Ritualized Fiscal Practices in Local Governments: Sociocultural and Symbolic Dimensions of Public Finance

Abstract

This research aims to examine the activities conducted by the metropolitan municipalities of Ankara, Istanbul, and Izmir in Türkiye during Ramadan, Eid al-Fitr, and Eid al-Adha, employing an interdisciplinary framework that integrates fiscal sociology, ritual theory, social capital theory, and social and cultural sustainability approaches. Drawing on a qualitative comparative case study design, the research examines municipal activity reports from 2020 to 2024 through content analysis. Within this scope, municipal activities are examined under six categories, namely “social assistance programs,” “collective food services and food-themed events,” “social and cultural activities,” “societal and institutional relations,” “digital management systems,” and “urban services and operational arrangements.” The findings indicate that municipal activities demonstrate patterns of both continuity and differentiation across municipalities and over time. By developing the concept of “ritualized fiscal practices,” the research demonstrates how public expenditures and services function not only as fiscal instruments but also as embedded elements of state–society relations, through which sociocultural and symbolic meanings are reproduced. Focusing on the sociocultural and symbolic dimensions of public finance that have received relatively limited attention in the literature, this research contributes to a deeper understanding of these dimensions at the local level.

Keywords

• Public Expenditure
• Local Government Finance
• Fiscal Sociology
• Social Capital
• Ritualized Fiscal Practices

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