Turkish people attach much importance to their
traditions. Every event of family, religious or
laic life is a pretext to feasts that reunite
families. The dates of religious holidays come
10 days earlier each year according to the lunar
calendar.
Religious feasts
-
Şeker Bayramı lasts 3 days and symbolizes
the end of the Ramadan, a 30 day period of fasting.
Members of families wearing their best clothes
visit or are visited by their relatives, offering
each other Turkish
delights, chocolates or other kinds of sweets
(şeker means sweet). Along with the greetings
is the habit of the hand kissing of the elders
(children usually get money). A visit to the cemetery
to render homage to the deceased is also a custom.
- Kurban Bayramı
follows 10 weeks after Şeker Bayrami. The feast
of the Sacrifice (in honor of Abraham)
lasts 4 days. Generally a sheep, a goat or a cow
is sacrificed and a part of it (or the whole of
it) is given for charity. Donations can also be
done to the poors. On the other hand, festivities
are the same as the Şeker Bayramı.
Family feasts
- Circumcision (sünnet) is a practice of
religious significance.
There is no special age for circumcision, but
the young boy must be between 2 and 14 years old.
Circumcision is done by licensed surgeons, but
the operation can take place at home in the rural
areas and villages. Festivities are held with
the whole family and losts of guests. Collective
circumcision is held for poor boys and orphans
by charity organizations.
These young boys wearing circumcision clothing are taken around the city on horseback and are escorted by musicians
-
Marriage is more traditional in the
rural areas where brides still wear special
garments typical of their region. But wearing
the white wedding dress is the custom in
cities and wealthy rural families. Planned
marriages by match-makers are still frequent,
and in the rural areas children may be engaged
when they are very young. According to the
custom, the bride prepares the trousseau,
and the groom's family pays for the expenses
of the marriage and also pays a brideprice.
But this tadition is loosing its popularity.
During the festivities, jewels are offered
to the bride and gold coins are pinned to
her dress in order to protect the couple
from poverty.
Traditional
feasts
They
are more particularly a rural tradition.
Those feasts have origins anterior to Islam.
They are related to the cycle of the seasons.
In summer, crops and vintages are the purpose
to many kinds of festivals.
- Nevruz
the first day of the spring, the Alevis
commemorate the birth of Ali. Women prepare
a traditional receipe, the "aşure"
also called "Noah's pudding" which
is made of boiled wheat, dried fruits and
vegetables, pine seeds.
- Hidirellez
(May 6) commemorates the spring season.
Women and young girls wear crowns of plaited
flowers and express wishes.
Hidirellez celebrations with a band in Istanbul. People pin pieces of paper on which they have written a wish
National holidays
- January 1:
New Year's Day - April 23 :
National İndependance and Childen's Day - May 19 : Youth
and Sports Day is also Atatürk's Commemoration - August 30 :
Victory Day - October 29 :
Republic Day
