Türk kültüründe kuşa dönüşen kadınlar

Human beings transformed into birds, this change obviously possesses a symbolic meaning. The bird-woman motifs in the legends later become fairies. After Turks adopted the Islamic faith, these fairies and birds who came from the sky began to be considered as negative figures and bearers of misfortune. However, the female motif of the transforming bird has continued in fairy tales. The theme of bird-women and lakes derives from shamanic beliefs and it indicates a belief about fertile spirits who came from the sky, conceived in water and went back to the sky after having their babies. While both flying and swimming birdwomen are elements of sky and water in mythology, their children who live in earth are the element of earth and they complete the air-water-earth elements of mythology.