Sahmeran
Encyclopedia
Shahmaran is a mythical creature from the folklore of southern, central and eastern Anatolia
, Iran
and Iraq
. The name of Shahmaran comes from words "Shah" and "Maran". "Shah" is the Iranian title for a king, primarily the leader of the Iranians and their land and "Mar" means snake
s in Kurdish
. In plural "Mar-an" means "snakes". A Shahmaran is often depicted as a wise and benign woman with the features of a woman above the waist and those of a serpent below the waist. She is held to be queen of the snakes. When a Shahmaran dies, her spirit passes to her daughter. The legend is that she was in love with a man named Tasmsp, and he was in love with her and he would listen to her stories, but when she had no more stories to tell he went back to his country, and Shahmaran accepted his choice. When Tasmsp came back to his land the king there became very ill and one of the kings helpers told him that the only way to get better is to eat Shahmaran. So they took people one by one into the hamam to see if snake scales would come up and when Tasmsp went he was forced to tell where Shahmaran was hiding when they found her she said that whoever takes a bite from my snake scales will gain the secrets of the world but whoever takes a bite of my head will die at the moment. Tasmsp took a bite of the head and the evil helper took a bite of the scales, but the helper died and Tasmsp was not affected at all. Shahmaran helped her lover and killed her enemy.
In Turkey
, Shahmaran is believed to live in the Mediterranean town of Tarsus
. A similar legend is told in the Mardin
region. In this region she is depicted with famous Shahmaran pictures.
Anatolia
Anatolia is a geographic and historical term denoting the westernmost protrusion of Asia, comprising the majority of the Republic of Turkey...
, Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
and Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
. The name of Shahmaran comes from words "Shah" and "Maran". "Shah" is the Iranian title for a king, primarily the leader of the Iranians and their land and "Mar" means snake
Snake
Snakes are elongate, legless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes that can be distinguished from legless lizards by their lack of eyelids and external ears. Like all squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales...
s in Kurdish
Kurdish language
Kurdish is a dialect continuum spoken by the Kurds in western Asia. It is part of the Iranian branch of the Indo-Iranian group of Indo-European languages....
. In plural "Mar-an" means "snakes". A Shahmaran is often depicted as a wise and benign woman with the features of a woman above the waist and those of a serpent below the waist. She is held to be queen of the snakes. When a Shahmaran dies, her spirit passes to her daughter. The legend is that she was in love with a man named Tasmsp, and he was in love with her and he would listen to her stories, but when she had no more stories to tell he went back to his country, and Shahmaran accepted his choice. When Tasmsp came back to his land the king there became very ill and one of the kings helpers told him that the only way to get better is to eat Shahmaran. So they took people one by one into the hamam to see if snake scales would come up and when Tasmsp went he was forced to tell where Shahmaran was hiding when they found her she said that whoever takes a bite from my snake scales will gain the secrets of the world but whoever takes a bite of my head will die at the moment. Tasmsp took a bite of the head and the evil helper took a bite of the scales, but the helper died and Tasmsp was not affected at all. Shahmaran helped her lover and killed her enemy.
In Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
, Shahmaran is believed to live in the Mediterranean town of Tarsus
Tarsus, Mersin
Tarsus is a historic city in south-central Turkey, 20 km inland from the Mediterranean Sea. It is part of the Adana-Mersin Metropolitan Area, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in Turkey with a population of 2.75 million...
. A similar legend is told in the Mardin
Mardin
Mardin is a city in southeastern Turkey. The capital of Mardin Province, it is known for its Arabic-like architecture, and for its strategic location on a rocky mountain overlooking the plains of northern Syria.-History:...
region. In this region she is depicted with famous Shahmaran pictures.