Although it is called a village, it seems like another concept is needed to describe it. With only one hundred and forty households, it may be as small as a village, but it is ambitious enough to compete with an elite district of eighteenth-century Istanbul with its rococo-style pencil works decorating the walls of the rooms in each of the two-three-story mansions, its baths with ashtrays built on the second floors of the houses, and its orderly settlement planning.
Yürük Village is a Turkmen village built at the foot of Kepez Hill, 11 km east of Safranbolu, 1 km from the Kastamonu road. The cemetery welcomes you before you enter the village. In many cultures, cemeteries are built far away from the settlement, but in Yörük Village, you cannot enter or leave the village without passing through the cemetery. In this way, every day, you have the chance to remember your lost loved ones, while at the same time remembering how short life actually is. Even if you forget, it reminds you.
Three Brothers named Hussein, Haji and David
Although there is no clear information about the establishment of the Yoruk Village, according to the information passed from ear to ear, in the early 15th century, three brothers named Hüseyin, Hacı and Davut came with their clans and set up their tents in a place called Çökön, which is today’s village square. After residing in tents for a certain period of time, Hacı settled in another region with his clan and established Hacılarobası Village, and Davut established Davutobası Village with his clan. Hüseyin stayed here and the first foundations of the village were laid. The nomadic people settled down after a certain period of time. However, it is possible to see the traces and longing of the nomadic culture in the rooms of the first houses built in the village, which resemble a marching tent.
Migration to Istanbul
In the 18th century, the men of the village worked as bakers and pastry makers in various parts of Istanbul and returned to their villages with the savings they earned and built mansions that resembled the mansions and palaces in Istanbul, each corner of which had a different architectural feature, and carried the Istanbul culture they saw to their villages.
Traces of Bektashi Culture
It is possible to see the traces of the Bektashi culture that once existed in the village both in the architectural details of the houses, in the twelve gen stones of the two-hundred-year old Çamaşırhane (laundry), which is used in common, and in their customs and traditions. In Yörük Village, where tolerance and brotherhood have prevailed for centuries, Bektashis and Sunnis have happily continued their lives under the same roof. Within this cultural mosaic, education and art have always been at the forefront.
Leyla Gencer: La Diva Turca
During the Republican period, students who did not have a school in their villages came to the regional boarding school in Yörük Village to receive education and had the chance to perform music lessons on the violin while being introduced to theater in the school’s performance hall. In fact, many intelligent but poor children were educated in the oldest and most famous schools of Istanbul with the money collected from wealthy families. In particular, girls were always encouraged to study and participate in working life, and the equality between men and women in the village was always remarkable. During the Republican period, the literacy rate reached almost one hundred percent. Leyla Gencer, the world-famous soprano Leyla Gencer, the daughter of one of the well-established families who went to Istanbul, made her name known to the whole world as ‘La Diva Turca.’
At the end of the 19th century, the population of the village was around a thousand people, while today this number has decreased to eighty people. The main reason for this is the migration to big cities and the tradition of having few children. People in this village had as many children as they could take care of and educate.
In 1994, Safranbolu was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List, and this village, which cannot be separated from Safranbolu, is not only my heritage, but also the heritage of any person living anywhere in the world. For this reason, it should be the duty of all humanity to transfer this cultural heritage to future generations without letting it disappear and to ensure that the houses are restored.
Text: Engin Gümüş, Photos: İsmail Şahinbaş
– Engin Gümüş, Professional Tour Guide
WORLD HERITAGE MAGAZINE ISSUE 1 (APRIL 2023)