Camel fights ( Turkish : deve güreşi ) - traditional Turkish entertainment, which is a duel between two male camels, most often unfolding for a female nearby when the latter is ready for mating. This kind of competition usually takes place in the Aegean region of Turkey, but is also found in other regions of this country and in other states of the Middle East and South Asia.
Content
History
The practice of organizing camel fights appeared among the ancient Turkic nomadic tribes over 2400 years ago [1] [2] . Fights for the right to mate with a female are characteristic of camels in the wild, therefore, as such, such a practice existed long before the purposeful organization of competitions by nomads began [3] . In the 1850s, the American military in Texas after the formation of the American camel corps , inspired by Turkish camel fights, tried to introduce the practice of the same fights, but the beginning of the Civil War in the USA in 1861 put an end to this idea [4] .
In the 1920s, camel fights in Turkey took place under the auspices of the Turkish National Aviation League, which used them to raise funds for the purchase of military aircraft by the Turkish government [5] . However, already in the late 1920s, the government began to curtail this practice, declaring entertainment obsolete and backward [6] . However, in the 1980s, the then Turkish government decided to encourage and popularize camel fighting as part of Turkish national culture. Camel fights are also popular at agricultural exhibitions in Lahore , however, during a visit to the city of British Queen Elizabeth II in 1961, the event was banned because the authorities considered it too cruel to show it to the Queen [7] .
Conduct
The presence of a female ready for mating near the duel site is the main motivating factor for fighting camels, therefore, historically, fights are arranged during the mating season in these animals [3] . At the same time, due to the too high level of aggressiveness of camels at the sight of a female, in recent years they have been increasingly less likely to lead to places of fighting. To make the camels fight with each other in the absence of the female, they are deprived of food for some time, which allows them to fight for food quite actively [6] [8] . During the fight, camels use their necks as leverage and try to force the enemy to fall. The winner is a camel whose opponent fell to the ground or attempted to escape in order to evade further struggle [9] . Most of the war camels are bred in Iran and Afghanistan [3] [10] .
Camels are used to participate in fights starting at the age of ten, and some of them have been performing for more than 10 years. Camel owners often name their animals after world leaders or famous politicians. Often camels have richly decorated blankets, a carved saddle and a bell. Camel fights, in addition to direct fights, may include a kind of beauty contest between them. Such events are quite widespread in Saudi Arabia and are often held before fights [6] , accompanied in this case by playing flutes and drums [8] . Viewers in some cases may be offered the meat of a losing camel [6] . As of 2011 in Turkey, there are about 2000 fighting camels (the so-called Tulu), bred specifically for this kind of competition [1] . A camel with repeated victories can be sold for more than 20 thousand dollars [9] .
Sometimes camel fights can be dangerous for spectators when a defeated camel tries to escape from the battlefield, making its way through the crowd [10] . In some situations, fights occur between owners of fighting camels [11] .
Over 30 festivals dedicated to camel fighting are held annually from November to March in the Aegean region of Turkey. More than 100 camels take part in these competitions, during which each of these animals participates in an average of at least 10 matches. Camel fights are always held on Sundays at football stadiums; each fight lasts an average of no more than 10 minutes [3] [11] . At the end of the season, a peculiar tournament of champions is often held, in which camels with the best results participate [3] . These competitions are often visited by foreign tourists, which makes them a key part of the tourism industry in Western Anatolia. Camel fights attract many tourists as part of traditional Turkish culture [12] . However, this kind of competition is popular not only among tourists, but also among many residents of rural areas in western Turkey [13] .
Camel fights are criticized by some animal protection organizations, considering them to be cruel treatment of animals [6] .
Notes
- ↑ 1 2 Christie-Miller, Alexander . Turkey: Tradition of Camel Wrestling Making a Comeback (January 27, 2011). Date of treatment February 17, 2011.
- ↑ Kinzer, Stephen . Selcuk Journal; In These Prizefights, Camels Wrestle for Carpets (January 19, 2000). Archived January 30, 2013. Date of treatment February 16, 2011.
- ↑ 1 2 3 4 5 Dogu, Evin. Fodor's Turkey / Caroline Trefler. - 7. - New York: Fodor's, 2009. - P. 242. - ISBN 978-1-4000-0815-5 .
- ↑ Fleming, Walter. Jefferson Davis' Camel Experiment (Eng.) // Popular Science : magazine. - Bonnier Corporation , 1909. - February. - P. 141-152 [145] .
- ↑ Camels, Lords of Dying Race, to Fight it Out at Stambol (January 29, 1929), S. J30. Date of treatment February 16, 2011.
- ↑ 1 2 3 4 5 Parkinson, Joe . What's a Bigger Draw Than a Camel Fight? A Camel Beauty Contest, of Course (January 22, 2011), C. A1. Date of treatment January 22, 2011.
- ↑ Camel Fighting 'too fierce' for the Queen (February 11, 1961). Date of treatment February 16, 2011.
- ↑ 1 2 Torchia, Joe . Camel Fighting (August 22, 1971), S. G1. Date of treatment February 16, 2011.
- ↑ 1 2 Whiting, Dominic. Turkey Handbook . - London: Footprint, 2000. - P. 285. - ISBN 978-1-900949-85-9 .
- ↑ 1 2 Fethiye Times Meets a Camel! (February 9, 2011). Archived March 25, 2012. Date of treatment February 17, 2011.
- ↑ 1 2 Getting the Hump - Camel Wrestling Season Now in Full Swing (January 28, 2010). Archived February 1, 2013. Date of treatment February 17, 2011.
- ↑ Vedat, Çalışkan. Examining cultural tourism attractions for foreign visitors: The case of camel wrestling in Selçuk Ephesus (English) // Turizam: journal. - 2010 .-- Vol. 14 , no. 1 . - P. 22-40 . Archived on October 6, 2011. Archived October 6, 2011 on Wayback Machine
- ↑ Vedat, Çalışkan. Geography of a Hidden Cultural Heritage: Camel Wrestles in Western Anatolia (Eng.) // Journal of International Social Research: journal. - 2009. - Vol. 2 , no. 8 . - P. 123-137 . - ISSN 1307-9581 . Archived July 26, 2011. Archived July 26, 2011 on Wayback Machine
Links
- Ali Fuat Aydin: A brief introduction to the camel wrestling events in Western Turkey. SOAS Camel Conference, University of London.