Transition ceremonies in Tunceli: Birth, wedding and death

Customs and traditions which transform the community into society and enable the transmission of the public awareness to the next generations constitute the foundation of the culture. However, although the rituals of transition period composed by the parts of religion and spiritual beliefs have undergone a change from past to present, they are the customs that bring and hold the society together without losing its strength. In this study "Transitional Periods in Tunceli: Birth, Marriage and Death", the analysis of the customs, traditions and rituals that carried on in Tunceli which are the three most essential phases in each individual's life and have been affected by the social rituals at the steps of birth, marriage and death were done. The symbolic meanings of the hidden messages in these traditions and rituals were identified. In the rituals of transitional periods in Tunceli, it was seen that Islam, along with with Buddhism, Shamanism, Manihaism, Sky Deity, the ancient Mesopotamian civilizations and the spiritual beliefs, had a complex impact on culture. Moreover, it was concluded that the culture was affected by the animatism, totemism and the beliefs that lasted till Islam and it was seen that the cults of Ancestry, Sun, Tree, Stone and Rock, Water and Iron, and lastly Mountain had been actively leading and constructing the traditions. The results of the study showed that although the transitional rituals' primary practices are similar to the past practices, the changes caused by the Tunceli's rural conditions such as urban and rural migration, urbanization, the economic fluctuations and its reflection on human relationships have brought huge changes. The changes resulted from the factors such as growing trend of nuclear families, globalization, the influence of media, and one-sided lifestyle have caused a demolishing effect on the transitional rituals and local culture in general. Despite this corruption, and the changes in modernization and its transformative impact on the application of rituals, those rituals still have a role in bringing the society together and helping the culture to keep its strength.