The Phenomenon of Age in Western Anatolia Local Dance Culture in Turkey

Age is an important factor in traditional dance in Turkey. In particular, the concept of dancing in a specific order depending on age, signifies certain value systems that vary from locality to locality. In these cases, biological age is transformed into a more fluid and dynamic concept by a discourse of the body, determined by the social structure. More specifically, during their life cycle, children, teenagers, adults and elderly people perform different tasks in traditional dance contexts. While the individual is presenting his/her own persona through dancing, he/she also illustrates the expectations of the position within the society to which he/she belongs. For this reason, age-related dance information, such as the expectations of skills within local dance cultures, the relationships between certain age groups, traditional forms of dancing, and the transmission of dance knowledge from generation to generation, facilitates an understanding of the social relationship between the individual and society. Therefore, to observe dancing longitudinally over time and across the generations is to provide us with important information that explains how and why traditional dance contexts are created. This paper will introduce age-related "male village chamber institutions" that continue to exist in Anatolia. The function of these institutions in traditional dance culture will be discussed using the example of Izmir-Bergama region, Kozluca village. Drawing on field research carried out in 2009, the paper includes qualitative description based on participatory observation and information obtained through oral history studies regarding the traditional dance environments organised by various age groups. It explores the relations between people in the different age groups, and in doing so it analyzes the relationship between individuals and society in traditional dance contexts in terms of age.