Eid al-Adha(عيد الأضحى) in 🇹🇷 Turkey

Eid al-Adha in Turkey, called Kurban Bayrami, the Festival of Sacrifice, is the most important religious holiday in the Turkish calendar and is observed with four and a half days of public holiday. The celebration revolves around the kurban, the ritual sacrifice of a sheep, goat, or cow, performed after the morning Eid prayer.

Turkish families typically purchase their sacrificial animal days in advance, often from temporary livestock markets set up on the outskirts of cities. Many urban families now opt for vekalet kurban, authorizing charitable organizations to perform the sacrifice on their behalf and distribute the meat to the needy, both domestically and internationally.

The meat is traditionally divided into three: one part for the household, one for relatives and neighbors, and one for the poor. The kavurma, fried meat preserved in its own fat, is a Kurban Bayrami specialty that extends the celebratory meal for days. Other traditional dishes include etli pilav, meat rice, and various kebabs prepared from the fresh sacrifice.

Family visits follow the same protocol as Seker Bayrami, with younger people visiting elders first. The hand-kissing greeting remains central. Roads and airports are jammed as millions of Turks travel to their home provinces. In rural Anatolia, the communal sacrifice and shared meal reinforce village bonds, while in Istanbul and Ankara, municipal services manage the logistics of urban sacrifice with designated areas and waste disposal.

One of the two holiest Islamic festivals, commemorating Ibrahim's willingness to sacrifice his son as commanded by God, marked by animal sacrifice, communal prayers, and sharing meat with the poor.