Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of the Turkish Republic and its first President, stands as a towering figure of the 20th Century. Among the great leaders of history, few have achieved so much in such a short period, transformed the life of a nation as decisively, and given such profound inspiration to the world as […]
TURKISH FOLK MUSIC & DANCE
Ahmet Adnan Saygun said; “There is no difference between excavating the ground to reveal an ancient monument and compiling folklore traditions or music. To arrive at broad conclusions; neither the one nor the other should be neglected. Do Various Turkish Dances Have a Common Source? Like many of the Arts of Anatolia, its folk dances […]
CAMEL WRESTLING FESTIVALS IN TURKEY
Before the wrestling tradition itself and except for its nomadic purposes in history, camels were never unique to Turkey. Whereas, you can still see these camel owners even while visiting a historical site. There are no tours organized like in Egypt for hours, but feel free to get on one and make a short tour […]
WHIRLING DERVISHES CEREMONY & CULTURE IN TURKEY
Islamic mysticism seeks awareness of god in manner being, and hence the various mystic sects of tarikats of whirling dervishes or Sufis in Turkey and other countries have generally been characterized by open-mindedness, vision, exuberance, and lot of the arts, particularly music and poetry. Their tendency to relegate doctrine and the outer forms of worship […]
WHO IS RUMI
Jalāl ad-Dīn Muhammad Rūmī also known as Jalāl ad-Dīn Muhammad Balkhī, Mawlānā (“our master”), Mevlânâ, Mevlevî (“my master”), and more popularly simply as Rūmī (1207 – 17 December 1273), was a 13th-century Persian poet, jurist, Islamic scholar, theologian, and Sufi mystic. Rumi’s influence transcends national borders and ethnic divisions: Iranians, Tajiks, Turks, Greeks, Pashtuns, other […]
TURKISH COFFEE IS IN UNESCO
Turkish Coffee (Turkish: Turk Kahvesi) is now included in the list of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Turks by UNESCO. The issue was decided at the UNESCO committee’s session in Baku on 5th December 2013. Around 800 delegates from 116 countries took part in the sitting, which included the discussions on 38 proposals and the proposal for including […]