Haticepınar

Haticepınar is a village of Afşin in Kahramanmaraş Province in Turkey. Haticepinar is located in Turkey inhabited by Kurdish people.

History

Haticepinar has acquired the status of a village in 1950 and according to the knowledge of the elderly who still reside in Haticepinar acclaim that people first settled in the area as far as 130 to 150 years ago. Inhabitants of Haticepinari are related to the nearby village of Kaşanlı. The name Kaşanlı is derived from the Kasan city in Iran and according to the elderly of the region Kurdish people that were oppressed by the Persian King left the city of Kasan moving north-west and eventually settling in the current area.

Furthermore, the some of the elderly people in the village acclaim that the village was originally inhabited by Armenians. Who afterwards fled the region due to the Armenian Genocide.

The first two Kurdish families who initially settled in the village were wealthy families who had travelled from Malatya.

The exact dates are not clear however the village was under threat from bandits in the late 1800’s. The bandits committed crimes such as: kidnapping for ransom, robbery & murder in the region. The villagers with the help from other Kurdish clans from the nearby villages, managed to fight off the bandits together around the early 1900’s.

Over the years the population of the village grew and many families established trade and businesses at the city centre of Kahramanmaras. In 1978 the Maras Massacare took place in the city centre resulting in the persecution and murder of many Kurdish Alevi people. As a result of this, many people fled the city leaving their businesses behind and moved back to the village. Due to growing economic strains and difficulties, many people left the village to move to other cities and eventually abroad.

There are currently many families living in the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, USA and Europe who are originally from the village of Haticepinar.

Culture

People of Haticepinari are Kurdish hence the main language spoken is Kurdish (Kurmanji dialect) language. Local people have retained their Kurdish traditions that include the traditional dressing code, Kurdish cuisine and special methods of cooking. Traditional folk dance is still performed by the local people at occasions such as weddings and musical instruments such as Baglama and Kaval are played by majority of the people.

Geography

Haticepinar is 55 km away from Afşin and 205 km from Kahramanmaraş Province.

Haticepinar is located on the mountainous region of the Binboğa Mountains and for this arable lands are limited. On the west of the village is the village of Oglakkaya, on the south is the Orenli village, on the north is the Guldede village of Gürün and on the east are the neighbouring Kavak villages.

Climate

Altitude wise, Haticepinar is the highest village of the local region. This has led to the area experiencing significantly colder winters with heavy snowfall. Despite its colds winters, summer season at Haticepinar is very warm with temperatures rising to as high as 38-40°C.

Population

According to Government Statistics Institution there are 70 houses in the village and 1990 census shows that the population was 176, in 1997 census the population had dropped to 124. In 2009 the figure was 84.

Economy

Due to declining agricultural resources of the area the increasing population could not be supported with the available resources and this has led to migration to larger cities or even to several European countries or other continents.
The current economy still relies of agriculture and farming. In recent years, apricots have been produced although this is not at a large scale. Other crops that are grown in the area include wheat, barley and chickpeas. Dairy products are obtained from the cows, sheep and goats that are owned by the inhabitants.

Other information

Haticepinar has a primary school that is currently not in use due to shortage of teachers in the region.

Water for domestic use and for drinking is obtained from the several wells in the village and there are also two fountains. Work has been started in 2005 to build water system to homes which is due to completion in summer of 2007. The village has no health care clinic with local/regional nurses visiting the village a few times a year.

The main transport link to major towns is a gravel road.

Haticepinar has electricity but no telephone services therefore people have to travel to nearby villages that have telephone services.

10-15 Minutes from the village is the Maden Dagi (Mine Mountain) which has one of the richest marble mines of the region. In the recent years government lead companies have excavated the top of the mountain and marbles were obtained which were then used mainly in building work, decorations or as exports.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Haticepinar
Kahramanmaraş
Kurdish settlements in Turkey
Populated places in Kahramanmaraş Province