Launched in July 2025 after preparatory work that began in April 2024, the Alevi Encyclopedia has reached another major milestone in its institutional development within just eight months. It has now been officially registered by the Deutsche ISIL-Agentur, operating under the Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin – Preußischer Kulturbesitz, and assigned the international ISIL code DE-4607.
An ISIL (International Standard Identifier for Libraries and Related Organizations) is a globally recognized institutional identifier for libraries, archives, and related knowledge institutions. This registration ensures the Encyclopedia’s visibility within international catalog systems, bibliographic databases, and Linked Data infrastructures, and also functions as a MARC 21 institutional code. It formally recognizes the Alevi Encyclopedia not merely as a digital publication platform, but as an institutional cultural and academic archive.
Within a short period, the platform has reached an average of 1,500–2,000 daily unique visitors and is supported by an international academic network of nearly 100 scholars serving on its Editorial and Scientific Advisory Boards. It publishes peer-reviewed entries in Turkish, English, and German in an encyclopedic format grounded in academic standards.
Beyond its written content, the Encyclopedia also serves as a digital memory archive. Through its oral history initiative, interviews with Pirs and Anas document centuries-old traditions, concepts, rituals, and belief systems. Narratives recorded in Turkish, Kırmancki, and Kurmanci are digitally preserved and made accessible for future generations.
The ISIL registration significantly strengthens the Encyclopedia’s academic credibility and institutional standing. It represents a concrete step toward safeguarding and disseminating Alevi knowledge on its own terms within a durable, internationally recognized framework.
Click here to view the ISIL registration.
Alevi Studies Network 