Late antique motifs in Yezidi oral tradition Religious movements in the Middle East The origin of the Yezidis and of Yezidi studies The religion of the Yezidis Religious oral tradition and literacy among the Yezidis of Iraq The Yezidi creation myth of Adam The khirqe or garment of faith The song of the commoner : the motif of sleep and awakening The origin myth of the Yezidis : the myth of Shehid Bin Jer The birth of Prophet Ismail in the Yezidi Tale of Ibrahim Epilogue : late antique motifs and modern Yezidism Appendix I : transcript of recordings of the myth of Adam and the myth of Shehid Bin Jer Appendix II : Yezidi hymns translated by P. Kreyenbroek