03447nas a2200121   4500000000100000000000100001008004100002100001600043700002400059245009600083300001200179520313400191                                       d1 aOzlem Guzel1 aUyesi Akyurt Kurnaz00aRitual Content of Bocuk Night As a Heritage In Turkish Culture: A Phenomenological Research  a163-1783 aCulture is a concept that has been blended and developed over the years. Due to its features, it is very comprehensive and cultural research has become extremely important. Throughout history, many civilizations lived in Thrace and Anatolia. Therefore, beliefs, rituals, celebrations and traditions have occurred as a result of cultural diversity. It is very important to keep cultural heritage elements alive and pass them on to future generations. Examples of these elements are architectural structures, monuments, traditions, ceremonies, culinary cultures, crafts, festivals, rituals, beliefs, lifestyles. It is possible that oral cultural values, which are passed down from generation to generation, turn into cultural heritage rituals over time. One of the cultural heritage riches of Thrace and Balkan culture is the Bocuk culture-Bocuk night. Bocuk night has become a ritual performed in different ways in almost all societies. "Bocuk" is interpreted as a feared being, a woman emerging on the coldest night of the year, a creature wandering in whites. The aim of this study is determined as the examination of the content, meaning and rituals of this night, which was identified with the Thrace region and became one of the cultural dynamics of social life. In the study aiming to make sense of individual perceptions about Bocuk phenomenon, phenomenology pattern has been preferred among qualitative research patterns. In order to reach the essence of experiences and access the participants  life patterns, in-depth interviews were made with the people living in the Thrace region and the data obtained were subjected to descriptive analysis. According to the findings, the cultural content of Bocuk night belief was gathered under two basic themes as "interpreting traditional origin" and "defining modern meaning". In line with the answers given, the contents of the rituals performed on the Bocuk night are also divided into the dimensions of "adopted habits and sanctified behaviors". It is seen that the origin of the Bocuk night ritual dates back to the times when Greeks and Turks lived together. Today, Bocuk s night is called "the harsh night of the winter months, the winter festival, the local Halloween, the night that is forbidden to go out, the night where the cows and children are harmed", this night is also called "the abundance-calling the abundance and protection against evil in the new year" passed down from generation to generation. Bocuk s night has brought many benefits to the local people. According to the results of the interview; with this ritual, the people and tradesmen of the region have started to generate significant economic income both by producing local products and turning their homes into accommodation units. In the socio-cultural sense, unity was achieved in the village thanks to the rituals held in the night. In addition, as a result of the analysis of the social function belonging to the Bocuk ritual, it is revealed that the Bocuk ritual contributed to the economic development, socio-cultural structure, group awareness and the development of tourism in the region.