The hand symbol in Turkish folk beliefs and practices

The most functional bodily limb used by human beings in carrying out their vital activities is the hand; it has taken place from the prehistoric times, in the religious-magical practices of different societies with its symbolic meanings and functions, in addition to its functions such as making, pulling, holding, and grasping The aim of this thesis is to explore the symbolic meanings and functions of the hand in Turkish-Islamic culture and in other religions and cultures of the world. First, the symbol is defined and its multiple meanings, universality, historicity, and functionality are explained. Its anatomical and biological structure and communicative and sociological functions are introduced. This thesis aims to reveal the symbolic meanings and functions of the hand starting from the traces of hands found on cave walls and on rocks to the monotheistic religions, mysticism and religious-magical beliefs and practices through visual and verbal data from the pre-historic times. The hand, which has the functions of God's creation, blessing, and protection in holy books, becomes the hands of sacred people such as Prophet Fatma, Khidr, Veli, Dervish, Evliya in beliefs and practices of the Turkish-Islamic culture. The hand, which has a symbolic meaning, is also used as a space for certain beliefs and practices. Henna and tattoo traditions, fortune telling by the palm to predict the future and to offer a character analysis are among the topics discussed. The thesis is a descriptive study aimed at analysing the sources and the data based on these resources. The meanings and functions of the hand symbol, which is the focus of the thesis, provides an important knowledge to analyse values, social structure and religious life of society.