Document Type
Thesis
Degree
Master of Arts (MA)
Major/Program
Religious Studies
First Advisor's Name
Iqbal Akhtar
First Advisor's Committee Title
Committee Chair
Second Advisor's Name
Erik Larson
Second Advisor's Committee Title
Committee Member
Third Advisor's Name
Albert Wuaku
Third Advisor's Committee Title
Committee Member
Keywords
Yezidism, Yazidi, Sinjar Massacre, Shingal Massacre, Ethnography, Iraq, Social and Cultural Anthropology
Date of Defense
3-28-2018
Abstract
Religion and religious ritual has been linked to providing individuals and entire communities with the ability to cope in the aftermath of life-changing traumas. This thesis explores the intersection of coping and ritual in the aftermath of the recent persecution of the Yezidi people. The methodology utilizes qualitative interviews and participant observation which was conducted in Ainkawa, Lalish and Bashiqa during fieldwork that took place in July 2017. A sample of 25 Yezidis who remain displaced in Northern Iraq were asked to describe their experience of coping in the aftermath of the Sinjar Massacre. I argue that the introduction of a baptismal ritual extended to adult women became a medium to reclaim identity. This allowed women who were abducted to symbolically re- declare themselves as Yezidi, cope with the trauma, reintegrate into the community and reclaim their identity through ritual, which presents healing in a framework that is largely relatable.
Identifier
FIDC004074
ORCID
Recommended Citation
Mangini, Katerina, "The Sacred Space and Religious Identity among Yezidis: Accounting for the Lived Experiences of Internally Displaced Persons in Northern Iraq" (2018). FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 3645.
https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/etd/3645
Included in
Islamic World and Near East History Commons, Near and Middle Eastern Studies Commons, Near Eastern Languages and Societies Commons, Other Religion Commons, Political History Commons, Social and Cultural Anthropology Commons, Social Psychology Commons, Sociology of Religion Commons, Terrorism Studies Commons
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