A Unique Contribution from Our Faculty Member to the Cultural Ecology of Animals in Turkish Culture

The study titled “Ant Symbolism in Turkish Folk Poetry” by our faculty member Nurdan Yeşilyurt Gümüşkaya has been published in the second edition of the academic compilation Animals in the Cultural Ecology of Turkish Culture.

Focusing on animal symbolism from a cultural ecology perspective, this valuable book features the image of the ant as it appears in Turkish folk poetry. In Gümüşkaya’s work, the ant is examined through its symbolic associations with values such as patience, diligence, humility, justice, and spirituality in folk literature.

The chapter is supported with examples from various folk poets and explores how the ant is interpreted both in individual and collective consciousness. Additionally, the ant is presented as a multi-layered symbol within the Alevi-Bektashi belief system and in Sufi poetry.

Now in its second edition, this significant source offers a valuable contribution to academic literature with its interdisciplinary approach to folk culture, literature, and ecology.

We sincerely thank Nurdan Yeşilyurt Gümüşkaya for this original work and wish her continued success.