Official name of Kazakhstan is the Republic of Kazakhstan. Kazakhstan is the largest nation in the central Asian region. Kazakhstan was a part of the Silk Road that connected the West and the East. Kazakh means a wanderer in ancient Turkish, and -stan is a suffix, meaning land. As the name of country suggests, the ancestors of the Kazakhstan were nomadic tribesmen, living in Yurts, a circular domed dwelling. A few people still choose to lead the nomadic or the nomadic-like lives. Horses are considered to be important to Kazakhstanis lives due to the nomadic lifestyle. The horse meat is common in Kazakhstan, and there are many games or races that use horses. Kazakhstan achieved its independence from the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 and has successfully transformed itself from communism into capitalism. Kazakhstan is achieving rapid economic growth owing to its abundant natural resources, especially oil.