Kara-Kirghiz Autonomous Oblast

The Kara-Kirghiz Autonomous Oblast,^[a] abbreviated as Kara-Kirghiz AO^[b] or KAO^[c] in the former region of Soviet Central Asia, was created on 14 October 1924 within the Russian SFSR from the predominantly Kyrgyz part of the Turkestan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic. On 15 May 1925 it was renamed to the Kirghiz Autonomous Oblast. On 11 February 1926 it was reorganized into the Kirghiz ASSR (not to be confused with the other Kirghiz ASSR, the original name of the Kazakh ASSR). On 5 December 1936 it became the Kirghiz SSR, one of the constituent republics of the Soviet Union.

Kara-Kirghiz Autonomous Oblast Кара-Кыргыз өзэркин облусу
Autonomous oblast of the Russian SFSR
1924–1926
Map of the Kirghiz Autonomous Oblast' (formerly the Kara-Kirghiz Autonomous Oblast') in 1925, the Murghob District was part of the Kara-Kyrgyz Autonomous Oblast.
Capital	Pishpek
Historical era	Colonization period
• Creation of Kara-Kirghiz Autonomous Oblast	14 October 1924
• renamed as Kirghiz AO	15 May 1925
• reorganized as Kirghiz ASSR	11 February 1926
Preceded by Succeeded by Turkestan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic Kirghiz Autonomous Socialist Soviet Republic (1926–1936)

Etymology

Kara-Kirghiz is a former name for the Kyrgyz people that literally means 'the black Kirghiz (Kyrgyz)', in reference to the colour of the tents the nomads used.^[1]

Notes

1. Russian: Кара-Киргизская автономная область; Kyrgyz: Кара-Кыргыз өзэркин облусу, romanized: Kara-Kyrgyz özerkin oblusu
2. Russian: Кара-Киргизская АО; Kyrgyz: Кара-Кыргыз АО
3. Russian: КАО; Kyrgyz: КӨО, romanized: KÖO