Qerababa

General Information

Also Known As

Qerababa shrine, Ziyareta Qerababa, Tirba Qerababa, Ziyareta Qarebaba, قره بابا

Type

Ziyareta

Nahiya (Subdistrict)

Reco

Village or Nearby Villages

Qere Baba

Religious Affiliation

Muslim

Qerababa is a shrine at the junction of the village of Qere Baba in the Reco sub-district, standing before the village itself. The village takes its name from the shrine. Qerababa is an Ottoman Turkish name, from qere (black) and baba (father). About twenty years before the filming the name was Arabized to El-Sewda, but residents keep the original.1

This is a different shrine from Qere Baba of Xelnêrê, near Coqê in the Efrîn sub-district.

Dedicated Figure & Historical Roots

The site is the tomb of Qerababa, now enclosed by a mosque. A village elder says it holds seven tombs, remembered as seven martyrs, but that the identity of Qerababa himself is unknown, and that even the ancestors did not know who he was. Before the mosque was built, around two to three decades earlier, the tombs stood within a walled stone courtyard.2

Ritual Practices & Beliefs

A village elder recalls that people used to come to the tomb and make animal sacrifices, slaughtering as in the old days, including when they prayed for rain to fall.3

Transcripts

Qere Baba (Ax û Welat – Episode 737):

  • 00:52 – The shrine of Qerababa stands at the village junction, before the village appears.
  • 03:54 – A guest explains that the village is named after the tomb and that Qerababa is an Ottoman Turkish name.

Qerebaba (Ax û Welat – Episode 1053):

  • 03:16 – The tomb of Qerebaba stands inside a mosque.
  • 05:10 – A guest discusses the martyr Qerebaba and the animal sacrifices made at the tomb.
  • 07:10 – Description of the seven tombs, remembered as seven martyrs.

Videography

Qere Baba (Ax û Welat – Episode 737): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lDQnk-ICujM

Qerebaba (Ax û Welat – Episode 1053): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n1xGcIpynVI

Bibliography

References

  1. Ax û Welat, "Qere Baba," Episode 737 (village Qere Baba), YouTube video, at 00:52–04:50, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lDQnk-ICujM. Kurdish quote: "Lê berî gund peyda bibe, ziyaretek heye, vê re dibêjin ziyareta Qerababa." English translation: "But before the village appears, there is a shrine; they call it the Shrine of Qerababa." Kurdish quote: "Gund jî bi navê vê tirbê hatiye naskirin." English translation: "The village too is known by the name of this tomb." Kurdish quote: "Qerababa navekî Tirkî ye... Noka Ereba jî navê Qerababa kirine Sewda." English translation: "Qerababa is a Turkish name... Now the Arabs have named Qerababa Sewda." ↩

  2. Ax û Welat, "Qerebaba," Episode 1053 (village Qerebaba), YouTube video, at 03:16–07:20, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n1xGcIpynVI. Kurdish quote: "em derbasî mizgeftekê bûn. Navê vir mizgeft e, ev jî tirba Qerebaba ye." English translation: "we passed into a mosque. The name of this place is a mosque, and this is the tomb of Qerebaba." Kurdish quote: "Ev şehîda, em zanin em nizanin. Pîşiyê me jî nizanin." English translation: "This martyr, we know of him but we do not know who he is. Our ancestors did not know either." Kurdish quote: "Yanî bêle bî heft tirba, me'rûf bû. Heft tirba... yanî hevo gi şehîd e, heft şehîd e." English translation: "There were seven tombs, it was well known. Seven tombs... they are all martyrs, seven martyrs." ↩

  3. Ax û Welat, "Qerebaba," Episode 1053. Kurdish quote: "Bes gundê, li vir ev şehîda, dihatin li vir, gaboranok nebaran, dihatin dewarên berê çê dikirin, şerjê dikirin. Ma'nî baran bibare..." English translation: "The villagers, for this martyr, used to come here, whether it rained or not, they used to come and make the old sacrifices, they used to slaughter. So that rain would fall..." ↩