A RESEARCH ON THE CAGLAK FESTIVAL CELEBRATED IN MAN？SA AKH？SAR COUNTY

This article is written with the aim of dealing with the origin, rituals and the interaction of local people with the festival in the traditional ？a？lak Festival celebrated in Akhisar county. Caglak Festival, having 559-year history, is a touchstone in the cultural values of local people. The ？a？lak Festival is first celebrated with the return of Akhisar Sheik Mecdüddin ？sa to the city, where he was born. Traditional remembrance and celebrations after Sheik Mecdüddin ？sa’s death, are the starting point of the ？aglak Festival. In this article, changing and traditionalizing period of remembrance ceremonies held in the ？aglak region is examined. Sheik Mecdüddin ？sa, having great importance for the people of the region, his tomb is seen as supernatural power by people. Every year in May when the Sheik Mecdüddin ？sa entered the city, first the tomb of ？eyh Mecdüddin ？sa and then Caglak Stream are visited to find aids for their troubles. But over the centuries the scope of the festival, with the influence of the celebration date became remembrance and rather than look for a remedy, it has become the spring welcoming festival. Although its celebration purpose is different from that of Nowruz and H？drellez, the festival, showing similarity with these two festivals, took the place of them in the region, where it is celebrated. While these issues as well as the reasons for the emergence of the festival, are pointed out in this article, its subsequent development, and the practices in the festival from the past to the present are discussed through the research and the interview method in the context of applied folklore