Akademisyenlerin Kültür Turizmini Anlamlandırma Biçimleri: Türkiye Örneğinde Metaforik Bir Analiz (Academics’ Interpretations of Cultural Tourism: A Metaphorical Analysis of the Case of Turkey)
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.63556/jotags.2026.1924Keywords:
Cultural tourism, Metaphor, Academic perception, Content analysis, Qualitative researchAbstract
The aim of this study is to explain how academics in Turkey conceptualize cultural tourism using various metaphors and to reveal the cognitive frameworks underlying these metaphors. The research was conducted using a phenomenological design within the framework of qualitative research methodology. Data were collected online via a form from academics working at various universities; the responses of 83 valid participants were evaluated through content analysis. The findings reveal that 55 metaphors related to cultural tourism were grouped under six conceptual categories. The most prominent categories were identified as “Cultural Tourism as a Search for Identity and Meaning” and “Cultural Tourism as a Process of Discovery and Transformation.” Among the most common metaphors are “journey through time/the past,” “mirror,” “book/reading,” and “bridge.” In conclusion, it is evident that scholars conceptualize cultural tourism not merely as a type of tourism, but as a multifaceted phenomenon that generates knowledge, memory, identity, meaning, and transformation. This finding indicates that cultural tourism must also be evaluated in terms of its dimensions of interpretation, awareness, and cultural interaction.
References
Adu-Ampong, E. A. (2016). A metaphor analysis research agenda for tourism studies. Annals of Tourism Research, 57, 248–250.
Akyurt Kurnaz, H., Kurnaz, A., & Başdal, M. (2025). Teachers, leaders, cultural ambassadors and books: Uncovering undergraduate students’ metaphors about tourist guide concept. Seyahat ve Otel İşletmeciliği Dergisi, 22(3), 672–687.
Arslan, E. (2022). Nitel araştırmalarda geçerlilik ve güvenilirlik. Pamukkale Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü Dergisi, 51(Özel Sayı 1), Ö395-Ö407.
Aydın, E. D. & Yüce, A. (2025). The role of cultural heritage in sustainable tourism development: The case of Istanbul Kalkhedon Region. Geographies, Planning & Tourism, 5(1), 32-46.
Belhassen, Y. (2020). Metaphors and tourism paradoxes. Tourism Management, 79, 104095.
Birkon, İ., & Dumanlı, Ş. (2024). Turist rehberi adaylarının “Anadolu” kavramına yönelik metaforik algıları. Güncel Turizm Araştırmaları Dergisi, 8(1), 196-215.
Bon, N. V. (2020, November 12). Developing cultural tourism into a cultural industry in Vietnam. Khanh Hoa University. https://ukh.edu.vn/vi-vn/tong-quan/Khoa/khoa-du-lich/chi-tiet-khoa-du-lich/id/2760/Phat-trien-du-lich-van-hoa-thanh-nganh-cong-nghiep-van-hoa-o-Viet-Nam. (Erişim Tarihi: 13.03.2026).
Boonmee, C., & Arimura, M. (2026). Enhancing cultural tourism performance through data-driven evaluation: A hybrid MCDM-machine learning approach in Northern Thailand. Tourism Recreation Research, 1-22.
Buzrukova, M. (2025). Metaphorization in tourism discourse: From the language of guidebooks to conceptual models in the global development of the tourism industry. GeoJournal of Tourism and Geosites, 61(3), 1751–1757.
Büyüköztürk, Ş., Kılıç Çakmak, E., Akgün, Ö. E., Karadeniz, Ş., & Demirel, F. (2008). Bilimsel araştırma yöntemleri. Ankara: Pegem Yayınları.
Cerisola, S., & Panzera, E. (2025). Heritage tourism and local prosperity: An empirical investigation of their controversial relationship. Tourism Economics, 31(5), 964–983.
Creswell, J. W., & Poth, C. N. (2018). Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five approaches (4th ed.). Sage Publications.
Çağlayan, E., Kutlu, Ş., & Çekinmez, Ş. (2022). Kültürel miras aktarımı ile ilgili lisansüstü tezlerin bibliyometrik analizi. International Journal of Social Sciences and Education Research, 8(2), 155–164.
Çelebi, B., Çiftsüren, D., & Dilek, S. E. (2020). Türkiye’de “kültürel miras” konusunda yapılan tezlerin bibliyometrik analizi. Journal of Current Debates in Social Sciences, 3(1), 10–19.
