Semantics of the traditions in the kazakh folk culture associated with a baby under the age of one
Kazak halk kÜltÜrÜnde bİr yaŞa kadarkİ bebekle İlgİlİ gerÇekleŞtİrİlen geleneklerİn anlamsal boyutu
Nazarova A. Temenova G.
2021Milli Folklor Dergisi
Milli Folklor
2021#17Issue 129176 - 191 pp.
Each person, from the moment of birth to the end of his life, performs a number of customs and rituals that carry invaluable meaning. Tradition is the generally accepted rules of behavior that accumulate over the centuries in accordance with the religion and beliefs, lifestyle and national identity of each nation, created by living conditions, patterns of behavior that form in society, separating one cultural group from another in everyday life and regulating social actions. Every society has its own form of life, traditions, customs and believes. Traditions, customs, prohibitions, taboos and rituals occupy a special place in the Kazakhs’ process of educating the younger generation. If we look at the traditions and customs of the Kazakh people, we will see that there are many traditions, customs, prohibitions and rituals associated with the birth of a child. Some rituals begin even before the birth of a baby. This article discusses in detail the traditions performed from the birth of a child to the turn of the age one, and also emphasizes the features and importance of these traditions. In the heritage of Kazakhs connected with raising children, there are many traditions about the family. The traditions of raising a child include educational traditions that have existed since the birth of the child. These are the rules for preparing girls and boys for family formation, survival and work in the future. Traditions shape a person’s behavior from birth to death, his worldview and relationships with others. From folk wisdom, “Altı zhil ash bolsan da atannin saltin umitpa” (even if you are hungry for 6 years, still do not forget the tradition), we see that tradition is a social phenomenon based on beliefs and everyday life of people and handed down from generation to generation. It is formed with upbringing given by parents. In this article, the basics of the Kazakh traditions connected with the newborn child are discussed such as kursak shashu, jeriktik oris, kindik sheshe, jariskazan, shildehana, itkoylek, kalja, besik toi, kyrkynan shigaru, bauırınan tabak alu and tusaukeser. Kursak shashu or kursak toy is the ancient ritual dedicated to pregnant woman. The purpose of the kursak shashu ritual, performed by a motherin- law, who found out that her bride was pregnant, is to share her joy with others and draw attention to the fact that after this day, the expectant mother needs special care. The ritual performed at the time when it started the pain of childbirth, called jariskazan. This ritual is performed with the intention that the bride will give birth unharmed for a short period of time until the cauldron boils and the food is ready. The rituals such as the lifting newborn baby off the ground and asking for good news takes places after the birth of a child. The childs umbilical cord is cut off by a large and respected woman called kindik sheshe. After this she cuts baby’s hair while people say wishes like bawı berik bolsin. After a certain time following birth, there is a celebration called shildehana. In order to regain former strength the mother of a child has to eat kalja. In 40 days after the rituals such as balani avızdandıruv, giving name to a child, besik toy there is a ritual called kırk çıkarma. After six or seven months, the bawırınan tabak aluw ritual is performed when the baby is eager to crawl, and the tusawkeser ritual is performed when he learns to stand and starts to step. The entire article covers all these rituals in detail, as well as explains the semantic meaning of rituals performed in Kazakh folk culture associated with a baby under the age of one.
Baby birth , Birth-related rituals , Child upbringing , Kazakhs , Traditional culture
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El-Farabi Kazak Milli Üniversitesi, Şarkiyat Fakültesi, Türkoloji Bölümü, Almatı, Kazakhstan
El-Farabi Kazak Milli Üniversitesi
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