Throughout history, there are no other items as versatile as a handkerchief. The handkerchief had been used for many different purposes such as drying face and communicating secretly between lovers.

As Burhaniye Public Education Center, we had some projects in Braga, Portugal. During the project meeting, we highlighted the concept of the handkerchief which has an important place Anatolian handicrafts.

We talked about the reality of the handkerchief in all aspects. We came across many examples of the handicrafts based on processing the handkerchief in Braga.

The most attractive ones in the field of the handicrafts are the handkerchiefs which mark into the daily lives of people.

It comes from the word ‘’hand’’ in the Latin language. It shows on an intercultural feature. In Turkish culture, handkerchiefs are not only used to wipe our hands but also used to carry and cover small materials. Moreover, it’s used as a cover. It was also used as a symbol of love and passion.

In the past, lovers used to convey their feelings to each other via handkerchief. Especially, the colours of the handkerchief and processing the handkerchiefs had very special meanings. For example, The green handkerchief meant being careful. White was for love, purple was for liking someone and enjoying. Red was used for love and passion. Blue was used for faithlessness. As of last, the yellow handkerchief represented the disease.

By the way, we observed that most people living in the countryside in Portugal use handkerchiefs in their daily lives. The meanings of them were similar to Turkish culture. We realized that they used linen as a fabric in Portugal. It was obvious that they were influenced by the Mediterranean culture and embroidered with threads of different colours. In addition to using pictures of flowers and animals in handkerchiefs in Portugal, they mostly used writings on the
handkerchiefs. Young people of marriageable age in Portuguese culture told their feeling by handkerchiefs.

As a consequent, it is very proud to see that handicrafts still live even if the geography and the flag change. Thanks to this project, we learned this historical accumulation which is explained with the similarity of the Andalusian culture and Anatolian Islamic culture.

We think that such similarities need to be investigated throughout Europe. We are sure that the results will be interesting.
Arts and crafts are universal.