Christmas Tree, Christmas, Central Asia Turks, Mesopotamia and Anatolian Traditions

YESAM (Culinary Arts Center) hosted the seminar “New Year Celebrations from Santa Claus’s Homeland” presented by journalist and food culture researcher Nedim Atilla.  Mr. Atilla started his presentation by explaining the significance of holly. He mentioned that holly is actually a Turkish (Central Asia Turks) tradition, as is the tradition of decorating evergreen pine trees.

Nedim Atilla continued: “The tradition of celebrating the arrival of the new year by gathering around a table set for a feast is, as you might guess, also a tradition of the Central Asian Turks. New Year’s is, for millions of people, a time to evaluate the past year and set new goals, New Year’s resolutions so to speak, for the coming year. Today’s world demands that we not only set goals but also achieve them, just like the promise given to the Goddess of Harvest, Demeter, by the people of Metropolis.  Once we take a look into the history, the cults have shown us that many varieties of trees were accepted as Gods. Assyrians and Celtics were among the first to consider trees holy, after the primitive societies. Assyrians especially saw the evergreens as a symbol of prosperity and immortality. To show their faith and respect they decorated these trees with reproductive organs of bulls, with the hopes of increased reproduction in the new year. Similar beliefs also existed in Armenian mythology, in the rituals they exercise for the God of New Year, Amanor.

Santa Klaus in reality is Nicholas of Myra, a Christian saint, who was born in Patara. He built a church on Gemile Island near the Göcek-Fethiye shore and spent his life in Demre until his death. The ruins of his church are being dug out by a group of Japanese archeologists. Since we are on the topic of where Saint Nicholas lived, the climate was mild in the winter time and unbearably hot in the summer time. As you might guess, he did not dress in the red furry clothes that we know of today, due to the climate of his homeland.”

Mr. Atilla also read exerpts from an essay on Christmas in Istanbul, written by Vedat Basaran, founder and director of YESAM (Culinary Arts Center). He pointed out that “different communities from a variety of cultures and religions who celebrate their holidays have made Istanbul a very special city, which has been long-favoured by many civilizations and empires in the course of history.”

After Mr. Atilla’s presentation, the guests had a chance to taste a variety of traditional dishes, including one that has been around for 2000 years, all prepared by Nar Lokanta head chef Mustafa Yildiz and his team.

New Year’s Tasting Buffet included:

• Manastır Yemeği (Monastery Stew - a dish resembling onion stew)
• Hibeş (A meze prepared by tahini, lemon juice, garlic and cumin)
• Agristada (A garnish for fish made from eggs, flour and lemon juice)
• Hindi Dolması (Baked stuffed turkey)
• Soğanlı Patlıcanlı Köfte (Pan-fried meatballs with onions and eggplant)
• Holandez Balığı (Baked seabass with cheese sauce and wine)
• Kirkite (Croquant with sesame)
• Kestaneli Kütük Pasta (Yule log)

Lecture video is in Turkish.