Biy () were elected Kazakh

judge A judge is a person who wiktionary:preside, presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a judicial panel. In an adversarial system, the judge hears all the witnesses and any other Evidence (law), evidence presented by the barris ...

s and administrators during the Kazakh Khanate era.Chapter II Common Law Philosophy of the Kazakhs: Potential for Democracy
Council for Research in Values and Philosophy Biys were below

Sultan Sultan (; ', ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it came to be use ...

s in rank.Kazakhstan
Global Ministries, The United Methodist Church Many consider "Biy" to simply be a Kazakh variation of "

Bey Bey, also spelled as Baig, Bayg, Beigh, Beig, Bek, Baeg, Begh, or Beg, is a Turkic title for a chieftain, and a royal, aristocratic title traditionally applied to people with special lineages to the leaders or rulers of variously sized areas in ...

", though there are major differences: like, for example, the fact that "biy" is not an inheritable position. Biys of Kazakhstan were chosen mainly based on their personal qualities. They possessed knowledge of history, the people's lives, customs and traditions, they were distinguished with their wisdom and eloquence. During the years of the strengthening of the Kazakh Khanate (XVII-XVIII centuries) and continuous wars fought with the Dzonghar Khanate, biys of three zhuzs played a major role:

Senior Senior (shortened as Sr.) means "the elder" in Latin and is often used as a suffix for the elder of two or more people in the same family with the same given name, usually a parent or grandparent. It may also refer to: * Senior (name), a surname ...

— Töle Biy, Middle – Qazybek Biy, Junior – Äiteke Biy. They are considered to be three of the most important historical figures in Kazakh history.Embassy of Kazakhstan - History
/ref> During the years of colonialism of the Russian Empire, these professions and their practices were either weakened or stopped completely. The profession of Biys was eventually abolished by an imperial order on 25 March 1891. The was the highest council, a kind of

senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

References

Kazakh Khanate Government of Kazakhstan {{CAsia-hist-stub Judges Legal professions Law enforcement Positions of authority