Folk dances as a culturel transmission tool in Samsun's exchanged people

Anatolia has been both a transit route and a destination point for migration events since the past. Many nations have either made migration movements in this way or migrated to this geography. Exchange, on the other hand, is the return of the descendants of the people who undertook the task of carrying our culture to different geographies centuries ago to our homeland when the places they went to were outside our borders as a land bond. Considering how long the time has passed, it is inevitable that the cultural heritage created in those geographies will be carried to Anatolia together with the immigrants. The immigrant generations are working to transfer these cultural values they carry to their younger generations. The aim of this study is to reveal how Samsun immigrants preserve their cultural values through folk dances and how they transfer them to future generations. The research is guided by the activities of Samsun Balkan Turks Association and supported by visuals that serve as a historical memory. In addition, the application and teaching techniques of folk dances, which are explained with hyperlinks positioned in the thesis, were also accessed through the Youtube channel of Samsun Balkan Turks Association. The findings of the study show that immigrants have developed a strong commitment to transmitting their cultural heritage through folk dances and that these dances function as a means of protecting their identity. It has been determined that folk dances are an important cultural tool that reinforces community belonging and ensures the continuity of the immigrant culture. However, it is concluded that studies in this field are not widespread enough and more comprehensive research is needed, especially due to the lack of written sources.