TRADITIONAL RUG WEAVING ART: THE EXAMPLE OF GAZIANTEP

Abstract

Cultural heritage is a set of values consisting of material and spiritual elements that form the
common denominator of a society and is a valuable carrier of a nation's cultural, historical and
geographical identity. In this context, the tradition of handicrafts, which has an important place
among the intangible cultural heritage assets, is the last link of the traditional folk culture that is
tried to be kept alive in today's cities. The use of traditional handicrafts in many fields, especially in
the tourism sector, is an important factor and method in terms of maintaining the existence of a
culture and transferring its characteristic structure to future generations. Especially in the last
century, the monotonous production and consumption frenzy that has reached advanced dimensions
has caused these values to be in danger of extinction. At this point, the sensitive preservation of
traditional handicrafts that have survived in cities and bringing their potential to the fore have
become an important issue that needs to be emphasized.
The study was carried out in order to express that traditional handicrafts, which are accepted as one
of the intangible cultural heritage assets in Gaziantep, are an important reflector and transmitter in
the geographical and cultural sense, and to reveal the existence and potential of rug weaving in
terms of cultural heritage tourism in particular. Therefore, it was aimed to raise awareness about
traditional rug weaving. In order to preserve this art, to transfer it to future generations and to
emphasize its potential in terms of cultural tourism, interviews were conducted with 7 rug weaving
masters who continue this art in the city between March-June 2021, using semi-structured interview
technique, and the expressions of the participants were turned into tables. The tables created were
handled within the cause-effect relationship and their contents were evaluated. As a result of the
findings, it is seen that the art of rug weaving is an important value reflecting the Antep culture
among the cultural heritage assets in Gaziantep, it faces the danger of being forgotten due to the
increasing mass production in recent years, but it still has a high potential for cultural tourism and
the tourists coming to the city found to be attracting attention. In addition, it has been determined
that local governments and public education centers play an important role in ensuring the
continuity of this art and suggestions have been made.