East Turkistan is conveyed through the symbolism of pigeons. In the story, the policy imposed on the Uyghurs –who were being stripped of their identity, erased from their historical roots, and driven toward annihilation– is described as “de-souling” while the pigeons that symbolize them are referred to as “şalğut”. In Yava Kepter, “şalğut” functions as an alternative to “mankurt”, framing disidentification as the rupture of lineage and the production of a hybrid generation. Although disidentification –understood as a form of genocide that can also be described as ethnic and cultural annihilation– has become a widespread reality of today’s societies, the term şalğut, used to describe this situation, is a new conceptual marker for “disidentification”. Örkişi consciously chose this concept, which implicitly conveys the current experiences of the Uyghur people. The study investigates The Legend of Nayman Ana and Yava Kepter diachronically through the notions of “mankurt” and “şalğut”. By employing the allusion method of intertextuality, it designates “şalğut” an original conceptual marker of disidentification.
New Uyghur literature, Yava Kepter, şalğut, disidentification, intertextuality, allusion.