Kurban Bayramı

Kurban Bayramı, the Feast of Sacrifice, is one of the two major religious holidays in Türkiye. It begins on the 10th day of Dhu al-Hijjah, the last month of the Islamic calendar, about 70 days after Ramadan Bayramı, and lasts four days. On the first morning, many people go early to the bayram namazı, the festival prayer, at neighborhood mosques or open prayer grounds. After the prayer, people greet one another with phrases such as “Kurban Bayramınız mübarek olsun.” Families who will offer a kurban arrange the sacrifice of a sheep, goat, or cow through licensed slaughterhouses, municipal facilities, village spaces, or charitable organizations, rather than treating it as a private spectacle.

In Türkiye, the day then turns practical and social. Meat from the kurban is commonly divided so the household keeps some, relatives and neighbors receive some, and a share goes to people in need; many families now donate through foundations that slaughter and distribute on their behalf. Kitchens quickly fill with the smell of kavurma, often served on the first day with rice pilaf, bread, and tea. Over the four days, people visit parents and grandparents, kiss elders’ hands and touch them to the forehead, and children are offered sweets or small harçlık. Roads, bus stations, and airport terminals are famously crowded as families reunite across the country.

The pack has 36 words spread across these domains.