Çınar, K., Bal, E., & Zafer Kavacık, S. (2024). Kültür turizminin gelişiminde kültürel etkinliklerin önemi: Yerel halkın kültürel etkinlik farkındalığı üzerine bir araştırma. Journal of Tourism and Gastronomy Studies, 12(4), 3036-3057.
Çoban, Z., & Halaç, H. H. (2023). Kültürel miras ve bellek üzerine sistematik bir literatür analizi. Journal of Humanities and Tourism Research, 13(3), 571–586.
Davutoğlu, E., & Erol, D. (2023). The effects of culture tourism on sustainable local development: The case of Mardin. Kent Akademisi, 16(4), 2491–2518.
Değirmenci, Y. (2021). Examination of teacher candidates’ perception of tourists. International Journal of Geography and Geography Education, 43, 98–107.
Demirbulat, Ö. G., & Özgürel, G. (2024). Metaphorical perceptions of tourist guides on the intangible cultural heritage items of Trabzon. Journal of Gastronomy, Hospitality and Travel, 7(1), 313-335.
Diweg-Pukanec, M. (2025). Metaphors in tourism promotional discourse: A corpus-assisted study of the Cyril and Methodius Cultural Route. Tourism in Southern and Eastern Europe, 8, 157–162.
Edensor, T. (2001). Performing tourism, staging tourism: (Re)producing tourist space and practice. Tourist Studies, 1(1), 59-81.
El Bakri, J. (2024). The power of metaphor in the representation of mental images in the language of tourism print advertising: Lakoff and Johnson’s model of conceptual metaphor. CaLLs: Journal of Culture, Arts, Literature, and Linguistics, 10(1), 27–48.
Erdoğan, H. A. (2024). Turizm planlamasında kültür temelli yaratıcı endüstrilere yerel bakış: Yörük kültürü, Mersin örneği. Journal of Tourism and Gastronomy Studies, 12(2), 919-949.
Esfehani, M. H., & Albrecht, J. N. (2018). Roles of intangible cultural heritage in tourism in natural protected areas. Journal of Heritage Tourism, 13(1), 15–29.
Espeso-Molinero, P. (2023). Trends in cultural tourism. Smart Tourism, 4(1), Article 2147.
Etikan, I., Musa, S. A., & Alkassim, R. S. (2016). Comparison of convenience sampling and purposive sampling. American Journal of Theoretical and Applied Statistics, 5(1), 1-4.
Fusch, P. I., & Ness, L. R. (2015). Are we there yet? Data saturation in qualitative research. The Qualitative Report, 20(9), 1408-1416.
Geçikli, R. M., Turan, O., Lachytová, L., Dağlı, E., Kasalak, M. A., Uğur, S. B., & Guven, Y. (2024). Cultural heritage tourism and sustainability: A bibliometric analysis. Sustainability, 16(15), Article 6424.
Guest, G., Bunce, A., & Johnson, L. (2006). How many interviews are enough? An experiment with data saturation and variability. Field Methods, 18(1), 59-82.
Günden, B., & Güneren Özdemir, E. (2021). Turist rehberi ile kültürel miras ve turizm meslek elemanı adaylarının kültürel miras algıları üzerine bir çalışma. Journal of Tourism Research Institute, 2(1), 17-32.
Han, G.-H., & Lee, G.-H. (2022). Analysis of consensus map of memorable tourism experience (MTE): An application of Zaltman’s Metaphor Elicitation Technique (ZMET) method. Journal of Tourism Sciences, 46(8), 131–151.
Hoang, T. H., & Xuan, T. T. T. (2025). Research on Vietnamese cultural tourism. Journal of Ecohumanism, 4(2), 290-298.
Huang, L., & Li, Z. (2025). Quality evaluation of culture-tourism integration based on a 3E multi-dimensional subjective–objective hybrid weighting method. IEEE Access, 13, 137436–137445.
Hung, N. P. (2017). Tourism culture. Hanoi: Vietnam National University Press.
Jiang, J.-B., Cai, X., & Yin, H.-M. (2025). Research on the local reconstruction of intangible cultural heritage in ethnic tourism villages: A case of Miao silver ornaments in Xijiang Miao Village. SAGE Open, 15(1), Article 21582440251322573.
Kanca, B., & Ertaş, Ç. (2023). Yerel halkın turizm algısı: Metaforik bir yaklaşım. Kent Akademisi, 16(4), 2218–2229.
