Anthropological analysis of cultural identity: The case of Küresinlis

In this study “cultural identity” concept has taken into consideration based on the “Küresinlis” case. For this purpose socio-cultural features of Küresinlis were gathered trough field research and evaluated from the anthropological perspective. Küresinlis, who had emigrated from Iran to Anatolia approximately one century ago, integrated into the cultural and social structure of Anatolia and the only remnant of their past are the stories of their ancestors. Demographically, Küresinlis are concentrated mainly in the city center of Van province, including Özalp and Saray districts of the same province. Küresinlis community which represent themselves as Turkish, maintain their “Küresinlis identity” as a sub-identity. They also have certain sub group identities which resemble clan names. Those identifications originate from the name of the localities of their ancestors before the immigration. Küresinlis community shows cooperation and unity in certain social and cultural activities. While the members of the community, inhabiting in the rural areas by the borders, claim themselves as a tribe; urbanized members of the community reject it