Van Cat naming controversy
Encyclopedia
The Van cat
has been referred to as "Kurdish cat" or "Kurdish Van cat", and made a symbol of Kurdistan, by Kurdish nationalist circles.
Florian Cremer, a spokesperson of a small German catbreeding group, stated that "the Turkish state wants to wipe out everything that symbolizes Kurdish culture... The cats are Kurdish, and the Turkish authorities are unable to digest this."
Additionally, the Van region currently has a large Kurdish population, and in recent times the Turks have systematically attempted to wipe out their culture. According to Kurds (or, more acutely, Kurdish nationalists, however many Kurds that category may contain), the breed is a Kurdish cultural
creation (and thus, Kurdish
/Median
property).
The dispute is also three-way: Armenians
often consider the breed to be historically "Armenian" as well. Prior to 1915
, the area had a large Armenian population. However: notably, there were more Muslims in the area than there were Christians; Kurds may be Muslim, Christian, Yazidi, Yarsanist or Jewish, but Armenians, however, are mostly all Christian. In general, the area just north of the Van lake was Armenian historically (judging from historical placenames), and south of it Kurdish. The descendants of the Western Armenians
, who had managed to escape from being massacred in the years of the Genocide
(1915-1918) and scattered all over the world, consider the Van region their motherland and the Van cat or "Vana katu" in Armenian, correspondingly, the part of their culture, which from the end of the 19th century was a symbol of Armenian liberation movement along with the blue rose that was an aboriginal kind in Van city area. The Republic of Turkey, the successor state of the Ottoman Empire, does not accept the word genocide as an accurate description of the events, though to date, twenty-one countries have officially recognized the events of the period as genocide, and most genocide scholars and historians accept this view. Moreover, the Turkish authorities spare neither strength nor resources to clear off any track of Armenian culture, including ancient proto Armenian relics, in the Western Armenia
, as well as other non-Turkish cultures in Anatolia, and unfortunately, even the Van cat is subjected to this policy.
There is a general disagreement between Turks, Armenians and Kurds about which culture produced and has rightful "ownership" over the cat. All three groups may claim the cat is theirs, or specifically not of another group. The dispute over the Van cat is largely parallel to disputes between the nationalists of the respective countries over cultural legitimacy to ownership of the Van-lakes region.
The Turkish "version" of the breed is different from the version the Armenians and Kurds claim to be the proper Van cat — the Van cat bred by the Turks is solid white, whereas the Kurdish version has red-brown spots, referred to by the Kurds as the "Marks of Allah", due to a Legend that Allah/God picked the cat up to help it out of Noah's Ark on Mount Ararat.
Meanwhile, genetic research has shown that the Near-Eastern wild cat was domesticated about 10,000 years ago, when proto-Indo-European tribes passed to crop farming and settled life. In addition, the white-spotting in domestic cats appeared at the earliest stage of cat domestication, and is one of the evidences of early artificial selection. The Van cat may therefore have a much more ancient origin than the ethnic groups now present in the territory around Lake Van. The earliest ethnic groups in the Lake Van region recognized by all the historians are the population of the kingdom Biain or Biainili (Urartu
in Assyria
n) and Hurrians
, which are claimed by some to be predecessors to the modern Armenians
and Kurds correspondingly, however this is not universally agreed upon.
Van Kedisi
The Van Cat is a distinctive breed of domestic cat that is found mainly in the Lake Van region of eastern Turkey. It is large, all-white, and frequently odd eyed.- History :...
has been referred to as "Kurdish cat" or "Kurdish Van cat", and made a symbol of Kurdistan, by Kurdish nationalist circles.
Florian Cremer, a spokesperson of a small German catbreeding group, stated that "the Turkish state wants to wipe out everything that symbolizes Kurdish culture... The cats are Kurdish, and the Turkish authorities are unable to digest this."
Additionally, the Van region currently has a large Kurdish population, and in recent times the Turks have systematically attempted to wipe out their culture. According to Kurds (or, more acutely, Kurdish nationalists, however many Kurds that category may contain), the breed is a Kurdish cultural
Kurdish culture
Kurdish culture is a group of distinctive cultural traits practiced by Kurdish people...
creation (and thus, Kurdish
Kurdish people
The Kurdish people, or Kurds , are an Iranian people native to the Middle East, mostly inhabiting a region known as Kurdistan, which includes adjacent parts of Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Turkey...
/Median
Median
In probability theory and statistics, a median is described as the numerical value separating the higher half of a sample, a population, or a probability distribution, from the lower half. The median of a finite list of numbers can be found by arranging all the observations from lowest value to...
property).
