Aslan Dede

General Information

Also Known As

Aslan Dede shrine, Eslan Dede shrine

Type

Ziyareta, Dede

Nahiya (Subdistrict)

Bilbilê

Village or Nearby Villages

Berkaşê

Religious Affiliation

Alevi

Aslan Dede (Eslan Dede) is an Alevi shrine at Berkaşê in the Bilbilê sub-district.1 Its exact location is uncertain. The marker on the map below lies about 2.5 kilometers west of the village, near Kurzêl, Miĥa, and Ĥazira.

Map and Location

Coordinates: 36.725063, 36.771562

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

Dedicated Figure & Historical Roots

Eslan Dede belongs to a wider group of Dede- and Baba-named Alevi sacred places across the district. The spread of these names shows that Alevi followers were once present across much of the district in larger numbers than today.2

Ritual Practices & Beliefs

The shrine is visited for wishes, especially for the birth of children. Jamil Khalil, a visitor from the area, told Rozana that after visiting the shrine he was granted the son he had prayed for, named him Aslan after the martyr buried at the shrine, and offered three sacrifices in gratitude.3 Rozana places the shrine near the village of Çolaqa in the Cindirês area, one more anchor among the differing locations given for it.4

Current Status

Trees at the site were chopped down and some of the shrine's contents thrown on the ground, in an incident reported on February 9, 2019. That report placed the shrine south of Khadiriya in the Bilbilê sub-district, and its exact location remains unresolved.5

Bibliography

References

  1. Mihemed Ebdo Elî, Çiyayê Kurmênc (Efrîn): Dîrok, Civak, Belgekirin (Efrîn: Çapnivîsa Kurdî, 2007). Direct quote: "Ew cihên pîroz ku me naskirin ev bûn: Yaĝmûr Dede - Gu.Bêkê, Eslan Dede - Berkaşê, Îbram Dede- Hopka, Yarim Dede - Be'dîna, Sitî Zêneb û Dewsa 'Elî- Zerka, Elî Dede - Anqelê, Bizilme Dede û Sari Baba û Xidir - Şiyê, Meryem Dede û Xelîl Dede - Gundî Xelîl, Sifrî Dede - Tirmûşa, Şêx Me'im, Şêx Hemo, Siltan Berbe'ûş." English translation: "The sacred places we knew included: Yağmûr Dede - Bêkê, Eslan Dede - Berkaşê, Îbram Dede - Hopka, Yarim Dede - Be'dîna, Sitî Zêneb and Dewsa Elî - Zerka, Elî Dede - Anqelê, Bizilme Dede and Sari Baba and Xidir - Şiyê, Meryem Dede and Xelîl Dede - Gundî Xelîl, Sifrî Dede - Tirmûşa, Şêx Me'im, Şêx Hemo, Siltan Berbe'ûş." The preceding sentences state that these are Alevi sacred places. ↩

  2. Elî, Dîrok, Civak, Belgekirin. Direct quote: "Loma jî, gava ku mera li navçê digere, mera pêrgî gelek cigehên pîroz tê, ku bi navên Dede yan Baba tên nasîn, ew navnîşan jî yên bineola 'Elewî ne. Ji wan cih û navan tê naskirin, ku şopedarên wê bineolê li piraniya deverên navçê hebûn û hejmara wan ji ya niha bêtir bû." English translation: "Therefore, when one travels around the region, one encounters many sacred places known by the names Dede or Baba; these names belong to the Alevi denomination. From those places and names, it is known that followers of that denomination existed in most parts of the region and were more numerous than now." ↩

  3. Muhammad Blu, "في عفرين.. مزارات وخفايا وأساطير" [In Afrin: Shrines, Secrets, and Legends], Rozana FM, https://www.rozana.fm/article/21293. Arabic quote: "مثل الكثير من الناس التي تزور المزارات أنا أيضاً قصدت المزار ليرزقني الله بصبي بعد أربع بنات، وفعلاً بعد زيارتنا رزقنا الله بصبي وأسميناه (أصلان) على اسم (الشهيد) المدفون بالمزار والذي يعني أسد الله، ولأجل ذلك قدمنا ثلاثة أضاحي كرمى لصاحب المزار ولاستجابة الله لدعائنا." English translation: "Like many of the people who visit the shrines, I too went to the shrine so that God would grant me a boy after four girls, and indeed after our visit God granted us a boy, and we named him Aslan after the martyr buried in the shrine, a name meaning the lion of God, and for that we offered three sacrifices in honour of the shrine's owner and for God's answer to our prayer." ↩

  4. Blu, "في عفرين.. مزارات وخفايا وأساطير." Arabic quote: "يعتقد جميل خليل، أنه بعد زيارة مزار "أصلان دادا" قرب قرية جولاقا بريف عفرين، رزقه الله بصبي كما تمنى، لذا سمى ابنه باسم صاحب المزار." English translation: "Jamil Khalil believes that after visiting the Aslan Dada shrine near the village of Julaqa in the Afrin countryside, God granted him a boy as he had wished, so he named his son after the owner of the shrine." ↩

  5. 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: "A third Alevi shrine (after Ali Dada and Af Ghiri), named Aslan Dada, was reported to have been desecrated by Afrin Post on February 9, 2019. A video shows that trees at the site have been chopped down and it appears that some contents of the shrine have been thrown on the ground." Direct quote: "As of yet, we have not been able to locate the shrine. Afrin Post reports that it is located south of the village of Khadiriya, in the Bulbul subdistrict." ↩