Grease wrestling and Turkish Bath

After the collapse of Ottoman rule, the newly formed Turkish Republic attempted to unify the peoples within its new borders into a type of Turkishness. This forced the different ethnic groups to mix with each other, both ethnically and culturally, with the aim of producing a" Turkish" national and cultural identity.

By Mike Stock

The Hamam
One area of Turkish life that has become synonymous with the country is the Turkish baths, or Hamam as they are known in Turkey. These are more than just a place to clean the body. They are tied in with the emphasis in Muslim culture towards cleanliness.
The tradition of the Turkish bath extends far back, to a time when the Turks came into contact with the Roman and Byzantine civilisations, who in turn had their own bathing traditions. These variations combined into what is known as the Turkish bath.
The Turkish bath was, and in some places still is, much more than just a place to cleanse the body. It was closely connected to everyday life, and became a place where people of every age and rank, including women, although of course at separate hours, could come freely to celebrate important occasions such as a Childs fortieth day or a brides wedding bath which would be complete with music and food.

Turkish Coffee
Coffee was introduced to the Ottoman Empire in the fifteenth century and has become an important component of the countries culture.
The equipment required to prepare Turkish coffee consists of a narrow-topped small boiling pot, a teaspoon and a heating devise. The ingredients include finely ground coffee, possibly cardamom, water and sugar if required, and is served in a small cup.
Traditionally the coffee was drunk by handling the cup with the fingertips or often by placing the cup in a metal container with a handle.
The pot is traditionally made of copper with a wooden handle. The size of the pot must be close to the total amount required as using too large a pot causes most of the foam to stick to the inside of it.

Religion
The main religion in Turkey is Muslim, although the country has been secular since the founding of the new state under the leadership of Kemal Ataturk. There are also minority groups of Armenian Apostolic, Greek Orthodox, Christians, and Jews.

Traditional Music
Turkish music is a rich mixture that has been influenced by the vast area that the Ottoman Empire covered and includes influences from Europe, Asia, and the Middle East.
Traditional music can be divided into two main categories; classical art music and folk music. Classical was the music of high society and the courts while folk was the music of the rural population.
You can further divide Folk music into two distinctive categories, music that is accompanied by singing is called Turku and music generally played without words or dance is called Halay.
Each region in Turkey has its own special folk dances and costumes.

Turkish Wrestling
Yagli Gures, which basically means "grease wrestling" is a Turkish national sport that has been popular since 1362 and is the oldest continuously running, sanctioned sporting competition in the world.
Contestants compete, oiled up and stripped to the waist. The anything-goes style and the oiled leather trunks originated from the Janissaries who were an elite group of body guards to the Sultans.
Every year competitions are held near the town of Edirne in a stadium located on the old site of the Sultan's palace, and Turkey's president crowns the champions on the final day.
The event is held over three days and simultaneous matches take place in eleven divisions, which range from school kids to forty-year-old masters.
If there is no outright winner by the end of the match, it all comes down to a sudden death round. There are few forbidden holds, and grabbing of trunks is not off limits.

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