A Faculty Member’s Images of Vanishing Nomadic Tribes

In the Taurus Mountains of Turkey, Yörük nomads live largely according to the needs of their livestock, sometimes traveling hundreds of miles to help their herds of goats or sheep thrive. The modern concepts of “state” and “citizenship” apply awkwardly to them; they speak several languages and their religious identity is somewhat fluid. (Most are Shia Muslims, but they only worship on Fridays.) Praveen Chaudhry, professor of Social Sciences, has spent nearly a decade in the Himalayas working with Bakerwals of Kashmir and Changpas of Tibet. He started working with Yörüks two years ago, photographing this community as they brave climate change and modernization’s painful changes. “Instead of seeing them as a problem, the role of a civil society is to ease the transition,” he says. For him, the group provides a stark example of how the concepts of “home” and “belonging” are myths—for instance, 350 years ago there was no Turkey, and no America. “So everyone comes from somewhere else.”

Until April 3, an exhibition of Chaudhry’s large-format images, curated by Kyunghee Pyun, associate professor, History of Art, is on display in the Gladys Marcus Library. An ethnographer, Dr. Souzeina Mushtaq of Ohio University, provided guidance for the photography project, which the team calls a “visual ethnography.” It previously appeared at the Museo de La Ciudad de Cuernavaca in Mexico. Later this year, the show will travel to Istanbul Technical University.

Chaudhry, the recipient of a SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Scholarship and Creative Activities, spoke at the Liberal Arts Dean’s Forum on February 12.

(Click on each image to read the full caption).

The increasing proliferation of stone quarries in the area has meant that the nomads must contend with increasing pollution of the air and water supply. Moving to a city to address these problems is not an option: “If a woman has 500 goats, who’s going to rent her an apartment?” Chaudhry said.

Families have been torn apart by the changes because younger generations want to leave the nomadic life behind. “We use all our savings to educate our kids but eventually lose them to high society people. My daughter-in-law stayed only two hours in this house after she got married to my veterinarian son. We felt very hurt. The bride’s family are professors like you, high society. They think we smell,” Turkan Şahin, the mother, said.

Though popular Kilims and carpets/rugs come from the region, the Yörüks live a largely isolated existence. The woman in the background of this photograph said, “No one comes to visit us in these mountains. It’s been two years since I’ve seen a human being who is not part of my family.”

The Yörüks are known for their traditional hand weaving. “Weaving is like meditation. It takes away all the troubles,” one woman told Chaudhry. But the introduction of synthetic fibers has changed both the market, and livelihoods. “I used to be a weaver, a famous one,” the woman in this photo said. “Look at me now. I try to bake cakes. I am sorry it is not perfect. It is a little burnt.”