Imaginary Views of Death: Cemetery, Identity, and Memory (The Case of Yazidis in Turkey)

Abstract

The present study attempts to explore how death and beliefs fashion burial spaces. Building on in-depth interviews, we investigate Yazidis’ images and symbols employed in their cemeteries and how those materials carry traces of their beliefs and cultural practices. To put it another way, we attempt to expound on the belief practices of Yazidis, the smallest minority indigenous to Turkey, through their cemeteries with the help of the visual ethnography approach. Accordingly, we collected the data through interviews with 14 Yazidis living in 5 different villages of Batman and Siirt provinces and observations in four cemeteries. The distinct contribution of this study may root in its addressing of how funeral rituals and symbols play a role in maintaining community memory in beliefs. Our findings suggest that religious memory plays a significant role in preserving religious culture and keeping the past alive.