10.02.2025 10:41
The name of Ördek Neighborhood, which has a history of 110 years in the Afşin district of Kahramanmaraş, has been changed to Güzelyurt upon the request of the residents. The neighborhood's muhtar, Medet Karakaş, stated, "We did not want our village to be referred to by an animal name. Because it became a subject of ridicule, we had to collect signatures and apply to the municipality to change the name of our village."
The headman of the rural Ördek neighborhood in the Afşin district, Medet Karakaş, requested the name of the neighborhood to be changed to Güzelyurt with a petition he submitted to the Afşin Municipality 5 months ago. The Afşin Municipal Council, which took the petition, signed by the residents, onto its agenda, changed the name of the 110-year-old Ördek neighborhood, which has about 450 residents and 200 houses, to Güzelyurt neighborhood.
"NOT A SINGLE DUCK LIVES HERE"
Expressing that not only he but also the residents were disturbed by this situation, Headman Medet Karakaş said, "The name of this village is Ördek, but not a single duck lives here. The name of our village was a subject of ridicule; everyone was making fun of us. They would say, 'Are there many ducks? Let's come for hunting.' When our children went to school, they were ridiculed there. Whether it was our elders or our youth, we were constantly the subject of mockery whenever we went somewhere. That's why we gathered among the villagers and said, 'Let's change the name of our village.'
"WE COLLECTED SIGNATURES AND APPLIED TO OUR MUNICIPALITY"
We collected about 200 signatures and applied to our municipality. Our municipality also deemed it appropriate. Our village has 200 houses, and it was a decision made by the majority. We did not want our village to be associated with an animal name. Because it was a subject of ridicule, we had to change the name of our village. Soon, we will remove the Ördek neighborhood sign and put up the Güzelyurt neighborhood sign," he stated. The residents also expressed that they were ridiculed everywhere they went because of the name of the neighborhood and were pleased with the change of name for this reason.