The rites of passage among Turks living in Kos-Greece

The rituals accompanying the turning points in an individual's life are called "rites of passage". Rites of passages include stages of life such as birth, puberty, marriage and death that are related to location, situation, social status and age. In this context, this study, dealing with the rites of passage among the Istanköy Turks, is based on a structural analysis of data collected by observations (as passive participants in the fieldwork) and interview (guided interview) technique. The collected data was divided into three stages: separation, trasition and incorporation, each rite of passage was also divided into subgroups and their basic characteristics were determined. The knowledge about the rites of passage among various communities of the Turkic World were utilized in the determination of these characteristics. The significance of the rites of passage in the formation and safeguarding of the national identity has been analyzed in this study. Due to the fact that Istanköy Turks have been living so close to Turkey and the Turks living on the island preferred to remain together in a few villages, the organic bond between Istanköy Turks and the rest of the Turkic World has not ruptured in terms of the application of the rites of passages. That bond has become effective in the formation of national identity consciousness of the Istanköy Turks, and prevented them from being assimilated among the Greeks, who have the majority in the island. This study consists of "Introduction", three main chapters, "Conclusion" and "References". The "Introduction" part consists of eleven subtitles. In the introduction, the problem of naming the Dodecanese was addressed; the geographical characteristics, history, population and economic structure of the Aegean Islands, socio-cultural and religious life, administrative structure, current problems and solutions, and Turkish identity issues in the Dodecanese Turks were discussed. In the "First chapter" of the thesis, firstly the relation between myth and ritual is discussed and information about the transition rituals is given. There are three chapters in the study titled "The Rites of Passage of the Istanköy Turks Related to Birth and Sunnah", "The Rites of Passage of the Istanköy Turks Related to Marriage" and "The Rites of Passage of the Istanköy Turks Related to Death".Each chapter has been structurally analyzed under the headings separation, trasition and incorporation. The "Conclusion" part of the thesis includes findings that were reached as a result of field research, and the sources used in the study are given in the "References" chapter. Keywords: Kos Turks, the rites of passage, birth, circumcision, marriage, death, national identity.