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Narratives
Festivals - Ceremonies - Celebrations
Games - Sports
Stereotypical Expressions
Beliefs
Theatrical Presentations
Poetry
The Art of Poetry
Poetry may be defined as an art form that makes use of sounds and rhythmic forms to express an emotion, idea or event in a dense and unusual manner. Since it is one of the oldest means of expression, and one that is unique to man, many different definitions of poetry have been suggested, although none seems to have truly grasped its whole essence. The most widespread of these is to define poetry in contrast to prose. In other words, poetry is the expression of emotions and ideas in rhyme, in a way that is pleasing to the ear and impossible in prose. Yet that definition also includes doggerel. The main difference between that and poetry, is the depth of the former and the superficiality of the latter. For centuries, metre and rhyme have been seen as the defining characteristic of poetry. However, in the same way that these on their own are not enough to produce poetry, the 20th century has seen a large quantity of very successful free verse, containing neither. The question of where prose begins and ends has therefore become an important one. In prose, language is simply a means by which information is passed on, and words have no meaning outside that function. In poetry, the stress is on the words themselves as much as their inherent meaning. In other words, the way a thing is said is more important that what is actually being conveyed.
Landmarks in Life
Folk Knowledge
Architecture, Heating, Illumination
Romany Folk Culture Photography Exhibition and Romany Folk Music Concerts
The Folk Culture Research and Development General Directorate arranged field studies in Kirklareli and Edirne on 23-31st July 2000 in order to determine and promote the culture of Romany people living in Turkey.
A photography exhibition was held with the results of this research lead by the directorate. The opening ceremony for the exhibition took place in the 75th Year Culture Center in Ankara on 29th September, 2000, and Minister of Culture Istemihan Talay presided. After the opening ceremony, the Ministry of Culture’s Edirne Romany Folk Music group gave a concert in the Theatre Hall.
There were 52 black and white photographs in the exhibition, which was open to the public from 29th September to 6th October, 2000.
Costume, Traditional Arts and Crafts, Folk Paintings
Turkey's Mountain Pastures
Folk Dances
Turkish Music Culture
Turkey’s cultural fabric is made up of a rich combination of diverse cultures rooted deeply in history. By virtue of its geographical position, Turkey lies at the axis of the cultures of the East, the West, the Middle Eastern, the Mediterranean and Islam. Anatolia is one of the world’s oldest human habitats – hosts of civilizations have called it home – and it enjoys a unique cultural richness with its thousands of years of history. Anatolia’s cultural variety is so rich that we can see great cultural differences even in areas geographically quite close to each other.
This colorful portrait holds just as true for Turkey’s music.
We can categorize the types of music heard through the years of Anatolia’s long history into four groups:
Program preparation: Oguz Elbas, Prof. Yalcin Tura, Ertugrul Bayraktarkatal, PhD. and Dr. Ismail Lutfu Erol (Members, Ministry of Culture’s Music Council)
For the preparation of this section, the “Period Music” archive has been utilized.
Culinary Culture
Sample Dishes from Turkish Cuisine
Nutritional habits are shaped according to the prevalent cultural - geographical - ecological - economic characteristics and features and the historical process.
When one talks about the Turkish cuisine, the term should be understood as the totality of foods and beverages which provide nutrition to the people living in Turkey, the ways of preparing and preserving them; techniques, equipment and utensils required for this, eating manners and all the practices and beliefs which are developed around this cuisine.
The richness of variety Turkish cuisine possesses is due to several factors. In summary, the variety of products offered by the lands of Asia and Anatolia, interaction with numerous different cultures over a long historical process, the new tastes developed in the palace kitchens of the Seljuk and Ottoman empires have all played a part in shaping the new character of our culinary culture.
Turkish Cuisine, which in general consists of sauced dishes prepared with cereals, various vegetables and some meat, soups, cold dishes cooked with olive oil, pastry dishes and dishes made from wild vegetation has also produced a series of health foods such as pekmez, yogurt, bulgur etc. The eating habits which reflect the tastes changing from one location to the next, gains a new meaning and near - sacredness on special occasions, celebrations and ceremonies.
Turkish Cuisine, while rich in variety and taste-bud friendly, also contains examples which could provide a source for healthy and balanced diets and vegetarian cuisines.
The Turkish World
Balances in the world system have changed as a result of the collapse of the Soviet Union. The process initially led to and economical and political changes, but then affected social-cultural fields, too. Turkey is one of the countries most influenced by the process. Kazakhistan, Kyrgizistan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan declared independence, and have since developed relations, particularly in the cultural dimension, with the Turkish Republic due to the existence of a shared history. Turkey has provided a new direction for its cultural policy in that short process, and has expanded ties to economic and political dimensions. Bilateral agreements on education, culture, economic cooperation have been signed and joint projects regarding foundations, institutions and universities initiated.
In this context, the Ministry of Culture has established the Turkish World Research Agency under the auspices of the Folk Cultures Research and Development General Directorate, and this was followed by new establishments, such as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Turkish Cooperation and Development Agency (TIKA) and the Turkish Culture and Arts Joint Management (TÜRKSOY).
The Turkish World Research Agency has been carrying out studies and cultural research and issuing publications about Turkish communities and societies living outside Turkey. In addition, the agency has also been conducting inventory studies regarding Kazak, Kirgiz, Turkmen, Uzbek and Uygur people who moved to Turkey after the 1950s, and researching their traditional characteristics. The agency published a special magazine called Kazaks Living in Turkey in 1999. Over the next few years, projects regarding Uzbek, Kırgız, Turkmen and Uygur people will be updated and published. A prestigious book called "Gagauz Folk Culture" (Turkish-English) was also published in 1999.
The Turkish World Research Agency also publishes a magazine called "The Turkish World, From the Homeland to the Ancestral Lands". The magazine is published quarterly and is mainly deals with science, culture and art. It contains articles about Turkish communities and societies living inside and outside Turkey. The 17th edition has now been published.
In addition to magazines, field research and inventory studies, the Turkish World Research Agency also offers advisory services on cultural aspects of the Turkish world with the help of local and foreign scientists, experts and others.
The studies carried out directly by or under the coordination of the Turkish Research Agency are as follows:
- "Silk Road Folk Culture, Field Research" (1992-93-94-95-96)
- "Turkish Dialects and Accents and Field Studies"
- "Nevruz celebrations in the Turkish world" (1993-94-95-96-97-98-99), in addition to foreign studies regarding Nevruz celebrations, it has also issued special volumes about Nevruz in the Turkish world, posters and brochures.
- "Research into the Culture Profile in the Turkic Republics" prepared and published by SIAR
- "A Gift for the 2500th Year of Merv" (1995-96) was prepared for publication.
- "An International Symposium on the 1,000th Year of Manas Tale" (1995) was held. A special edition of Turkish world Manas was prepared.
- "The Turkish World Photography Exhibition" was held abroad and inside the country.
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