Bektashi Order

The Alevī Bektāshī Ṭarīqah, or The Bektashi Order (Turkish:Bektaşi Tarîkatı), is a dervish order (tariqat) of Islam named after the 13th century Alevi Wali (saint) Haji Bektash Veli from Khorasan, but founded by Balim Sultan. The order is mainly found throughout Anatolia and the Balkans, and was particularly strong in Albania, Bulgaria, and among Ottoman era Greek Muslims from the regions of Epirus, Crete and Macedonia. However, the Bektashi order does not seem to have attracted quite as many adherents from among Bosnian Muslims, who tended to favor more mainstream Sunni orders such as the Naqshbandiyya and Qadiriyya. The order represents the official ideology of Bektashism (Turkish:Bektaşilik).