Theological Elements in Lamentations in Karaim Language

Abstract

Karaim Turks are one of the representatives of the Turkic world located in the farthest west, and they are worth examining in terms of seeing the effects of their faith part on literature. There are two groups in the world who have the 'Karaite' belief. The first of these groups is Anan Ben David's VIII. For this reason, the Karaites of Israeli origin, who were called "Ananiye" in the first period and "Karay" in the later periods, were formed. The other group with the Karaite belief is the Karaites of Turkish origin, who converted to this belief in the Caspian Empire. This group, after the collapse of the Khazar Empire, migrated to Crimea, Istanbul, Lithuania and Poland. The Karaites, who are ethnically Turkish, describe themselves as "Karay or Karaylar", and they base their origins not on the Israelites but on the Khazar Turks and emphasize their Turkish roots. Being in a different belief circle did not destroy the common customs they brought from their roots, but gained a new dimension with the rituals and concepts brought by the Karaite belief. We see this difference even in the word that expresses the term 'lament'. For the concept of lament, the Hebrew-originated concept is also used in addition to the terms ‘sığıt, sıyıt, sarnav’ in Karay Turkish. It is also natural that the lament, which is the form of the death incident, which is the last point of human life, the sorrow it inflicts on the immediate environment, has been poured into verses, words and melodies, develops around the faith in the Karaim Turks. In this article, four Karay 'hazzan's who served the Karay community were introduced and the concepts of beliefs found in laments written after their deaths were specified. ‘Hazzan’ is a term used for the clergyman who is in charge of the Karay sanctuary, that is, the kenes. Hazzans not only performed the wor-ship in the kenessa, but also worked for the development and awareness of the people in the society. It is seen that the value and respect that Karaites gave to 'Hazzan' and 'ribbi' (teachers) were reflected in the sentences with the deep sorrow they left on the community after their demise from the world. Especially, the effects of the Jewish belief seen in this mood of sadness and mourning manifest itself with Hebrew borrowing words such as "kahal, Torah, Adonay, mitsva, Shabbat, Shemot, tiḫyat metim, merkava, etc." The four names that were the subject of the four different texts of lament examined were important Karai scholars who served as religious scholars. The common characteristics of these important ribbi and hazzans are "their work for their community, the right personality, knowing the seven wisdoms, living according to the orders of the Torah, and then leaving an honorable name". The texts of lament examined in the study are as follows: ‘Kınası Ribbi Szalomnun Zaḫarjasiewicznin”, ‘Kınası Ribbi Awrahamnın Leonowicznin Ol Szofetnin’, “Kınası Ribbi Jeszua Josef Mordkowicznin”, “Kınası Ribbi Jeszuanın oğlu ribbi David”. The sadness that these hazzans, who were so important to the Karaites, left behind them when they departed from the world was so deep and they lived according to the orders of the Torah and were praised for their honorable qualities they left behind. The Lament texts of the Karaite Turks, dominated by theological elements, have been analyzed within the details given above. קִינָה"kına". © 2023, Milli Folklor Dergisi. All rights reserved.