MEDİNE MAMEDOĞLU

Amed- The culture of dengbêj is the Kurdish oral literature and it continues to be passed down from generation to generation with the same feeling. The songs of dengbêj (Kurdish storytellers) are about war, hunting, the beauty of spring, happiness, pain, sufferings, weddings, mourning, and all topics about life. This culture is now in the saddlebags of young singers.

Evin Dulek and Sarya Ertaş are two dengbêj (s) who give music training courses and receive dengbêj education at the Ma Music Academy in Amed (Diyarbakır). They follow the footsteps of the dengbêj people and keep alive the legacy of their ancestors. The two young women state that the culture of dengbêj is the culture that gives shape, life, and color to the voice and it comes from women's resistance and culture. And they follow in dengbêj (s) such as Ayşe Şan and Meryen Xan’s footsteps.

“I grew up with my father's dengbêjs"

23-year-old Sarya Ertaş states that her musical life started when she was 10 years old. She says she has listened to dengbêjs since she was a child. Sarya says that her father has been in prison for years and that her father sings songs of dengbêj whenever he calls her in the prison. Sarya Ertaş says, “Singing as a dengbêj is an indescribable feeling for me. First I learned how to sing from my father, and then I listened to great dengbêjs such as Ayşe Şan, Meryem Xan and Şehit (Martyr) Mizgin and I follow in their footsteps. We learned the culture of dengbêj from our elders. You put your feelings into words while singing. This culture and heritage must be always kept alive. Today we sing, tomorrow other young students will sing. Women will keep singing and alive this culture.”

“I feel free as a woman”

Stating that she feels free while singing Sarya Ertaş says, “Singing dengbêj songs is a great pleasure for me. When you walk on this path by recognizing your own values, everything is better. We learned that from women putting their feelings into words. At this point, parents should encourage their children. I feel free as a woman. I always improve myself thanks to this freedom. Women and young people need to create themselves through their language, arts, and values.”

“Your interest in the culture of denbêj increases”

27-year-old Evin Dulek is also a female denbêj and she feels happy while singing songs, “Now young people and children rarely listen to dengbêjs. We were like them when we were children. But when you learn more about your history, your interest in the culture of denbêj increases. You want to sing like Kurdish storytellers. I have been trying to follow their path since I learned these values. We started to sing denbêj songs with our teachers. I thought I could sing like denbêjs before but I became happy when I saw I could it. Learning my own values and keeping them alive is very important for me.”

Evin Dulek says the songs of denbêjs were first sung by female storytellers, “When we look at the history, we can see that the culture of denbêj emerged by women. It emerged from resistance and mourning of women. There are many male storytellers, but the culture of storytelling, but this culture comes up to this time thanks to female storytellers. Now we keep working by following their footsteps.”