BINEVŞ STÊRK

 Amed (Diyarbakır) – The remains of Ayşe Şan, a Kurdish singer and dengbêj also known as Eyşana Kurdî, were buried in Amed on Wednesday after 29 years, in accordance with her will.

Born in Amed in 1938, Ayşe Şan died in Izmir on December 18, 1996 and was buried in Izmir. Before her death, she said in her will that she wanted to be buried in Amed, her hometown. After 29 years, her remains were brought to Amed on Wednesday with the joint efforts of the municipalities of Izmir and Amed.

Women went to the airport in Amed to take her coffin by carrying a banner reading, “Eyşana Kurdî, welcome to Amed”. The women carried her coffin on their shoulders until the Yeniköy Cemetery in Amed.

NuJINHA spoke to the women attending the commemoration ceremony held for Ayşe Şan in Amed.

‘Ayşe Şan was a resilient woman’

“Ayşe Şan was a resilient woman,” said Menice Yeni, one of the women attending the commemoration ceremony. “As a dengbêj and woman, she was not recognized by either men or her family. She was far from her hometown; she went to a metropolis in Türkiye and died there. She was a mother, who suffered a lot, but was very strong.”

‘Thousands of women follow in her footsteps’

Meyrem Soylu, who burst into tears while singing the “Bavê Seyran” song at Ayşe Şan's grave, thanked everyone who made great efforts to bring the remains of Ayşe Şan to Amed. “Ayşe Şan was a resilient woman, standing against oppression. She never gave up although she faced challenges and oppression. Today, thousands of women have become dengbêj (s) by following in her footsteps. We will always remember Ayşe Şan. We will tell her life story to our grandchildren.”

‘I grew up  listening to the songs of Ayşe Şan’

One of the women attending the commemoration ceremony told us that Ayşe Şan was a “Kurdish nightingale” and that she grew up listening to the songs of Ayşe Şan. “Ayşe Şan was our voice,” said a 55-year-old woman.