Aqsaqal

Aqsaqal or aksakal (literally meaning "white beard" in Kipchak languages) metaphorically refers to the male elders, the old and wise of the community in parts of Central Asia, the Caucasus and Bashkortostan.

[1] Acting as advisors or judges, these elders have or had a role in politics and the justice system in countries and tribes.

In Uzbekistan, which has traditionally been a more urban society (the Uzbeks being sarts or town-dwellers, as opposed to Yörüks), cities are divided up into mahallas.

In 1995, then-President of Kyrgyzstan Askar Akayev announced a decree to revitalize the aqsaqal courts.

[2] Akaev linked the development of these courts to the rekindling of Kyrgyz national identity.