ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - A theater group is touring villages in Dersim province, southeast Turkey to present plays in the Zazaki dialect of Kurdish, playing to crowds that include many first-time theater goers.
Areye Kay, which means Play Mill in Zazaki, is a theatre group that was founded in Istanbul in 2012.
Their plays address issues of concern for their audiences, mainly dams and mining projects. Villagers have shown a great interest in the initiative, especially as the performances are in their mother tongue.
Cicek Ates had never attended the theatre until Areye Kay visited his village.
"Before this, we had never seen anything like this. We were very happy, we had fun. It was beautiful," he told Rudaw on Friday.
Nimet Donmez travelled from Dersim to Dedeagac (Pilvenk in Kurdish) village to watch the show.
He told Rudaw that theater is not just a performance but also carries an important message for culture and language. "Let's protect our mother tongue and teach it to our children,” he said.
Yilmazcan Sare, founder of the theatre group, warned that Zazaki is on the brink of extinction.
"Our language, our faith, our culture is about to die. We are taking a stand against this. Our elderly people living in villages cannot go to the theater, so we go to them. We wanted them to experience the theater in their language and laugh," he told Rudaw, adding that they will continue visiting other villages.
Zaza Kurds make up the majority of the population in Dersim. Most belong to the Alawite faith.
Various efforts have been made in Turkey to classify the Zazaki and Kurmanji Kurdish dialects as separate languages. Turkish officials are accused of playing a role in promoting this division.
Last month, the head of an Alawite association called on Zaza Kurds in Turkey to preserve and promote their mother tongue.
“All people of Dersim are Kurds and their religion is the Path of Truth [Alewism], and the language of the Path of Truth is Kurdish,” said Zeynel Kete, co-chair of the Democratic Alevi Association. "Language is our identity, language is our existence. If a person is without language, they remain without culture, without religion and without belief."
There are no reliable estimates on thenumber of Zazaki speakers in Turkey.
Ali Haydar Gozlu contributed to this article.