Yenituran Primary school Ankara, TURKEY

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OUR LEGENDS

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1.The Turkish Legend of DerivationThis is the first major legend and one of the traditionally most famous among Turks. While the legend describes how the Great Turkish Empire succeeded to the highest position in the World, it also explains how the creation of their descendance came about. It had reinforced the belief among all Turkish clans that their descent arose from a divine source. The epic story is believed to have originated from the eight century, perpetuated by oral tradition up to the fifteenth century before being written down.

The Legend

One of the biggest Turkish emperors had two daughters and they were both extremely beautiful. They were so beautiful that people believed these two daughters could only marry beings with supernatural powers and that these women were not created for humans.As the emperor believed this same idea, he searched for ways of keeping his daughters away from people. In the farthest point of his land, a place where no man had neither walked nor seen before, he built a tall tower and locked his two daughters into this tower. He then prayed and begged so adamantly that the god who he believed in could not resist.

The god came down to earth, took the form of a greywolf, and married the daughters of the emperor.

Nine children were born after this marriage; They were named the Nine "Oguz" (meaning a good-hearted decent) and their voices resembled that of a greywolf.

In the end, these children all carried the spirit of the Greywolf, their population grew and thus the Turks embody characteristics such as great strength, great courage, and great agility.

2.LEGEND OF FISH LAKE in URFA Nemrut is a ruler who spreads terror and fear all around.

One night he asks for an interpretation of his dream. He learns one of the children born that year will kill him and commands that all the children born be killed. Sara, mother of the Prophet Abraham, gives birth to her child in a cave, leaves him there and goes home. A gazelle nurses the baby. After awhile, soldiers find Abraham in the cave. Nemrut, who never had a child, decides to take care of Abraham. Witnessing the horror of Nemrut forcing his people to worship statues, when everyone

leaves for a ceremony, Ibrahim enters the area of statues in the palace and breaks all the statues with an axe, finally leaving the axe in the hands of the largest statue.During his trial, Abraham protests his innocence, saying ?You see the axe is in the hands of the big statue; probably he is the one who did it.? Furious, Nemrut shouts, ?How can a piece of stone take an axe and do this?? Ibrahim replies; ?If he is a real God, why can?t he do it?? Infuriated, Nemrut commands Abraham to be thrown into the fire. Although Zeliha, daughter of Nemrut, begs for mercy, she can?t convince her dad.

Wood is piled up in the area of ?Halil-ul Rahman Lake? and the fire is set. The place where the Prophet Abraham fell into the fire becomes a lake and a rose garden and the woods become fishes. Zeliha throws herself into the fire after Abraham and the place becomes known as ?Aynzeliha Lake.?

3.The Legend of Turkish Kazdaği Sarıkız (meaning Blonde Girl or Fair Maiden) lived a the

town called Edremit district, in the province of Balıkesir. Sarıkız was a beautiful and good hearted girl without a mother. She lived in the village of Güre in Edremit only with her father. A shepherd family, loved by the whole town because some people believed her father was a saint.

One day her father decided to go on pilgrimage and leave his girl alone. He entrusted her daughter to his neighbour.  Of course this was a time when young boys wanted to take advantage and marry her.

She didn’t accept any proposal. Because of this situation, some of them got mad,  and started malicious rumours about the girl. When her father came back to his home, he heard people were talking about his daugher and her lost virginity, so he decided to take her and a geese to the peak of Kazdağları. He left them there…

After a while, Sarıkız dad heard new rumours about the blonde girl again, it was something like she was helping lost villagers. He decided to visit her where he left her and after a whike he found her.

He stayed with her and as he wanted to wash himself before praying, he asked his daughter to fetch some water. Sarıkız gave salty water to him because she had

reached her hand across the mountain and filled her container with water from the sea. The father realized that his daughter, Sarıkız, had become a saint.

Sarıkız, realising that her secret was discovered, died on the spot. Her father was deeply saddened by this and also died on the next peak ahead.

Villagers refer to the spot where Sarıkız died as Sarıkız Tepesi (Sarıkız Hill) and the area where the father died as Baba Dağı (Father’s Hill). Every year villagers remember this legend and climb Kazdağları to Sarıkız Tepesi. They sacrifice one sheep and cook in a feast.

4.Nasreddin Hodja Tales of the Turkish Trickster About Nasreddin Hodja

Nasreddin Hodja is Turkey's (and perhaps all of Islam's) best-known trickster. His legendary wit and droll trickery were possibly based on the exploits and words of a historical imam. Nasreddin reputedly was born in 1208 in the village of Horto near Sivrihisar. In 1237 he moved to Aksehir, where he died in the Islamic year 683 (1284 or 1285). As many as 350 anecdotes have been attributed to the Hodja, as he most often is called.

Hodja is a title meaning teacher or scholar. He frequently is compared with the northern European trickster Till Eulenspiegel.

The many spelling variations for Nasreddin include: Nasreddin, Nasrettin, Nasrudin, Nasr-id-deen, Nasr Eddin, Nasr-eddin, Nasirud-din, Nasr-ud-Din, Nasr-Eddin, and Nasr-Ed-Dine.

The many spelling variations for Hodja include: Hodja, Hodscha, Hoca, Chotza, Cogia, Khodja, and Khoja.

Everyone Is Right Once when Nasreddin Hodja was serving as qadi, one of

his neighbors came to him with a complaint against a fellow neighbor.

The Hodja listened to the charges carefully, then concluded, "Yes, dear neighbor, you are quite right."

Then the other neighbor came to him. The Hodja listened to his defense carefully, then concluded, "Yes, dear neighbor, you are quite right."

The Hodja's wife, having listened in on the entire proceeding, said to him, "Husband, both men cannot be right."

The Hodja answered, "Yes, dear wife, you are quite right."

5.The Şahmaran Legend  There are many interesting stories to be found relating

to Tarsus; of these, the ones concerning Şahmaran are the most interesting . It has become the best-known and most retold tale in the city and its environs. The story relates the events of a young man by the name of Camsab and Şahmaran the king of the snakes, a creature with a human head and a snake’s body. The tale is a story of close friendship, a deep secret and

betrayel that ends in death .

 The story begins when Cansab the wood cutter is lowered into a well by a group of friends to get honey. Thus, he finds himself in Şahmaran’s underground world where he is destined to stay due to his friends abandoning him. Snakes capture him and he appears before Şahmaran himself. Cansab explained how he came to be there upon which Şahmaran shares a secret with the young man. Cansab is then forced to stay for fear that the secret would be told to those living above. After very long period of time Şahmaran gives in to the pleadings of the young man to released back to his own world. He is advised not to tell of what he has seen or to go to the baths. It was said that if he should enter the baths his skin would turn to snake scales.

 Cansab returns to his own world and for many years tells no one of the events that took place. However the countries ruler become ill and Şahmaran is blamed for the illness. Soldiers begin to look for anyone who has seen Şahmaran.  The rulers men begin to take people one by one to the baths where they are to wash themselves in order to see who knows more than what they are telling. Cansab hides for fear of this test but is ultimately captured and returned to the city. When he washes in the baths, his skin turns to snakes scales and the secret is thus brought to light. The man is then persuaded to reveal how to get to Şahmaran’s hiding place.

 

The king of snakes is captured very quickly, taken to the baths, cut into three pieces and sent to the ruler. Upon beign cured the ruler makes Cansab grand vizier and as result all the snakes of the world became the mortal enemies of mankind.

BYE!

Cahide Nisan BALRabia ÖZÇELİKAhmet DemirhanEmre ÇALIŞMIŞDoğukan ÜNAL

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