Karataş, E., Özköse, A., & Heyik, M. A. (2025). Sustainable heritage planning for urban mass tourism and rural abandonment: An integrated approach to the Safranbolu-Amasra eco-cultural route. Sustainability, 17(7), 1-36.
Kodalak, O., & Baltacı, M. (2023). Bibliometric analysis of studies on cultural heritage tourism. Anemon Muş Alparslan Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Dergisi, 11(2), 421–435.
Kourtit, K., Nijkamp, P., & Suzuki, S. (2025). Environmental and cultural tourism in heritage-led regions—Performance assessment of cultural-ecological complexes using multivariate data envelopment analysis. Sustainability, 17(13), Article 5871.
Köroğlu, Ö., Ulusoy Yıldırım, H., & Avcıkurt, C. (2018). Kültürel miras kavramına ilişkin algıların metafor analizi yoluyla incelenmesi. Turizm Akademik Dergisi, 5(1), 98-113.
Krisnawati, E., Darsono, H., Amalia, R. M., Sujatna, E. T. S., & Pamungkas, K. (2021). Metaphors in Indonesian nature tourism discourse: Disclosing cognition about nature. Pertanika Journal of Social Sciences & Humanities, 29(4), 2469–2482.
Lakoff, G., & Johnson, M. (1980). Metaphors we live by. University of Chicago Press.
Li, T., & Zhu, X. (2026). Spatial transformation of a She ethnic rural settlement under heritage tourism development: The case of Dongnong Village, China. Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, 13, Article 1207.
Lou, M., Hu, S., Hu, D., & Zhang, Q. (2026). Constructing a profound experience model of Chinese intangible cultural heritage tourism based on grounded theory. PLOS ONE, 21(6), Article e0351084.
Luo, W., & Liu, J. (2024). From tradition to innovation: The role of culture tourism in transforming Chinese agriculture. Agriculture, 14(11), 1-25.
Mazlan, C. A. N., Abdullah, M. H., Hashim, N. S. N., Abdul Wahid, N., Pisali, A., Uyub, A. I., Mohd Nor, N., & Hidayatullah, R. (2025). Discovery the intersection of performing arts in cultural tourism: A scoping review. Discover Sustainability, 6(1), 1-14.
Mei, Y., & Gao, Z. (2026). Towards sustainable cultural-tourism integration in China’s ethnic regions: Models, challenges, and policy strategies. Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, 13(1), 1-17.
Moscovici, S. (1984). The phenomenon of social representations. In R. M. Farr & S. Moscovici (Eds.), Social representations (pp. 3–69). Cambridge University Press.
Moscovici, S. (2000). Social representations: Explorations in social psychology (G. Duveen, Ed.). Polity Press.
Nakip, M., & Yaraş, E. (2017). SPSS uygulamalı pazarlamada araştırma teknikleri (4. Baskı). Ankara: Seçkin Yayıncılık.
Nguyen, T. N., & Vu, D. D. (2025). Developing cultural tourism in Vietnam. Journal of Ecohumanism, 4(1), 3834-3852.
Özgeriş, M., Demircan, N., Karahan, A., Gökçe, O., Karahan, F., Sezen, I., & Akpınar Külekçi, E. (2024). Cultural heritage management in the context of sustainable tourism: The case of Öşkvank Monastery (Uzundere, Erzurum). Sustainability, 16(22), Article 9964.
Öztopaloğlu-Işık, H. R., & Çevrimkaya, M. (2025). Kültürel miras turizminde self-oryantalist eğilimler. Journal of Humanities and Tourism Research, 15(3), 587–602.
Patton, M. Q. (2015). Qualitative research and evaluation methods (4th ed.). Sage Publications.
Pine, B. J., II, & Gilmore, J. H. (2011). The experience economy. Harvard Business Review Press.
Qian, Y., Peng, X., & Jun, E. (2026). The role of cultural memory and place attachment in designing cultural heritage tourism. Scientific Reports, 16, Article 14321.
Richards, G. (2018). Cultural tourism: A review of recent research and trends. Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Management, 36, 12-21.
Richards, G. (2025). Cultural tourism: An integrative review. Tourism & Management Studies, 21(4), 19–31.
