Mekânda Alevilik

Abstract

Alevism or Kızılbaşlık is a faith and a path that has lasted for thousands of years until today, which has been subjected to systematic discrimination, assimilation and massacres. Hence, Alevis are inclined to explain the undesired changes through the policies of governments and assimilation by attributing the reason of these changes to the external forces. Although not denying the assimilation, repudiation and historical persecution inflicted upon Alevis, this study predicates the source of the change on the community itself. Therefore, how Alevis change and transform Alevism is what will in the main be overemphasized here. Particularly, the loss of function in Alevi institutions due to massive rural migration, urbanization and modernity and factors like 1980 coup d’état’s impacts on the formation of new institutions such as Alevi associations and cemevis in the cities have culminated in a change and transformation of the tradition. Under these urbanized circumstances Alevis could not either conduct cem (the ritual of gathering) till the mornings, days and months or did have a place to carry it out. However, nowadays most of the Alevis neither attend to the cems, the longest of which lasts for four hours or go to cemevis that are specially constructed for this purpose (because of different reasons). Then, a question sticks in one’s mind: How do the Alevis that are outside of this majority proceed in this path? This is where space steps in, as today Alevis continue the path as space produces it. Related to this, the discussion about the production in the space will be pursued in light of Lefebvre’s and Bourdieu’s theories. Thus, this work is an investigation of space which have become the condition, the result and the power of the production and spatial relations through (particularly) Alevism.