Rice and Construction of Identity in Uzbek Turks in Ovakent Hatay within the Context of Food Anthropology Cover Image

Beslenme Antropolojisi Bağlamında Hatay Ovakent Özbek Türklerinde Pilav ve Kimliğin İnşası
Rice and Construction of Identity in Uzbek Turks in Ovakent Hatay within the Context of Food Anthropology

Author(s): Alim Koray Cengiz
Subject(s): Anthropology, Cultural history, Customs / Folklore, Ethnohistory, Social history, Identity of Collectives
Published by: Uluslararası Kıbrıs Üniversitesi
Keywords: Hatay; Ovakent; Uzbek rice; food anthropology; material culture; consumption; identity;

Summary/Abstract: After the conflict in Afghanistan, some part of Uzbek Turks who firstly moved to Pakistan and then Turkey were located to Hatay province by the state of the Republic of Turkey in 1982. Uzbek Turks who came to Hatay province reside in Ovakent which is 20 km away from the central city Antakya. Leaving their own social and cultural environment in Afghanistan and obliged to reside in a new location, Uzbek Turks still try to keep their traditions just after 37 years of migration. Uzbek rice which plays a crucial role in nearly all social and cultural activities of Uzbek society - wedding, funeral ceremony, send off to military service - that reside in Ovakent seems to be the signifier of identity for Uzbeks. Uzbek rice is considered to be a material culture instrument that functions to keep and construct Uzbek identity in this ethnographic study which includes field study and participant observation. Rituals in the process of cooking and consuming are dealt with in the context of food anthropology and consumption.

  • Issue Year: 25/2019
  • Issue No: 100
  • Page Range: 953-969
  • Page Count: 17
  • Language: Turkish