Turkey

I conducted fieldwork in Turkey between 2003 and 2005.

I worked in the suburbs of Istanbul and Diyarbakir among Kurdish refugees. I describe their melodised narratives of war and exile in my masters thesis and in this article.

I also conducted fieldwork in Hakkari on women's repertoires (laments, lullabies, epics and wedding songs).

Melodised narratives in Olgunlar (April 2005)
  • Melodised narratives in Olgunlar (April 2005)

  • Olgunlar is a village on the Zap river (Hakkari district).

Melodised narratives in Olgunlar (April 2005)
  • Melodised narratives in Olgunlar (April 2005)
Listening to melodised narratives in Olgunlar (April 2005)
  • Listening to melodised narratives in Olgunlar (April 2005)
Drinking tea while listening to narratives. Olgunlar (April 2005)
  • Drinking tea while listening to narratives. Olgunlar (April 2005)
Zap river in Olgunlar (April 2005)
  • Zap river in Olgunlar (April 2005)
Zap river near Hakkari (April 2005)
  • Zap river near Hakkari (April 2005)
Newroz in Diyarbakir (March 2005)
  • Newroz in Diyarbakir (March 2005)

  • Newroz marks the first day of spring and the beginning of the year in Persian calendar. It is celebrated on 21st of March throughout many countries of the Middle East and Central Asia. In Kurdish legend, the holiday celebrates the deliverance of the Kurds from a tyrant.

Newroz in Diyarbakir (March 2005)
  • Newroz in Diyarbakir (March 2005)

  • In Turkey, Newroz is largely considered as a symbol of Kurdish identity. Usually organised by Kurdish cultural associations and pro-Kurdish political parties, Newroz celebrations were prohibited until 2000.

Newroz in Diyarbakir (March 2005)
  • Newroz in Diyarbakir (March 2005)

  • During Newroz celebrations, women wear colored dresses and spangled head scarves and young men wave flags of green, yellow and red, the colors of the Kurdish people.

Newroz in Diyarbakir (March 2005)
  • Newroz in Diyarbakir (March 2005)

  • During Newroz celebrations, Kurds dance aroung fire listening to Zurna (oboe) and Davul (drum).

Newroz in Diyarbakir (March 2005)
  • Newroz in Diyarbakir (March 2005)
Kurdish refugees in Diyarbakir (March 2005)
  • Kurdish refugees in Diyarbakir (March 2005)
Henna ceremony in Hakkari (December 2004).
  • Henna ceremony in Hakkari (December 2004).

  • A few days before the wedding.

Wedding in Hakkari (December 2004)
  • Wedding in Hakkari (December 2004)

  • The closest relatives of the bride dance and sing in the house before the bride's departure.

     

Wedding in Hakkari (December 2004)
  • Wedding in Hakkari (December 2004)

  • Women's dance (govend) on the hillside.

Wedding in Hakkari (December 2004)
  • Wedding in Hakkari (December 2004)

  • Women's dance (govend) on the hillside.

Wedding in Hakkari (December 2004)
  • Wedding in Hakkari (December 2004)

  • Men's dance (govend) on the hillside.

Bercelan pasture (July 2004)
  • Bercelan pasture (July 2004)

  • Located on Hakkari's uplands, Bercelan used to be an important place of summer pasture. In the last decades, due to the war between the Turkish army and the Kurdish guerilla, seasonal migration of livestock to Bercelan has regularly been forbidden by the Turkish army.

Lament performers in Diyarbakir (April 2003)
  • Lament performers in Diyarbakir (April 2003)

  • Zeynep (on the left) is wellknown for her laments on Abdullah Öcalan, a founding member of the separatist Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). He was captured in 1999.

Kurdish refugees in Istanbul (February 2003)
  • Kurdish refugees in Istanbul (February 2003)

  • Refugees from Siirt leaving in a slum (gecekondu) in Istanbul suburb.