Ashik

An Ashik (Turkish: aşık, Azerbaijani: aşıq, Armenian: Աշուղ) is a mystic troubadour or traveling bard, in Turkey, Azerbaijan, Armenia and Iran who sings and plays the saz, a form of lute. Ashiks' songs are semi-improvised around common bases.

The Ashik tradition in Turkic cultures of Anatolia, Azerbaijan and Central Asia has its origin in the Shamanistic beliefs of ancient Turkic peoples .

The ancient ashiks were called by various names such as bakhshi(Baxşı), dede (dədə), and uzan. Among their various roles, they played a major part in perpetuation of oral tradition, promotion of communal value system and traditional culture of their people.

These wandering bards or troubadours are part of current rural and folk culture of Azerbaijan, and Iranian Azerbaijan , they also can be found in Turkey and Turkmenistan (where they are called bakshy) and in the Turkmen Sahra (Iran).

Etymology

The word Ashik, derives from Arabic word Asheq (عاشق), and means the "one who is in love".

It is also sometimes used as a male personal name.

The Ashik tradition has a very close relation with the mystic Alevi tradition of Turkic tribes of Azerbaijan and Anatolia. The love is the core part of Alevi spiritual values and provides the foundations of their belief system.

See Ishq

Major Ashik Stories

As the art of Ashik is based on oral tradition, the number of ashik stories can be as many as the Ashiks themselves. Throughout the centuries of this tradition many interesting stories and epics have thrived, and these are the ones who handed down. The main themes of the most Ashik stories are worldly love or epics of wars and battles or both.

• The epic of "Koroghlu" is one of those which combine the occasional romance with Robin hood like chivalry. Azerbaijani composer Uzeyir Hajibeyov has created an opera by this name, using the Ashik stories and masterfuly combined some Ashik music with this major classical work.

• Ashik Kerib, made famous by Mikhail Lermontov, is another major story of a wandering Ashik who began his journeys with worldly love and attains wisdom by traveling and learning then achieving sainthood. The story of Ashik Kerib has been the main feature of a movie with the same name by Armenian director and producer Sergei Parajanov.

• Asli and Kerem is the story of a Moslem prince Kerem and a Christian girl Asli who are fallen in love despite the major opposition by their parents and community.

Related Sites

• Details of the film Ashik Kerib by Parajanov
• Women Performers of Legend and Folk Poetry
• The Poet Minstrels of Azerbaijan
• Encyclopedia Iranica. C. F. Albright. Asheg.