Hıdırellez
May 6, Monday
Hıdırellez or Hıdrellez is a folk holiday celebrated as the day on which the prophets Al-Khidr (Hızır) and Elijah (İlyas) met on Earth. Hıdırellez starts on the night of May 5 and ends on May 6 in the Gregorian calendar, and April 23 (St. George's day for the Christians) in the Julian calendar. It is observed in Turkey, Crimea, Syria, Iraq, and the Balkans and celebrates the arrival of spring.
Khidr, also transcribed as al-Khadir, Khader, Khizr, al-Khidr, Khazer, Khadr, Khedher, Khizir, and Khizar, is a figure described but not mentioned by name in the Quran as a righteous servant of God possessing great wisdom or mystic knowledge. In various Islamic and non-Islamic traditions, Khidr is described as a messenger, prophet, wali, slave, or angel who guards the sea, teaches secret knowledge, and aids those in distress. As guardian angel, he prominently figures as patron of the Islamic saint Ibn Arabi. The figure of al-Khidr has been syncretized. In 2017, it was inscribed in the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists of North Macedonia and Turkey.