Baba Fingo

Baba Fingo or Father Fingo is a male deity in Turkish Romani folklore. The Romanlar in Turkey believe in Baba Fingo as their saviour. The festival Kakava[1] is celebrated in Edirne on 5-6 May. The Romanlar make a bonfire and go to the Meric River at night. They believe Baba Fingo comes out of the water and protects the Romani people.[2]

The legend of Baba Fingo is that long ago, the people lived in Egypt, but the Pharaoh was cruel to them. Baba Fingo led the people out through the Red Sea.[2] Another legend says that Baba Fingo was a good and wise commandant who worked for Pharaoh but liked women and alcohol too much. The Pharaoh's other commandants were jealous of him. They tricked him with women and alcohol, and he got lost in the river. Although the Romanlar have been Muslims for centuries, the folk religion of Baba Fingo plays a very important role for them.[3]

References

  1. ↑ "Kakava takes over Edirne". Daily Sabah. Retrieved June 3, 2021.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Roma culture comes alive with celebration of Baba Fingo". Daily Sabah. Retrieved June 1, 2021.
  3. ↑ Ekmel Cizmecioglu (May 1, 2006). "Gypsies in Bulgaria and Turkey". Journal on Moving Communities. 6 (1): 90. ISBN 9789044120080. Retrieved June 3, 2021.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.