Yuruk Koyu and Safranbolu: Gracious Agrarian Bektasi Villages

Yuruk Koyu is a beautifully preserved village of 18^th century houses located in rich agricultural land about a 4 hour bus trip from Istanbul. Originally a nomadic hub, it was settled in the 18^th century by Janissaries who had turned to baking as a means of generating income to offset the increasingly low salaries paid for military service. This phenomenon took place throughout the 17^th and 18^th centuries, with soldiers leveraging their prestige and elite contacts to market non-military products and skills. In the case of Yoruk Koyu and the nearby Safranbolu, the inhabitants grew wheat in the fertile surrounding fields and used their Istanbul contacts to develop lucrative bakery businesses.

The homes are spacious, even imposing 2- and 3-storey buildings made of timber and plaster and stone. The rooms have high ceilings and skillfully worked wooden cabinetry. Many windows let in ample sunshine, and the buildings are disposed around the terrain so as not to block one another’s light. The homes are clearly not aristocratic and the "village" ethos is strong, but they are much more substantial than cottages. The word "gracious" comes to mind.

In the photographs here you see a room that is decorated with painted walls in typical folkloric style (one might see similar colors and flat perspective in American colonial art, for example). The symbolic content, however, is unique to this one time and place. The deeply embedded Bektasi religion of this village has infused the painted decorations with symbolism: The watermelons with their many seeds represent fertility. More importantly, there are multiple representations of the number twelve: 12 wall niches and 12 flowers for example. This number comes from “Twelver Shihism,” which traces its line of descent from the Prophet through 12 Imams. 

Here is what is so striking about Yurok Koyu and Safranbolu: where in Europe do we see whole villages of artisans of the pre-modern era that are so wealthy? These villages show how the changing situation of Janissaries created the unusual phenomenon of service artisans with significant personal wealth.