Richards, G., Adie, B. A., Garibaldi, R., Halkier, H., Ivanov, S., Ivanova, M., James, L., Lind, A. L., Milfelner, B., Mlakar, A., Onderwater, L., Palang, H., Pozzi, A., Raffay-Danyi, Á., Rudan, E., Saarinen, J., Šegota, T., Smolčić Jurdana, D., Špoljarić, T., Terziyska, I., Turnšek, M., Zadel, Z., & Zocchi, D. M. (2025). Cultural and creative tourism in rural and remote areas: European perspectives. Tourism: An International Interdisciplinary Journal, 73(4), 771-798.
Rise, K. (2025). The transformative impact of cultural tourism from the perspective of local communities: Identity, space, and meaning. Journal of Tourism Theory and Research, 11(2), 56–64.
Saban, A. (2008). İlköğretim I. kademe öğretmen ve öğrencilerinin bilgi kavramına ilişkin sahip oldukları zihinsel imgeler. İlköğretim Online, 7(2), 421-455.
Šabanović, A. (2025). Conceptual evolution of culture and emergence of cultural tourism. Spoznaja, 11(2), 274-284.
Sadık, G. (2018). Kültür turizmi konulu lisansüstü tezlerin bibliyometrik profili. Journal of Business in the Digital Age, 1(2), 76–83.
Sarı, C., Kılıç, A. F., Güven, S., & Yaşar, H. B. (2020). Üniversite öğrencilerinin kültürel miras kavramına ilişkin algılarının metafor analizi yoluyla incelenmesi. Uluslararası Dil, Eğitim ve Sosyal Bilimlerde Güncel Yaklaşımlar Dergisi, 2(1), 334-353.
Selanik Ay, T., & Kurtdede Fidan, N. (2013). Öğretmen adaylarının “kültürel miras” kavramına ilişkin metaforları. Türk Araştırmaları, 8(12), 1135-1152.
Seyfi, S., Hall, C. M., & Rasoolimanesh, S. M. (2020). Exploring memorable cultural tourism experiences. Journal of Heritage Tourism, 15(3), 341–357.
Seyitoğlu, F., & Çakar, K. (2017). Tourism education and internships: A metaphor analysis. Journal of Teaching in Travel & Tourism, 17(4), 269–280.
Su, Q., & Li, F. (2024). Influence of time metaphor and destination image proximity on tourist responses. Tourism Management, 105, 104942.
Sumarsono, H., Prayitno, P. H., Narmaditya, B. S., Ruja, I. N., & Qodri, L. A. (2024). Cultural tourism and local economic development: A systematic literature review. In Proceedings of the 7th International Research Conference on Economics and Business (IRCEB 2023) (pp. 1–10). EAI.
Şengel, Ü., & Uz, S. (2025). The role of tourism in the sustainability of Hıdırellez festivals: A conceptual framework. Manas Sosyal Araştırmalar Dergisi, 14(4), 1692–1705.
Taş Gürsoy, İ., & Sonuç, N. (2020). Turizm ve kültür: Lise ve üniversite öğrencilerinin algılarına ilişkin metafor analizi. OPUS International Journal of Society Researches, 15(23), 1809-1828.
Timothy, D. J., & Boyd, S. W. (2003). Heritage tourism. Pearson Education.
Tosun, C. (2001). Challenges of sustainable tourism development in the developing world: The case of Turkey. Tourism Management, 22(3), 289-303.
Tosun, C., Çalışkan, C., Kodal, S., & Dedeoğlu, B. B. (2024). Having metaphors beyond branding: Evidence from a heritage hotel, Pera Palace. Journal of Heritage Tourism, 19(4), 519-539.
Tutar, H. (2022). Nitel araştırmalarda geçerlilik ve güvenilirlik: Bir model önerisi. Anadolu Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Dergisi, 22(Özel Sayı 2), 117-140.
TÜİK. (2024). Turizm istatistikleri, 2023. Türkiye İstatistik Kurumu.
TÜİK. (2025). Turizm istatistikleri, 2024. Türkiye İstatistik Kurumu.
UNESCO (2003). Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage. UNESCO.
Uslu, F., Yayla, O., Guven, Y., Ergun, G. S., Demir, E., Erol, S., Yıldırım, M. N. O., Keles, H., & Gozen, E. (2023). The perception of cultural authenticity, destination attachment, and support for cultural heritage tourism development by local people: The moderator role of cultural sustainability. Sustainability, 15(22), Article 15794.
Uygur, S. M., & Baykan, E. (2007). Kültür turizmi ve turizmin kültürel varlıklar üzerindeki etkileri. Ticaret ve Turizm Eğitim Fakültesi Dergisi, (2), 30-49.
