Historical Misinformation on Social Media and Claims Regarding Yavuz Sultan Selim
An examination of how unfounded claims spreading rapidly on social media manipulate historical facts, and how fake poems attributed to Yavuz Sultan Selim lack any scientific basis.
With the advancement of technology, the rapid spread of fake news on social media leads to the misrepresentation of historical events and phenomena, creating serious misinformation.
Social Media and Misinformation
While social media platforms provide people with fast communication opportunities, they also bring along serious issues such as accuracy, reliability, and manipulation.
According to a study conducted by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, it has been determined that fake news spreads six times faster on social media compared to true news.
Misrepresentation of Historical Documents
Visual materials and claims whose reality has not been researched are presented as historical documents on social media, and this situation sometimes even finds a place in academic publications.
Claims Regarding Yavuz Sultan Selim
The claims that the curse attributed to Yavuz Sultan Selim, which allegedly curses the Kurds, is located on a fountain inscription near Muş do not reflect the truth.
Although it is claimed that this information passes in the Evliya Çelebi Seyahatname, such an inscription does not exist in the oldest copies of the work and in the Zuhuri Danışman translation.
Divân-ı Selîmî and Literary Facts
Yavuz Sultan Selim has a Persian divan, and some Turkish pieces attributed to him, as well as the poem in question, have a broken meter.
Considering that the sultan has a Persian divan and poetic patterns, this verse is encountered neither in the Seyahatname nor in the Divân-ı Selîmî.