The role of women in music transmission of the belief of alevi and bektashi: The example of bursa-sehitler village

Abstract

The most striking point when compared Alawi and Bektashi belief and other sects within the Islamic religion is that worship is held together with men and women. The fact that this is the first feature highlighted by individuals who have or do not have faith, has made the women's nefes (hymn) performed by the community more visible in the ritual of the Alawi and Bektashi community of Bursa-Sehitler village, which is the research area of the study. Thus, the main purpose of the study is to examine gender equality through religious rituals in the Alawi and Bektashi community of Sehitler Village, which is located in Inegöl district of Bursa province, and try to determine the role of women, especially in the transmission of religious identity, and the way of defining themselves. Because, when the studies conducted in the dimension of belief are examined, mostly, with the influence of the patriarchal structure, the emergence of the identities of dede (the leader of rituals) and zakir (the bard in rituals) as men leads to the questioning of gender equality during worship. Within this context, some part of data gained in the field study is discussed in the article, and the theoretical framework is formed by transference, identity and related gender theories.