“The Fatima – Ship Procession” A Traditional Ceremony in Germany
Hasan GUNES, Nadide GUNES

Abstract
There are many religious days and feasts that are being celebrated in Europe and Germany. One of them is “St Mary’s Day” that is being celebrated on the 15 th August. There is a ritual that is especially being realized on “St Mary’s Day” and that has become traditional in Germany. The due ritual is being realized on “The Bodensee Lake” in Germany and called as “Fatima – Ship Procession”. It is an extraordinary interesting situation to see a name that is of Arabic origin on a feast that is known to be a Christian feast. When the word “Fatima” is investigated it can be seen that this name is commonly known and used amongst Christians living in Europe and especially in Latin Countries. The source of the name that is being used in the due ritual, what its roots are and where it comes from historically, is an important subject that has to be investigated especially by theologians and historians. As a matter of fact the source of the due name unfortunately isn’t known very well by the Christian Community.

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