İRAN MERKEZİ BÖLGESİ TÜRKLERİNDE AĞAÇ KÜLTÜ
TREE CULT AMONG THE TURKS OF THE MERKEZI REGION OF IRAN

Summary/Abstract: Tree has remained a significant element of Turkish culture from the past to the present because it is the place of holiness, the center of the universe, and the subject of the myths of Derivation in Turkish culture and ancient Turkish beliefs. It is also mentioned in the Orkhon Monuments as a sacred land and sacred water. The cult of tree has left psychological effects on people not only with its aspects in the Turkish belief system and Turkish mythology but also with its symbolism of immortality and rebirth, fertility, and sacredness. This influence has been transferred to the present day through various memorials. For this reason, tree has been a cult with rituals and practices applied by the Turks in the Merkezi region of the Iranian field as well as in the Turkish territories. In the study, after comparing the tree cult in the Merkezi province of Iran with the Turkic world, the ritual practices (ceremonies) related to the sacred trees in the region from past to present will be discussed. The data used in the research consists of folkloric materials collected from oral sources in the region in 2019. The study is limited to both the trees in the Merkezi region that had existed for a certain period of time in the previous years but were cut down or burned for various reasons and the trees that still exist in the region. Lack of recent information on the tree cult of the region has created the necessity for a comprehensive study on the subject in the Merkezi region. As a result of this research, it has been revealed that the tree cult that preserves its existence among the Turks in the Merkezi region has similarities with the tree cults in other Turkish territories both in terms of ideas and practices.

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