The dispute is also three-way: Armenians
Armenians
Armenian people or Armenians are a nation and ethnic group native to the Armenian Highland.The largest concentration is in Armenia having a nearly-homogeneous population with 97.9% or 3,145,354 being ethnic Armenian....
often consider the breed to be historically "Armenian" as well. Prior to 1915
Armenian Genocide
The Armenian Genocide—also known as the Armenian Holocaust, the Armenian Massacres and, by Armenians, as the Great Crime—refers to the deliberate and systematic destruction of the Armenian population of the Ottoman Empire during and just after World War I...
, the area had a large Armenian population. However: notably, there were more Muslims in the area than there were Christians; Kurds may be Muslim, Christian, Yazidi, Yarsanist or Jewish, but Armenians, however, are mostly all Christian. In general, the area just north of the Van lake was Armenian historically (judging from historical placenames), and south of it Kurdish. The descendants of the Western Armenians
Armenians
Armenian people or Armenians are a nation and ethnic group native to the Armenian Highland.The largest concentration is in Armenia having a nearly-homogeneous population with 97.9% or 3,145,354 being ethnic Armenian....
, who had managed to escape from being massacred in the years of the Genocide
Armenian Genocide
The Armenian Genocide—also known as the Armenian Holocaust, the Armenian Massacres and, by Armenians, as the Great Crime—refers to the deliberate and systematic destruction of the Armenian population of the Ottoman Empire during and just after World War I...
(1915-1918) and scattered all over the world, consider the Van region their motherland and the Van cat or "Vana katu" in Armenian, correspondingly, the part of their culture, which from the end of the 19th century was a symbol of Armenian liberation movement along with the blue rose that was an aboriginal kind in Van city area. The Republic of Turkey, the successor state of the Ottoman Empire, does not accept the word genocide as an accurate description of the events, though to date, twenty-one countries have officially recognized the events of the period as genocide, and most genocide scholars and historians accept this view. Moreover, the Turkish authorities spare neither strength nor resources to clear off any track of Armenian culture, including ancient proto Armenian relics, in the Western Armenia
Western Armenia
Western Armenia is a term, primarily used by Armenians, to refer to Armenian-inhabited areas of the Armenian Highland that were part of the Ottoman Empire and now are part of the Republic of Turkey....
, as well as other non-Turkish cultures in Anatolia, and unfortunately, even the Van cat is subjected to this policy.
There is a general disagreement between Turks, Armenians and Kurds about which culture produced and has rightful "ownership" over the cat. All three groups may claim the cat is theirs, or specifically not of another group. The dispute over the Van cat is largely parallel to disputes between the nationalists of the respective countries over cultural legitimacy to ownership of the Van-lakes region.
The Turkish "version" of the breed is different from the version the Armenians and Kurds claim to be the proper Van cat — the Van cat bred by the Turks is solid white, whereas the Kurdish version has red-brown spots, referred to by the Kurds as the "Marks of Allah", due to a Legend that Allah/God picked the cat up to help it out of Noah's Ark on Mount Ararat.
Meanwhile, genetic research has shown that the Near-Eastern wild cat was domesticated about 10,000 years ago, when proto-Indo-European tribes passed to crop farming and settled life. In addition, the white-spotting in domestic cats appeared at the earliest stage of cat domestication, and is one of the evidences of early artificial selection. The Van cat may therefore have a much more ancient origin than the ethnic groups now present in the territory around Lake Van. The earliest ethnic groups in the Lake Van region recognized by all the historians are the population of the kingdom Biain or Biainili (Urartu
Urartu
Urartu , corresponding to Ararat or Kingdom of Van was an Iron Age kingdom centered around Lake Van in the Armenian Highland....
in Assyria
Assyria
Assyria was a Semitic Akkadian kingdom, extant as a nation state from the mid–23rd century BC to 608 BC centred on the Upper Tigris river, in northern Mesopotamia , that came to rule regional empires a number of times through history. It was named for its original capital, the ancient city of Assur...
n) and Hurrians
Hurrians
The Hurrians were a people of the Ancient Near East who lived in Northern Mesopotamia and adjacent regions during the Bronze Age.The largest and most influential Hurrian nation was the kingdom of Mitanni. The population of the Hittite Empire in Anatolia to a large part consisted of Hurrians, and...
, which are claimed by some to be predecessors to the modern Armenians
Armenians
Armenian people or Armenians are a nation and ethnic group native to the Armenian Highland.The largest concentration is in Armenia having a nearly-homogeneous population with 97.9% or 3,145,354 being ethnic Armenian....
and Kurds correspondingly, however this is not universally agreed upon.