Ahmet Şükrü SOMUNCU

Ashik Murat Çobanoğlu of Kars, one of the significant representatives of the “Anatolian Ashik (Minstrel) Tradition” in the last era, is the subject of this study.  The position of Ashik Murat Çobanoğlu in the ashik tradition was revealed, and a review was made within the framework of ashik literature. When considering ashiks who are an important voice and representative of the society, it is necessary to make evaluations about the society in question. In this context, Goldman's structural constructivist method, which focuses on the relationship between society and artifacts, was preferred in this study. Within the framework of this method, first of all, the structural elements in Çobanoğlu's poems were emphasized in the heading of “understanding stage”. Under the heading of “Disclosure stage”, important information about the Kars region was interpreted by associating it with the ashik tradition. In this section, information about Çobanoğlu's life is introduced, and a general picture is drawn about the sphere in which the ashik grew up. When it comes to the ashik tradition of the Kars region, the first element that comes to mind is “Çobanoğlu Ashiks Coffee”.  Information about Ashik Murat Çobanoğlu and the “Çobanoğlu Ashiks Coffee”, which has a significant impact on the ashik tradition in the region, was introduced, and evaluations were made. Later, the topics that Çobanoğlu covered in his poems were determined, and examples of these topics were introduced. It was determined that topics such as economics, agriculture, nature, and living things, history, and geography were usually covered in the poems. National issues and social criticism also attract attention in Çobanoğlu's poems. As a result of the review, a number of features belonging to the Kars region and traces of its culture were found in the poems. Historical issues, geographical and physical characteristics, reflections of the social structure are seen in the poems of Çobanoğlu. Ashik Murat Çobanoğlu of Kars is brought to the attention of the scientific world once again by using the structural constructivist method, and the main purpose of this study is to suggest a new interpretation about the ashik and to make a contribution to the studies of poetries of the ashik.

Keywords: Kars region, Ashik tradition, Ashik literature, Ashik Murat Çobanoğlu, Structural Constructivism.