Extraordinary Beliefs in The Turks of North Macedonia and The Practices That Arise Related to Them

Abstract

In almost every period of history, Turkish living spaces have witnessed many beliefs and these beliefs have brought about many practices. These practices and rituals, which are considered cultural values, were and still are considered the most important treasure that forms the basis of Turkish heritage. This study reveals some extraordinary beliefs that two neighbouring people living in Anatolia and the Balkans maintain with the help of similar cultural elements from the past, and some practices around these beliefs, with the help of compilations made with source persons from the North Macedonian Turks. As a result of the compilation studies conducted with Turks from North Macedonia, information obtained from oral and written sources is used to discuss how the extraordinary beliefs in North Macedonian Turkish culture and the resulting practices are continued among the North Macedonian Turks. The aim is to determine the unifying features of Turkish culture and to reveal where the differences lie by examining the extraordinary beliefs of the North Macedonian T urks, along with some practices and rituals that continue to be kept alive in parallel. © 2025 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.