Hıdırellez Turkey

Hıdırellez is a deeply rooted seasonal celebration recognized as one of the most widespread spring festivals in Turkish folk culture. The tradition is believed to have originated in Central Asian Turkic societies, where ceremonies marking the end of winter and the beginning of summer were held to ensure fertility and abundance. These seasonal rites were later transformed through interaction with Anatolian, Islamic, and Christian (particularly Saint George) traditions, culminating in the syncretic cultural event known today as Hıdırellez.The name “Hıdırellez” itself is a combination of Hızır and İlyas, two prophetic figures in Islamic and folk belief. According to oral tradition, they meet on Earth each year on the night of May 5th to May 6th, bringing blessings of health, prosperity, and renewal. Hızır, in particular, is associated with immortality and divine intervention. Despite layers of Islamic interpretation, the festival's millennia-old connection to nature, fertility, and rebirth has never been lost. Today, Hıdırellez is celebrated across Türkiye and beyond, with UNESCO recognising it as a shared heritage of Turkey and North Macedonia in 2017. This annual encounter is viewed symbolically as the union of land and water, marking a cosmological and seasonal rebirth.