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Keşkek, also known as kashkak, kashkek, or keške, is a ceremonial
meat Meat is animal Tissue (biology), tissue, often muscle, that is eaten as food. Humans have hunted and farmed other animals for meat since prehistory. The Neolithic Revolution allowed the domestication of vertebrates, including chickens, sheep, ...
or
chicken The chicken (''Gallus gallus domesticus'') is a domesticated subspecies of the red junglefowl (''Gallus gallus''), originally native to Southeast Asia. It was first domesticated around 8,000 years ago and is now one of the most common and w ...
and
wheat Wheat is a group of wild and crop domestication, domesticated Poaceae, grasses of the genus ''Triticum'' (). They are Agriculture, cultivated for their cereal grains, which are staple foods around the world. Well-known Taxonomy of wheat, whe ...
or
barley Barley (), a member of the grass family, is a major cereal grain grown in temperate climates globally. It was one of the first cultivated grains; it was domesticated in the Fertile Crescent around 9000 BC, giving it nonshattering spikele ...
stew A stew is a combination of solid food ingredients that have been Cooking, cooked in Soup, liquid and served in the resultant gravy. Ingredients can include any combination of vegetables and may include meat, especially tougher meats suitable for ...
found in Turkish,
Iranian Iranian () may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Iran ** Iranian diaspora, Iranians living outside Iran ** Iranian architecture, architecture of Iran and parts of the rest of West Asia ** Iranian cuisine, cooking traditions and practic ...
,
Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...
,
Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian diaspora, Armenian communities around the ...
, and
Balkan The Balkans ( , ), corresponding partially with the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throug ...
cuisines. In 2011, keşkek was confirmed to be an
Intangible Cultural Heritage An intangible cultural heritage (ICH) is a practice, representation, expression, knowledge, or skill considered by UNESCO to be part of a place's cultural heritage. Buildings, historic places, monuments, and artifacts are cultural property. In ...
of
Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...
by
UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...
.


History

The first known written reference to the dish is found in a copy of Danishmendname dating back to 1360. Keşkek is documented in
Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...
and the region of Syria as early as the 15th century; it is still consumed by many today, traditionally during religious festivals, weddings and funerals. The dish's name alludes to kashk, which in 16th- to 18th-century Iran had
sheep's milk Sheep milk is the milk of Sheep, domestic sheep. It is commonly used to make cultured Dairy product, dairy products, such as cheese. Some of the most popular sheep cheeses include feta (Greece), pecorino romano (Italy), Roquefort (France) and Ma ...
added to wheat or barley flour and
meat Meat is animal Tissue (biology), tissue, often muscle, that is eaten as food. Humans have hunted and farmed other animals for meat since prehistory. The Neolithic Revolution allowed the domestication of vertebrates, including chickens, sheep, ...
, mixed in equal parts. Under the name of ''κεσκέκ'', ''κεσκέκι'' and ''κισκέκ'' (keskék, keskéki, and kiskék), it is a
festival A festival is an event celebrated by a community and centering on some characteristic aspect or aspects of that community and its religion or cultures. It is often marked as a local or national holiday, Melā, mela, or Muslim holidays, eid. A ...
dish in
Lesbos Lesbos or Lesvos ( ) is a Greek island located in the northeastern Aegean Sea. It has an area of , with approximately of coastline, making it the third largest island in Greece and the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, eighth largest ...
and among Pontian Greeks. In
Lesbos Lesbos or Lesvos ( ) is a Greek island located in the northeastern Aegean Sea. It has an area of , with approximately of coastline, making it the third largest island in Greece and the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, eighth largest ...
, keşkek is prepared on summer nights when a ceremonial bull is being slaughtered, which is then cooked overnight and eaten next day with wheat. Keşkek is called ''haşıl'' in Northeast and Middle Anatolia regions in Turkey. The Slavic word kasha may have been borrowed from the Persian کَشک‎ : ''kishk''. Keşkek is known as
harissa Harissa (, from Maghrebi Arabic) is a hot chili pepper paste, native to the Maghreb. The main ingredients are roasting#Vegetables, roasted chili pepper, red peppers, Baklouti peppers (), spices and herbs such as garlic paste, caraway seeds, c ...
in
Armenia Armenia, officially the Republic of Armenia, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of West Asia. It is a part of the Caucasus region and is bordered by Turkey to the west, Georgia (country), Georgia to the north and Azerbaijan to ...
. Harissa bears strong similarities to keşkek in terms of its preparation and cooking process; however, harissa is associated with different symbolic meanings.


