood. The leather has been pierced to show red and silver foil inserts. What is really surprising is the "MADE IN K G" inscription (brass inlay) on the blade. K G is the recognized abbreviation for Kyrgyzstan which is separated from Afghanistan by Tajikistan. Does anyone know if chooras are commonly carried in Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan? I assume that the country of origin designation was made in English because the knife was made for sale to US troops in Afghanistan?

Sincerely,
RobT

ariel · 20th September 2021, 02:12 AM

Official abbreviation for Kyrgizstan is KGZ.i have never heard of Ch’huras there.
Kyrghiz belong to Turkic tradition, and all their knives I have seen and read about are variations of Bichaq, p’chaq.

How about Khwaja Ghar district of Takhar province? Located right close to Khyber, next to Tadjikistan.

RobT · 20th September 2021, 03:27 AM

Ariel,

Thanks for the response. Your explanation sounds more plausible but there seems to be a bit of confusion about Kyrgistan's official abbreviation. Initially, I did a search for "made in KG" and came up with a bunch of sites using Cyrillic. Then I found one that said that the Kyrgistan's official abbreviation was KG (Kyrgyzstan - Abbreviation Finderhttps://www.abbreviationfinder.org). I also found a site ("ISO [Internationa Standard for Organization] Country Codes for Selected Countries - Citing Medicine - NCBI Bookshelf") which lists KG as the official abbreviation for Kyrgyzstan. Wikipedia also lists the official ISO 3166 code as KG.

Sincerely,
RobT

ariel · 20th September 2021, 05:48 AM

I got my version from the official list of the US Department of State, Dept. of Consular Affairs: KGZ. Hope they know:-)
Google “Kyrgizstan official abbreviation”
The abbreviation on your Ch’hura is written as K-G( with a dash, implying 2 separate words), not as KG.
You may also google “knives Kyrgizstan” and try to find something similar to the ch’hura.
Ch’hura is an exceedingly specific knife: even in Afghanistan it is seen only in the vicinity of the Khyber Pass.

Best I could do.

mahratt · 20th September 2021, 11:08 AM

Of course, the choora is now widespread throughout Afghanistan and samples of this dagger can be found in the bazaar in any city in this country. But, of course, Ariel is right when he says that these weapons are very specific and associated exclusively with Afghanistan. Chooras were not used in Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan

ariel · 20th September 2021, 03:34 PM

Just to make your life easier:
https://travel.state.gov/content/tra...-acronyms.html

Also pay attention that all abbreviations contain at least 3 letters, sometimes even 4, but never only two: otherwise, Chad, Chile and China would become a single entity CH ( but not C-H)'

Ch'hura is a purely Afghan object and name. Even its name is of Hindi origin ( " knife"), to which Kyrgyzstan has nothing in common.

Gosh, what kinds of strange nooks and crannies of languages do we enter on this Forum :-)

19th September 2021, 10:28 PM	#1
RobT Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Posts: 506	Interesting Choora Inscription Hi All, I just picked up this choora which I believe is very recently made. The hilt scales and ears are plastic (made to imitate butterscotch amber perhaps?). Other than the choice of hilt material, the knife is traditionally made. The workmanship and functionality are commensurate with good quality 19th century chooras. The sheath (also traditionally made) is brown leather wrapped wood. The leather has been pierced to show red and silver foil inserts. What is really surprising is the "MADE IN K G" inscription (brass inlay) on the blade. K G is the recognized abbreviation for Kyrgyzstan which is separated from Afghanistan by Tajikistan. Does anyone know if chooras are commonly carried in Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan? I assume that the country of origin designation was made in English because the knife was made for sale to US troops in Afghanistan? Sincerely, RobT Attached Images

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20th September 2021, 02:12 AM	#2
ariel Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Ann Arbor, MI Posts: 5,503	Official abbreviation for Kyrgizstan is KGZ.i have never heard of Ch’huras there. Kyrghiz belong to Turkic tradition, and all their knives I have seen and read about are variations of Bichaq, p’chaq. How about Khwaja Ghar district of Takhar province? Located right close to Khyber, next to Tadjikistan.

20th September 2021, 03:27 AM	#3
RobT Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Posts: 506	Ariel, Thanks for the response. Your explanation sounds more plausible but there seems to be a bit of confusion about Kyrgistan's official abbreviation. Initially, I did a search for "made in KG" and came up with a bunch of sites using Cyrillic. Then I found one that said that the Kyrgistan's official abbreviation was KG (Kyrgyzstan - Abbreviation Finderhttps://www.abbreviationfinder.org). I also found a site ("ISO [Internationa Standard for Organization] Country Codes for Selected Countries - Citing Medicine - NCBI Bookshelf") which lists KG as the official abbreviation for Kyrgyzstan. Wikipedia also lists the official ISO 3166 code as KG. Sincerely, RobT

20th September 2021, 05:48 AM	#4
ariel Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Ann Arbor, MI Posts: 5,503	I got my version from the official list of the US Department of State, Dept. of Consular Affairs: KGZ. Hope they know:-) Google “Kyrgizstan official abbreviation” The abbreviation on your Ch’hura is written as K-G( with a dash, implying 2 separate words), not as KG. You may also google “knives Kyrgizstan” and try to find something similar to the ch’hura. Ch’hura is an exceedingly specific knife: even in Afghanistan it is seen only in the vicinity of the Khyber Pass. Best I could do.

20th September 2021, 11:08 AM	#5
mahratt Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Russia Posts: 1,042	Of course, the choora is now widespread throughout Afghanistan and samples of this dagger can be found in the bazaar in any city in this country. But, of course, Ariel is right when he says that these weapons are very specific and associated exclusively with Afghanistan. Chooras were not used in Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan

20th September 2021, 03:34 PM	#6
ariel Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Ann Arbor, MI Posts: 5,503	Just to make your life easier: https://travel.state.gov/content/tra...-acronyms.html Also pay attention that all abbreviations contain at least 3 letters, sometimes even 4, but never only two: otherwise, Chad, Chile and China would become a single entity CH ( but not C-H)' Ch'hura is a purely Afghan object and name. Even its name is of Hindi origin ( " knife"), to which Kyrgyzstan has nothing in common. Gosh, what kinds of strange nooks and crannies of languages do we enter on this Forum :-)