Âşık Dursun is a folk poet whose name appears in the lists of minstrels of the region that takes in Merzifon, Suluova and Gümüşhacıköy and is known locally as Gaziler Ovacığı. His name is mentioned in three separate studies, but none of them gives any information about his life or his poetry. He is also among the minstrels of the region listed in the site's article on the minstrel tradition in Amasya.
The Sources That Name Him
Haluk Yücel, in his 2018 article on the minstrels of Amasya, describes the minstrels of the region relying largely on Ali Cem Akbulut's book Gazilerovacığı Âşıkları, and among the minstrels who "lived in the region and won a place in people's hearts" he names "Aşık Dursun" after Kul Fakır, Caferî, Biçare, Abdalî, Fakir Ali, Turab Ali and Fukara Derviş. In the abstract of Yücel's 2021 study of Âşık Musa Aslan of Merzifon, Âşık Dursun is again named among the important figures who lived in the region, together with Biçare, Turab Ali, Fukara Derviş, Dervişoğlu and Kul Hüseyin.
The third source comes by another route. Şerife Özer and Mustafa Topal, in their 2021 article on Âşık Özlemî of Gümüşhacıköy, list the best-known minstrels of Amasya on the basis of the book Dünden Bugüne Gümüşhacıköy (2000) by A. Ankaralı, S. Cin and A. G. Tuncay; Âşık Dursun stands in this list between Âşık Engunî and Dervişoğlu. The same list is repeated in Fatih Çelebi's study of Kul Fakir published in 2026.
The State of the Sources
Âşık Dursun's name appears in the lists based on Akbulut's book Gazilerovacığı Âşıkları and in the list of minstrels in the book Dünden Bugüne Gümüşhacıköy; no other record has been found. That his name appears in two independent sources suggests that he was a minstrel known in the region; it is also likely that Akbulut's book contains an entry on him, but the book could not be obtained. His real name, surname, village, period and master are not known. "Dursun" is a common man's name, and there is no sign that it is a pen name; he should therefore not be confused with other minstrels who bear the same name. His poems have not been found, and as his date of death is unknown, the copyright status of his poems cannot be determined either.
Bibliography
Academic studies
- Haluk Yücel, "Türk Halk Müziğinde Âşıklık Geleneği: Amasya Âşıkları", TURAN-SAM Uluslararası Bilimsel Hakemli Dergisi, 10(39), 2018, p. 256. https://www.turansam.org/TURAN-SAM_39.pdf
- Haluk Yücel, "Merzifonlu Âşık Musa Aslan Türkülerinin Müzikal Analizi", Sosyal Bilimler Dergisi / The Journal of Social Sciences, 8(53), 2021, pp. 31-56. https://sobider.com/files/sobider_makaleler/6399117e-ec1c-4d60-a836-1d355be50f24.pdf
- Şerife Özer, Mustafa Topal, "Âşıklık Geleneği ve Geleneğin Çerağlarından Amasyalı Âşık Özlemî", Motif Akademi Halkbilimi Dergisi, 14(34), 2021, pp. 652-665. https://dergipark.org.tr/tr/download/article-file/1305244
Books
- Fatih Çelebi, "Âşıklık Geleneğinin Temsilcilerinden Kul Fakir'in Eserlerinde 'Dost' Kavramı", Evrim Çağlayan (ed.), Kültür ve Güzel Sanatlar, Karabük: Karabük Üniversitesi Yayınları, 2026, pp. 3-4. https://kutuphane.karabuk.edu.tr/yuklenen/dosyalar/1263062026150047.pdf
- A. Ankaralı, S. Cin, A. G. Tuncay, Dünden Bugüne Gümüşhacıköy, Gümüşhacıköy: Ticaret ve Sanayi Odası, 2000 (as quoted in Özer-Topal 2021).
- Ali Cem Akbulut, Gazilerovacığı Âşıkları, Istanbul: KaraMavi Yayınları, 2010 (as quoted in Yücel 2018).
Online sources