Lake Shalkar is one of the natural monuments of the Ural region. It is located in Terekty district of West Kazakhstan region. Lake Shalkar is a lake of special ecological, scientific, cultural, recreational and aesthetic value. It belongs to the basin of the Ural River. The Sholakankaty and Esenankaty rivers flow into the lake, and when the water level rises to 15.5 m, the river leaves the lake. Swans, geese, ducks, flamingos, gulls, etc. live in the lake. birds are found.
From ancient times, Lake Shalkar attracted attention, its shores were inhabited by Oguzs and Pechenegs, and later by Kipchak and Turkic tribes - the ancestors of the Kazakh people. This is evidenced by the works of the Arab merchant, scientist Ahmed ibn Fadlan, who visited the Volga Bulgaria in 921-922. Describing his travels from Khorezm to Bulgaria, Ahmed ibn Fadlan paid much attention to the paleography of the Eurasian core in the Middle Ages. In his stories, the Oguz and Pecheneg tribes inhabit the area around Lake Shalkar, and Shamar, Ankaty, and Vabna (Junior Ankaty) flow into the lake. "These are big rivers," he said.
Locals also call Shalkar “Little Sea”. This natural body of water is considered to be very old, and its origin is still controversial. However, one version is satisfactory. The lake is a suffix of the former Khvalin Sea, which was drawn from the Caspian Sea a thousand years ago, and therefore prehistorically was the aforementioned sea on the site of the entire present-day Caspian basin.
The water of Shalkar Lake belongs to the type of salt chloride-sodium mineral water. Water contains hydrochloric acid, calcium bicarbonate, magnesium and other essential minerals. Lake Shalkar has always been an attractive place, so since the X century there have been settlements and urban settlements. Merchants and missionaries were here at different times.
References: 1. Kazakhstan sacred objects
of whole national importance. – Astana: Foliant, 2017. – 166-p.; 2.The sacred Kazakhstan. Volume-2. –Astana: 2018. –318-p.
