Whirling dervishes
Mosque at sunset
Woman in a red coat at a fashion show
Colorful tiled ceiling of Topkapi Palace
Ruins of a church
Elaborately carved white columns
Tourists walking through Hagia Sophia in Istanbul
Man throwing a carpet
Crowds of people and red Turkish flags inside bazaar
Windows of a cave house in Turkey
Hot air balloons over Cappadocia, Turkey
Photo: Aerial view of brightly colored boats
Aerial view of Istanbul, Turkey
1 of 13
Whirling Dervishes
The ritual dance of the Sufi sect, a mystical branch of Islam, was created in Konya 700 years ago by the Persian poet Rumi. Practitioners, dubbed "whirling dervishes" by early European travelers, believe the act of repeatedly spinning allows them to forget their earthly body and move closer to God. "Dervish" is an adaptation of darwish, the Arabic word for Sufi.
Photograph by Eda Kaya, My Shot

Turkey Photos

See photos of Turkey (including whirling dervishes, the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia, Cappadocia, and more) in this travel photo gallery from National Geographic.

December 31, 2013

LIMITED TIME OFFER

Get a FREE tote featuring 1 of 7 ICONIC PLACES OF THE WORLD

Go Further