The Tradition of Presenting Gold Gifts after Giving Birth in Anatolia

ALP K. Ö., ÖZDEMİR H. M.

FOLK LIFE-JOURNAL OF ETHNOLOGICAL STUDIES, cilt.48, sa.1, ss.35-47, 2010 (AHCI) identifier identifier

  • Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
  • Cilt numarası: 48 Sayı: 1
  • Basım Tarihi: 2010
  • Doi Numarası: 10.1179/043087710x12610655423609
  • Dergi Adı: FOLK LIFE-JOURNAL OF ETHNOLOGICAL STUDIES
  • Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Arts and Humanities Citation Index (AHCI), Scopus
  • Sayfa Sayıları: ss.35-47
  • Anahtar Kelimeler: Anatolia, evil eye, gold, tradition, childbirth, rites of passage
  • Ankara Üniversitesi Adresli: Hayır

Özet

Exchanging gifts is an important aspect of Anatolian culture. The gift must be appropriate to the specifics of particular circumstances. When congratulating a family of a newborn baby, attaching gold to the clothes of the child is the most commonly-observed custom. Attaching gold as a gift relates to an ancient tradition observed in Anatolia. According to this ancient tradition, gold has the function of a nazarlik (amulet) protecting a defenceless baby from anything harmful, most especially the evil eye. In this article, the tradition of attaching gold in Anatolia is described in detail.