Tatar Traditions and Customs in Mirhaydar Feyzi’s Drama of “Galiyabanu”

Being one of the important names of Tatar literature and writing unique works in different topics and literary genres, Mirhaydar Feyzi’s drama of “Galiyabanu” is one of the primary pieces of literature that protects its liability until today. “Galiyabanu” is the first Tatar literature work as a musical theatre. In this respect, the work served as a pioneer for the birth of contemporary Tatar theatre and it was accepted as the first national work in modern sense. Feyzi is a good folk culture researcher and observer and in his work he narrates a Tatar girl who is desired by a rich man and wants to be gained forcefully by him and a boy whom she loves. The most important point in the work is that the author mentions Tatar traditions and customs in detail. Most traditions and customs brought by the Tatar village life from the past are narrated within a plot in the work. The folklor researchers have the view that this work contributes to the revitalization of Tatar traditions and customs and transfer of them to the next generations. In this work, we conduct research on Tatar traditions and customs in Galiyabanu drama and give interesting examples from the work