Xidir

General Information

Also Known As

Xidir shrine, Ziyareta Xidir, Khidir, Ziyareta Şêx Xidir, Sheikh Khidir, خضر

Type

Ziyareta

Nahiya (Subdistrict)

Şiyê

Village or Nearby Villages

Şiyê

Religious Affiliation

Alevi

Xidir is a shrine in the centre of the large cemetery of the town of Şiyê (Sheikh al-Hadid) in the Şiyê sub-district.1 This is a different shrine from Xidir Balî near Maratê.

Dedicated Figure & Historical Roots

Ibn al-Shihna, in Al-Durr al-Muntakhab, wrote that the tomb of Yusuf bin Asbat lies in the village of Sheikh al-Hadid. That tomb is now unidentified, and the TirejAfrin survey suggests that one of the town's two shrines, Xidir or Sarû Baba, may be connected to it.2

Dr. Mihemed Ebdo Elî, the historian and geographer of the Afrin region, names Xidir at Şiyê, together with Bizilme Dede and Sari Baba, among the Dede- and Baba-named sacred places of the Alevi sect found across the district, whose spread shows that Alevi followers were once present in much of the district in greater numbers than today.3

Bibliography

References

  1. TirejAfrin, "Major Shrines in the Efrîn Region," https://www.tirejafrin.com/site/mazarat.htm. Arabic quote: "ـ زيارة ( خضر ) في وسط المقبرة الكبيرة للبلدة." English translation: "Shrine of Xidir (Khidr): in the centre of the town's large cemetery." ↩

  2. TirejAfrin, "Major Shrines." Arabic quote: "وقد ذكر ابن الشحنة في الدر المنتخب ص127، (( إن قبر يوسف بن أسباط يقع في قرية شيخ الحديد )). وهذا القبر غير معروف الآن ، وقد تكون لإحد هذين المزارين علاقة بالقبر الذي ذكره ابن الشحنة." English translation: "Ibn al-Shihna mentioned in Al-Durr al-Muntakhab, p. 127, 'the tomb of Yusuf bin Asbat is located in the village of Sheikh al-Hadid.' This tomb is now unknown, and one of these two shrines may have a connection to the tomb that Ibn al-Shihna mentioned." ↩

  3. Mihemed Ebdo Elî, Çiyayê Kurmênc (Efrîn): Dîrok, Civak, Belgekirin (Efrîn: Çapnivîsa Kurdî, 2007). Kurdish quote: "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. Ew cihên pîroz ku me naskirin ev bûn: ... Bizilme Dede û Sari Baba û Xidir - Şiyê..." English translation: "When one goes around the district, one encounters many sacred places known by the names Dede or Baba; those designations belong to the Alevi sect. From those places and names it is known that followers of that sect were present in most parts of the district and that their number was greater than it is now. The sacred places we know are these: ... Bizilme Dede, Sari Baba, and Xidir at Şiyê..." ↩