Views of History and Society in Yezidi Oral Tradition
Frances Christine Allison
University of London
This thesis will study the way in which the Yezidis, a Kurdish-speaking religious minority, perceive and present their history and society. By considering Yezidi oral traditions, the only form of literature available to the entire community, it will analyse the way this community, so often described by outsiders, describes its own history and social institutions. The thesis will confine itself to secular traditions; some scholarly work has already been done on the sacred traditions,1 which in any case are couched in mythological terms and do not present or comment on specific historical events. Most of the traditions which ...
Contents
Part I / 6
Chapter One: Introduction to Yezidi Oral Traditions / 7
Introduction / 7
The Theoretical Perspective of this Work / 8
The Non-Literate Cultural Environment / 20
The Fieldwork Environment / 28
The Yezidi Community in Northern Iraq / 34
The Material Collected / 50
Conclusion / 53
Chapter Two: Genre and Tradition / 54
Introduction and Definitions / 54
Genres Observed In The Field / 58
Composition And Transmission / 90
Conclusions: Relative Status And Future Prospects / 97
Chapter Three: Yezidi Views of History / 101
Introduction / 101
A Yezidi Historical Discourse / 101
Yezidi Chronology 106
Some Elements Of The Yezidi Historical Discourse / 119
Two Important Themes In Historical Tradition / 128
Conclusions / 172
Chapter Four: Love Songs and Stories Among the Yezidis / 174
Introduction / 174
Stories and Songs of Love / 175
Examples of Love Stories / 188
Conclusions: Fantasy, Reality and the Portrayal of Women / 213
Chapter Five: Women's Lament / 218
Introduction / 218
Types of Women's Lament: Performance and Theme / 229
Conclusions: Laments in Yezidi Society / 255
Chapter Six: Conclusions / 261
Part II / 267
Kurdish Texts / 268
Chapter Three: Yezidi Views of History / 268
Chapter Four: Love Songs and Stories Among the Yezidis / 290
Chapter Five: Women's Laments / 320
Translations of Kurdish Texts / 332
Chapter Three: Yezidi Views of History / 332
Chapter Four: Love Songs and Stories Among the Yezidis / 359
Chapter Five: Women's Laments / 396
Appendix: Informants and Performers / 411
Bibliography / 418
INTRODUCTION
This thesis will study the way in which the Yezidis, a Kurdish-speaking religious minority, perceive and present their history and society. By considering Yezidi oral traditions, the only form of literature available to the entire community, it will analyse the way this community, so often described by outsiders, describes its own history and social institutions. The thesis will confine itself to secular traditions; some scholarly work has already been done on the sacred traditions,1 which in any case are couched in mythological terms and do not present or comment on specific historical events. Most of the traditions which will be included are self-referential; they are told by Yezidis about Yezidis. The material transcribed, translated and analysed in this study consists of prose narratives and predominantly lyric poetry;1 2 there is little discussion of 'epic' (heroic narrative) due to lack of examples in the Yezidi community.
Of course, any study made by an outsider cannot hope to understand a community's comment on itself at every level. Nevertheless, the material presented, which has never before been the subject of academic study, offers unprecedented insight into the Yezidis' image of themselves and their world, and into the function in their community of those songs and stories which describe their history and social environment.
Most of the material studied was collected between March and mid-October 1992 in the area of Northern Iraq controlled by the Kurds. Since the intention is not merely to transcribe and translate the data, but to give some account where possible of their function in the community which produced them, it will be necessary in this introductory chapter to describe the social and cultural environment. The chapter will begin, therefore, by outlining a theoretical perspective; the most important implications of study in the Yezidi cultural environment, where verbal art is oral rather than written, will be discussed. The unprecedented general political situation within the Kurdish-held zone at the time when the material was gathered will be described, as will the freedoms and constraints imposed by this choice of fieldwork location, which had a significant bearing on the conduct of the fieldwork. A brief account of the Yezidis' history, social structures and their place in the wider society of the Kurdish-held zone is essential as a general introduction to the material. A full ethnographic description is not intended here, however; such work was not possible in the Kurdish-held zone in 1992, and has in any case been done in more detail by other scholars.3 Questions of genre, the status of singers and their relationship with each other, and performance conventions, will be discussed in detail in subsequent chapters.
Unfortunately a full discussion of the music which accompanies the songs is beyond the scope of this work.
The Theoretical Perspective of This Work
The Yezidi community lends itself particularly to the study of oral traditions within their social context. Not only are the Yezidis a discrete community, but their religious and social structure ensures a greater degree of social and cultural uniformity than might be expected from a group spread over an area stretching from Jebel …
1 Most recently, Kreyenbroek 1995; Murad 1993.
2 All these definitions, and the forms of tradition found, will be discussed at greater length in Chapter Two.
3 See Al-Jabiri 1981.
Frances Christine Allison
Views of History and Society in
Yezidi Oral Tradition
University of London
SOAS
University of London
Views of History and Society in
Yezidi Oral Tradition
Frances Christine Allison
Ph. D. Thesis
SOAS
University of London
1996
