CAMEL BREEDING AND CAMEL CULTURE IN BEŞKAZA REGION

Abstract

Nomadic life, one of the basic elements of Turkish culture, is a way of life that 
extends from past to present. Nomadic Turks, living in summer pastures and winter quarters 
within certain distances, domesticated various animals in various periods of history. The first 
activities regarding the domestication of camels date back to B.C. It took place in the territory of 
Uzbekistan in the 4000s. Following this development, camel breeding began to spread to the 
geography of Turkestan as a result of camels' ability to withstand difficult conditions, their 
usefulness in transporting heavy loads, their resistance to hunger and thirst, their non-selective 
diet and the availability of their meat, milk, feathers and skin. With the position it has acquired 
in social life, the camel has turned into an animal to which mythological and cultural meanings 
are attributed over time. In the ancient Turkish religion, the idea that the gods were vehicles 
and symbols of power was accepted. After the acceptance of Islam, Hz. The value of the camel 
among the Turks increased even more because it was the Prophet's riding animal. Turks took 
their camels to the new geographies they migrated to and benefited from them. The first traces 
of camel breeding in the Beshkaza lands, one of these geographies that became homeland, date 
back to A.D. 12th-13th. It dates back centuries. With the mountainous structure of the 
geography and the nomadic life that has continued to be practiced since Turkestan, camels have 
become the primary subject of the Yoruks. Various folk beliefs, oral culture products, human 
elements and medical practices have been developed over time for camels, whose place in the 
eyes of the society is clear with the saying "It is the camel that makes the nomad, it is the horse 
that makes the nomad lord". In our study, the historical origins of camel breeding among 
Beşkaza Yoruks, the types of camels bred and the cultural elements related to camels were 
examined in the light of written sources and findings obtained from resource persons.