The Yezidis : the history of a community, culture and religion / Birgül Açikyildiz.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Açıkyıldız, Birgül, author.

Series:

Library of modern religion ; 17.

Library of modern religion ; 17

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Yezidis--History.

Yezidis.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (318 p.)

Place of Publication:

London ; New York : I.B. Tauris ; New York : Distributed in the United States and in Canada exclusively by Palgrave Macmillan, 2010.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Yezidism is a fascinating part of the rich cultural mosaic of the Middle East. Yezidis emerged for the first time in the 12th century in the Kurdish mountains of northern Iraq. Their religion, which has become notorious for its associations with 'devil worship', is in fact an intricate syncretic system of belief, incorporating elements from proto-Indo-European religions, early Persian faiths like Zoroastrianism and Manichaeism, Sufism and regional paganism like Mithraism. Birgul Acikyildiz offers a comprehensive appraisal of Yezidi religion, society and culture. Written without presupposing an

Contents:

Contents; List of Illustrations; Acknowledgements; Abbreviations; Introduction; Meeting the Yezidis; Geographical Location and Distribution; 1. Origins, History and Development; Yezidis in Mesopotamia and Anatolia; Yezidis in Syria; Yezidis in Transcaucasia; 2. Religious Belief System; God, Angels and the Trinity; God (Xwedê ); Angels; The Peacock Angel (Tawûsî Melek); Sultan Êzi; Sheikh 'Adī; Yezidi Mythology; The Creation of the Cosmos and the Universe; The Creation of Human Beings; Th e Flood; Holy Books; Religious Hierarchy; 3. Religious Practices, Observances and Rituals

Haircut, Baptism, Circumcision, Brother of the Hereafter, Marriage, DeathPrayer; Fasting; Pilgrimage; Festivals and Ceremonies; Taboos; 4. Material Culture; Homeland, Landscape, Sacred Places; Places of Worship; The Sanctuary; Mausoleums; Shrines; Th e Baptistery; Caves; Tombstones; 5. Conclusion; Appendices; Appendix I: Yezidi Saints; Appendix II: Genealogy of the Umayyads and Sheikh 'Adī's Family; Appendix III: Genealogy of the Early Shamsani Family; Appendix IV: Yezidi Mausoleums in Northern Iraq; Appendix V: Typology of Mausoleums in Northern Iraq

Appendix VI: Typology of Mausoleums in the Republic of ArmeniaGlossary; Notes; Interviews; Bibliography; Index

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9781350149274

1350149276

9780755624423

0755624424

9780857720610

0857720619

OCLC:

772844849