According to one story, long ago, when the Kyrgyz were a single tribe living at the foot of high snowy peaks, there was a beautiful girl named Cholpon. Her eyes shone like the clear sky and stars. Two young men, Ulan and Santash, fell in love with her, but Cholpon could not decide whom to choose. The lovers, willing to do anything for her love, began a fierce struggle against each other. They were unwilling to yield and fought with incredible fury.
Cholpon did not want to hurt the feelings of either, and in the end, she decided to leave this life by pulling out her heart. Her body was found on the mountaintop, facing the rising sun. Her family, upon learning of her tragic loss, mourned for a long time. Their tears flooded the valley, and thus the Issyk-Kul Lake was formed. Soon after, people divided into tribes that settled on the northern and southern shores of the lake.
Cholpon's father, who loved to gaze at the starry sky and ponder, took his daughter with him every day to admire the bright light of the sky before dawn. He preferred one spot on the sunny slope of the mountain, which became known to all the residents as "Cholpon Ata." It was there that his daughter was buried. Over time, this area, which became a monument to their memory, was named Cholpon-Ata.
