The name of the village has sometimes been spelled Eylenhoca in Turkish, for instance, in the records of the Turkish census from 1945[3] to 1975.[4] The name of the village appears in an early 20th-century Germanatlas as Jylan Chodja (Yılan Hoca)[5] and in Greek as Γιλανχοτζας (Yilankhotzas).[6]
A Paleolithic site has been reported at Kemerdağı, east of the village.[12] Ancient settlements have also been reported in the area of the village, with Byzantine-era building stones, columns, and a relief found in nearby fields.[13]
The present village is said to have been founded in 1505.[14]
In 1936, because of famine brought about by the failure of the grape crop, the Red Crescent distributed staple foods to the village and surrounding area.[15][16][17][18] In 1949, the village and surrounding area experienced an earthquake of X intensity on the Mercalli-Sieberg scale, which left several houses uninhabitable.[19] A delegation of politicians including Celâl Bayar and Adnan Menderes visited the village and surrounding area soon after the earthquake.[20] In 1969, the village and surrounding area experienced another earthquake which caused heavy damage.[21]
Population
The population of the village has been declining overall since the 1960s:
In 1831, there were 103 Muslim households, with 114 Muslim males of working age, 3 Greek Orthodox (Rum) males of working age, and 4 slaves.[22]
In 1923, there were 157 households, with 331 males and 356 females, for a total population of 687.[23]
Before the construction of major roads, the village depended on boat transportation, with a pier to the north of the village in Kösedere İskelesi on the Gulf of Izmir.[32] In 1933, the Urla-Karaburun road was opened, passing very near the village.[33]
Traditions
Architectural traditions
A traditional house in Eğlenhoca has one or two stories. The walls of the lower story are built of yellowish-white rubble stones, with gaps filled by smaller stones and bits of brick or tile. The stones are bound with mudmortar to form walls 60-80 cm thick. The corners of the walls are shaped with somewhat larger and more-shaped rubble stones. Timber ties are also often used. The exterior walls of the upper story are similar to those of the lower story, but only 50-60 cm thick. The interior walls of the upper story are bağdadi work, that is, a timber frame with horizontal laths covered in a thick mixture of mud and straw. Roofs are timber frame, hipped or in a gable, and covered in alaturka "over and under" tiles. In 2019, 42% of buildings in the village were of traditional type, though some were in ruins.[34]
Bridal traditions
The traditional head decoration for a bride in Eğlenhoca used to be gildedbay leaves. Before the bride mounted her horse to go to the wedding celebration, the bride's father would tie a red sash called the "effort sash" (gayret kuşağı) around her waist; bundled into the end of the sash was some money. The sash was said to show that the bride would not be lazy or avoid work in her new home.[35]
Main sights
Mosque
Construction on the Eğlenhoca Mosque was begun in 1813-14 and finished in 1846. The mosque underwent important repairs and decoration from 1899 to 1902. The building is rectangular in plan, with a flat wooden ceiling and wooden dome, and room for a congregation of 201.[36][37]
Reservoir
Southwest of the village is the Karaburun-Mordoğan Lake (also called the Eğlenhoca Lake), a reservoir in the Kaşkudan Valley for irrigation and drinking water. The dam was completed in 2007, the resulting reservoir is the largest in the district of Karaburun.[38][39]
References
^Mahalle, Turkey Civil Administration Departments Inventory. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
^"Smyrna". www.loc.gov. Retrieved 2022-07-26. Kiepert, Richard (1908–1915). Karte von Kleinasien in 24 Blatt [Map of Asia Minor in 24 Sheets] (in German). Berlin: D. Reimer (E. Vohsen).
^Κορομηλά, Μαριάννα; Κοντάρας, Θοδωρής (1997). Ερυθραία. Ένας ευλογημένος μικρόκοσμος στην καρδιά της Ιωνίας [Erythrae: A Blessed Little World in the Heart of Ionia] (in Greek). Αθήνα: Πολιτιστικής Εταιρείας Πανόραμα. ISBN960-85142-8-2.
^"Zeytin Yolu" [Olive Route]. karaburun.gov.tr (in Turkish). Retrieved 2021-08-17.
^Sezgin, Ece; Çolak, Nil Dilara; Akcan, Gizem (2021). "Karaburun Arkeolojik Yüzey Araştırması: Öne Çıkan Bulgular" [Karaburun Archeological Surface Survey: Prominent Findings]. İzmir Araştırmaları Dergisi (in Turkish) (14): 1–27. Retrieved 2022-07-26.
^Işık, p. 8. Işık, Şevket (2012). Karaburun Yarımadası'nın Tarihsel Coğrafyası [The Historical Geography of the Karaburun Peninsula] (in Turkish). İzmir: Ege Üniversitesi Edebiyat Fakültesi Yayınları.).
^"Köylüye Yardım" [Aid to the Villager]. Akşam (in Turkish). Istanbul. 1936-03-02. Retrieved 2022-08-18.
^"Karaburun'da Köylüye Yardım" [Aid to the Villager in Karaburun]. Anadolu (in Turkish). Izmir. 1936-03-12. Retrieved 2022-08-18.
^Işık, p. 28. Işık, Şevket (2012). Karaburun Yarımadası'nın Tarihsel Coğrafyası [The Historical Geography of the Karaburun Peninsula] (in Turkish). İzmir: Ege Üniversitesi Edebiyat Fakültesi Yayınları.).
^"Celâl Bayar Zelzelebölgesinde" [Celâl Bayar in the Earthquake Region]. Akşam (in Turkish). Istanbul. 1949-08-13. Retrieved 2022-08-15.
^Işık, pp. 29, 62. Işık, Şevket (2012). Karaburun Yarımadası'nın Tarihsel Coğrafyası [The Historical Geography of the Karaburun Peninsula] (in Turkish). İzmir: Ege Üniversitesi Edebiyat Fakültesi Yayınları.).
^Adıtatar, Funda (2019). "On Dokuzuncu Yüzyıl Başlarında Karaburun Kazasının Demografik ve İktisadi Yapısı" [Demographic and Economic Structure of the Karaburun District in the Early Nineteenth Century] (PDF). Üçüncü İktisat Tarihi Kongresi Bildirileri, 2. Üçüncü İktisat Tarihi Kongresi (in Turkish). İzmir: İzmir Demokrasi Üniversitesi. pp. 115–133.
^Işık, pp. 18, 20, 82. (Işık, Şevket (2012). Karaburun Yarımadası'nın Tarihsel Coğrafyası [The Historical Geography of the Karaburun Peninsula] (in Turkish). İzmir: Ege Üniversitesi Edebiyat Fakültesi Yayınları.). Note that Kösedere İskelesi was not the same place as the village that is now called Kösedere. The former Kösedere İskelesi is now called Kaynarpınar, while the village now known as Kösedere was formerly Ağalarseki (Işık, p. 23, n. 1).
^"İzmirde İnşaat Faaliyeti" [Construction Work in Izmir] (PDF). Vakit (in Turkish). Istanbul. 1933-03-19. Retrieved 2022-08-15.
^Önkal, Hakkı (2009). "Mordoğan Köylerinden Üç Cami" [Three Village Mosques of Mordoğan] (PDF). XI. Ortaçağ-Türk Dönemi Kazı Sonuçları ve Sanat Tarihi Araştırmaları Sempozyumu (17-19 Ekim 2007, İzmir): Bildiriler. XI. Ortaçağ-Türk Dönemi Kazı Sonuçları ve Sanat Tarihi Araştırmaları Sempozyumu (in Turkish). İzmir: Ege Üniversitesi. pp. 283–293.