Vural, E. (2024). Gaziantep ilinin kültür turizm rotasının TripAdvisor çevrimiçi yorumlarına göre oluşturulması. Journal of Tourism and Gastronomy Studies, 12(3), 1897-1907.
Wang, C., Wang, Y., Edelheim, J. R., & Zhou, J. (2024). Tourism commercialisation and the frontstage-backstage metaphor in intangible cultural heritage tourism. Tourist Studies, 24(3), 246-265.
Wang, M., Lee, H. S., & Chen, W. Q. (2026). The impact of cultural tourism experience on cultural identity: A case study of Mazu culture. PLOS ONE, 21(4), Article e0346153.
Wang, Z., Tang, J., Zhou, L., & Goh, B. K. (2025). Tourists’ embodied metaphors in lifestyle cultural space. Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Research, 49(4), 705-718.
Wasela, K. (2023). The role of intangible cultural heritage in the development of cultural tourism. International Journal of Eco-Cultural Tourism, Hospitality Planning and Development.
Worachairungreung, M., Kulpanich, N., Soontorn, J., Sae-Ngow, P., Thanakunwutthirot, K., & Hemwan, P. (2025). Cultural tourism drives land use and economic changes in Amphawa, Thailand. Tourism Geographies, 28(2), 285-303.
Xiao, W., Yu, B., & Zhang, H. (2025). Tourist loyalty in intangible cultural heritage tourism: The roles of perceived attributes, involvement, and cultural identity. Sustainability, 17(17), 1-27.
Yan, Z., Lim, C. K., Halim, S. A., Ahmed, M. F., Tan, K. L., & Li, L. (2025). Digital sustainability of heritage: Exploring indicators affecting the effectiveness of digital dissemination of intangible cultural heritage through qualitative interviews. Sustainability, 17(4), 1-19.
Yang, W., Chen, Q., Huang, X., Xie, M., & Guo, Q. (2022). How do aesthetics and tourist involvement influence cultural identity in heritage tourism? The mediating role of mental experience. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, Article 990030.
Yang, Z.-T., Ruan, W.-Q., Zhang, S.-N., & Cheng, Z.-C. (2024). Revealing the metaphorical code: Heterogeneous effects and mechanisms of tourism advertising style in cultural heritage sites. Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Management, 59(2), 263-275.
Yaşar, E., & Gafar, B. Ü. (2024). Metaphorical perceptions of undergraduate tourism students towards the concepts of English and professional English: The case of Türkiye-Spain. Journal of Tourism Theory and Research, 10(1), 1–11.
Yıldırım, A., & Şimşek, H. (2008). Sosyal Bilimlerde Nitel Araştırma Yöntemleri. Ankara: Seçkin Yayıncılık.
Yücel, C., & Sahilli Birdir, S. (2022). Yerel halkın kültürel miras değerlerine yönelik metaforik algılarının belirlenmesi: Mersin örneği. International Journal of Social Sciences and Education Research, 8(3), 274-287.
Zhang, Q., & Mohamad, D. B. (2025). Mapping identity dynamics in heritage tourism: A bibliometric and theoretical review. Cogent Social Sciences, 11(1), Article 2598726.
Zhang, S., Liang, J., Su, X., Chen, Y., & Wei, Q. (2023). Research on global cultural heritage tourism based on bibliometric analysis. Heritage Science, 11, Article 139.
Zhang, S.-N., Ruan, W.-Q., & Yang, T.-T. (2021). National identity construction in cultural and creative tourism: The double mediators of implicit cultural memory and explicit cultural learning. SAGE Open, 11(3), Article 21582440211040789.
Zheng, D., Huang, C., & Oraltay, B. (2023). Digital cultural tourism: Progress and a proposed framework for future research. Asia Pacific Journal of Tourism Research, 28(3), 234–253.
Zheng, H., & Zhou, Y. (2026). AI-driven insights into the impact of tourism on local cultures: A machine learning approach. Scientific Reports, 16, Article 23046.
Zubiaga De la Cal, M., Gandini, A., Pasandideh, S., Sopelana Gato, A., Kalvet, T., Lopez de Aguileta Benito, A., Pereira, P., Koor, T., & Martins, J. (2026). A multi-criteria decision support system for data-driven strategic planning in sustainable cultural tourism. Sustainability, 18, 1412, 1-25.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Journal of Tourism & Gastronomy Studies
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
