Şêx Hemze

General Information

Also Known As

Şêx Hemze shrine, Ziyareta Şêx Hemze

Type

Ziyareta

Nahiya (Subdistrict)

Bilbilê

Village or Nearby Villages

Eli Kera, Baliya

Şêx Hemze is a shrine of Eli Kera and Baliya in the Bilbilê sub-district.

Map and Location

Coordinates: 36.796193, 36.792465

Source: https://akmckeever.substack.com/

Physical & Landscape Features

The shrine is old and its figure is no longer remembered. It also serves as the cemetery of Eli Kera, where the village's dead are brought, and people from the surrounding villages came to it.1

Ritual Practices & Beliefs

When someone falls ill, they come before the shrine. An elder interviewed in the Ax û Welat visit to Eli Kera (Episode 1060) says they are then healed by God's command.2

Current Status

On December 5, 2018, the shrine's large oak, said to be over a hundred years old and a prominent part of the site, was chopped down. The report of the incident names the nearby village as Ze'ire.3

Transcripts

Eli Kera (Ax û Welat – Episode 1060):

  • 32:44 – An elder describes the old shrine of Şêx Hemz, which serves as the village cemetery.
  • 33:16 – He says that when someone is sick they come before the shrine and, God willing, are healed.

Videography

Eli Kera (Ax û Welat – Episode 1060): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iRShgMNe41g

Bibliography

References

  1. Ax û Welat, "Eli Kera," Episode 1060 (village Eli Kera), YouTube video, at 32:44–33:48, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iRShgMNe41g. Kurdish quote: "Zaret, vêra ji xwedê dibînin, zareta Şêx Hemz... Hawa noka zaret e... Şêx Hemz, zareta Elîkero tenê xase. Miriyê Elîkero dibin tînin vê derê." English translation: "The shrine, they regard it as holy, the shrine of Şêx Hemz... Now the shrine of Şêx Hemz is the cemetery of Eli Kera. They bring the dead of Eli Kera here." Kurdish quote: "Şêx Hemz tarîxekî kevn e." English translation: "Şêx Hemz is an old history [the figure is not remembered]." ↩

  2. Ax û Welat, "Eli Kera," Episode 1060. Kurdish quote: "Û her wextê kî jî, her zamanekî jî, yanî her yek nexweş be jî tê ber vê zaretê... yanî bi emrê Xwedê jî çêdibe, înşallah." English translation: "And always, at any time, if anyone is sick, they come before this shrine... and, by God's command, it happens [they are healed], God willing." ↩

  3. Alexander McKeever, "Afrin: Incidents Of Desecration And Destruction Of Cultural Sites," Bellingcat, July 11, 2019, https://www.bellingcat.com/news/mena/2019/07/11/afrin-incidents-of-desecration-and-destruction-of-cultural-sites/. Direct quote: "The official website of the PYDKS, a Kurdish political party historically strong in Afrin, reported on December 5, 2018 that a large shrine tree in the Sheikh Hamza shrine had been chopped down. ... The oak tree, reportedly over 100 years old, was a prominent part of this shrine (located here) near the Bulbul village of Ze‘ire." ↩