Turkey-UNESCO-Armenia controversy

In 2008, after requests by various local intangible heritage boards across Turkey, the Turkish Ministry of Culture began preparing for the registration of keşkek on the Representative List of
UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...
. The sociologist Bahar Aykan explains in ''International Journal of Heritage Studies'' that at the local level, the Turkish government prepared the nomination in dialogue with Turkish heritage experts, culture-bearers, and representatives of relevant voluntary associations and public institutions across the country. However, at the international level, the Turkish government decided to submit the registration by itself, and did not contact the authorities in
Armenia Armenia, officially the Republic of Armenia, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of West Asia. It is a part of the Caucasus region and is bordered by Turkey to the west, Georgia (country), Georgia to the north and Azerbaijan to ...
for a joint file. The Turkish nomination of keşkek meant to present it as an exclusively "Turkish" heritage, deliberately giving the impression that it is exclusively found within the borders of the Republic of Turkey. In terms of geographic spread, the Turkish keşkek registration at UNESCO states that the keşkek tradition is widely practiced across Turkey in its rural parts, and cites 43 out of 81
provinces A province is an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions outside Italy. The term ''provi ...
. While the registration mentions, in detail, keşkek being part of Turkey's national heritage and outlines its significance for constructing a shared identity across the country, it both omits mentioning keşkek's transnational character as well as the customs and practices associated with it outside of Turkey's (immediate) borders. In addition, while the nomination does mention the various alternate names attributed to keşkek, such as ''kişkah'' and ''keşkef'', it omits the name ''herisa'', despite the dish being commonly known as such in Turkey's
east East is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fact that ea ...
as well as amongst Armenians in Turkey. The UNESCO website's link on keşkek also refers to it as a "traditional Turkish ceremonial dish". In Armenia, the admission of the Turkish request was met with public outrage, and was referred to as the "
Turkification Turkification, Turkization, or Turkicization () describes a shift whereby populations or places receive or adopt Turkic attributes such as culture, language, history, or ethnicity. However, often this term is more narrowly applied to mean specif ...
" of
harissa Harissa (, from Maghrebi Arabic) is a hot chili pepper paste, native to the Maghreb. The main ingredients are roasting#Vegetables, roasted chili pepper, red peppers, Baklouti peppers (), spices and herbs such as garlic paste, caraway seeds, c ...
. Several major Armenian newspapers published articles criticising Turkey's UNESCO registration of harissa as a Turkish product and argued for the Armenian origins of the dish. ''Armenia Now'', a popular Armenian internet portal, referred to the admission as "UNESCO puts Armenian harisa on list of Turkish national dishes", and elaborated that it had led to outrage in the country. On Armenian internet forums the problem was likewise discussed. Many of its users believed that the UNESCO listing tantamounted to culture theft and blamed UNESCO for being supportive in helping Turkey trying to appropriate Armenian heritage. The Development and Preservation of Armenian Culinary Traditions (DPACT), an Armenian NGO, also joined the opposition to the listing of the dish. A few days following UNESCO's admission, DPACT held a press conference in the Armenian capital of
Yerevan Yerevan ( , , ; ; sometimes spelled Erevan) is the capital and largest city of Armenia, as well as one of the world's List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest continuously inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Yerev ...
. During the conference, conference participants claimed Armenia as being the authentic owner of harissa, and argued that it was impossible for the dish being Turkish for the utensils, techniques and ingredients used are of Armenian origin. DPACT also announced that it intended to plan working with Armenian historians and ethnographers in order to prove harissa's Armenian origins, and thereby ultimately appealing UNESCO's decision. Ultimately, UNESCO's listing of Turkey's request received as much public attention as Armenia's opposition to it. Turkish newspapers, in return to the response in Armenia, explained DPACT's efforts unanimously as constituting "false" claims. One Turkish newspaper, the '' Yeni Şafak'', in its heading entitled '"keşkek is Turkish" decision outraged the Armenians', argued that although UNESCO had already "decided" on keşkek's nationality by incorporating it into "Turkish national heritage", a portion of Armenians "still claim that it is not originally a Turkish dish". The Turkish National Commission for UNESCO eventually also joined the controversy. Öcal Oğuz, its director, issued a press release, "stating that while the ICH Convention is not for portioning out intangible heritage among countries, UNESCO's conservation approach is often mistaken with EU's patent policy". Oğuz elaborated that if Armenia holds a tradition which bears similarities to Turkey's keşkek, they could perhaps apply separately to UNESCO. Aykan explains that Oğuz refrained from mentioning that the Convention is "not in favour of listing elements as separate entities because it stresses that transnational heritage is better protected in its totality through joint protection efforts, which would also strengthen dialogue, respect, and understanding among cultures". Since then, neither Armenia nor Turkey have shown willingness to collaborate with each other for an extended inscription at UNESCO in relation to keşkek/harissa. Aykan explains that "this may not come as a surprise when one considers the historically troubled relations between these countries". Aykan concludes stating that Turkey's unilateral listing of keşkek at UNESCO initiated efforts by Armenian state and heritage NGO's to identify and promote other transnational dishes such as tolma and lavash as national heritage, which in turn initiated new "ownership conflicts" over food in the region.


See also

*
Kibbeh Kibbeh (, also kubba and other spellings; ; ) is a popular dish in the Arab world and the Levant in particular based on spiced lean ground meat and bulgur wheat. Kibbeh is considered to be a national dish of Lebanon and Syria. In Levantine ...
* Haleem * Harees * Cholent


References


Bibliography

* Françoise Aubaile-Sallenave, "Al-Kishk: the past and present of a complex culinary practice", in Sami Zubaida and Richard Tapper, ''A Taste of Thyme: Culinary Cultures of the Middle East'', London and New York, 1994 and 2000,
excerpts


External links


Cooking ''keskek'' in LesbosCooking ''keskek'' for the Bull's Festival in Ayia Paraskevi, Lesbos in 1996A plate of Turkish chickpea ''keşkek''
in
Merzifon Merzifon is a town in Amasya Province in the central Black Sea region of Turkey. It is the seat of Merzifon District.
on the Black Sea coast. {{DEFAULTSORT:Keskek Ottoman cuisine Iranian stews Middle Eastern cuisine Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity Turkish stews Greek cuisine Balkan cuisine Barley-based dishes