In 1832, the local feudal lord, Alimbek, who had taken the title "Datka [ru]" and ruled all the Kyrgyz of the Alai, was attracted by the young, vivacious woman and married her.

During the subsequent continuing unrest and sporadic attempts by the local population to shake off Russian supremacy, gun-running and smuggling were profitable businesses and two of Kurmanjan's sons and two of her grandsons were charged with contraband trade and murdering customs officials.

[citation needed] Soon after Kurmanjan Datka became a hermit, she was reported to the emperor Nicholas II, and he decided to give her a special royal gift - a gold ladies' watch with the image of the state emblem of the empire with a chain and brooch, decorated with diamonds and roses.

Accompanied by numerous mounted guards, the Osh district chief arrived in the village of Mady, solemnly presenting the "Queen of the South" with a gift from the emperor.

Russian and foreign travelers, military and statesm en, and colonial officials certainly paid a visit to Kurmanjan Datka if they found themselves in the south of Kyrgyzstan.

There is a case known to history when the people of Kurmanjan saved two British emissaries from death who were caught in a snowstorm on their way from India to Bukhara The "Alai Queen" made a particularly deep impression on Europeans.

Articles about the legendary Kurmanjan Datka, including lifetime ones, were published in Russian, French, German, Polish and many other European publications.

The prize has been repeatedly awarded to figures of science, culture and politics of different countries, in particular, the first Lady Kazakhstan (to Sarah Nazarbayeva)and Russia (Lyudmila Putin)

The president also held a meeting with two great-grandchildren of Kurmanjan, Kyrgyz public figure Chynybek Abdykaparov and professor of economics Adylbek Sultanbekov, who expressed their agreement with the decision of Rosa Otunbayeva.