SHRINE CULTURE IN KHOREZM: THE HARMONY OF ISLAMIC AND LOCAL ELEMENTS
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.47390/hum-i4v2y2026/n04Keywords:
Khorezm, shrine, saint (awliya), folk Islam, Sufism, sacred space, Sulton Hubbi, Ambar-Ona, Pahlavon Mahmud, religious syncretism.Abstract
This article analyzes the shrine culture in the Khorezm oasis from historical-ethnographic and religious-anthropological perspectives. The research focuses on two main layers of the sacred space system: the religious traditions associated with Islamic Sufism, saints (awliya), and tomb visitation (ziyarat), alongside local belief layers tied to water, trees, springs, patrons of crafts, and clan-community memory. The Khorezmian materials demonstrate that pilgrimage practices are neither purely "canonical" nor purely "folk" phenomena. Instead, they constitute a complex system formed at the intersection of religious norms, social needs, historical memory, and sacred geography. Figures such as Pahlavon Mahmud, Said Olloquddin, Said Ota, Hakim Ota, Sulton Hubbi, and Ambar-Ona, along with their associated shrines, combine the language of Islamic sanctity with local beliefs, becoming deeply embedded in the daily religious experiences of the oasis population.
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