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'Turkification' is a term used to describe a cultural change in which something or someone who is not a Turk becomes one, voluntarily or by force. It can be used in contexts in connection with Albanians, Arabs, Armenians, Assyrians, Greeks, Jews, Roma, various Slavic peoples (Bosniaks, Bulgarians), Iranian peoples (mainly Kurds), as well as Georgians and various ethnicities of the Black Sea basin and the North Caucasus. The use of the term does not assert a denial of the existence of individuals who feel pride or are comfortable in their Turkishness, nor a questioning of their identity.

Contents

Armenians

Kurds

See also

References

Armenians

Main articles: Armenian Genocide

In 1915, Talat Pasha (Minister of the Interior), under Mehmed V, ordered the forced evacuation of hundreds of thousands—possibly over a million—Armenians. Over the next 8 years, it is estimated over 1 million Armenians died, though there is no clear consensus on the exact number. The Turkish government, as well as some scholars, dispute whether the deaths resulting from the relocation were intentional and planned by the Ottoman government. See Armenian Genocide.

Kurds

Main articles: Kurds in Turkey

The Turkish government has, since its inception systematically sought to assimilate the Kurdish population of Turkey. From the birth of the state until 1991, the existence of a separate Kurdish identity was denied. During the 1930s and 1940s, the government had disguised the presence of the Kurds statistically by categorizing them as "Mountain Turks", denying their ethnic identity.^[1] According to CNN TÜRK, today there are media events as well as privately-sponsored education in the Kurdish language, although the general interest shown is rather limited.^[2] Some people believe that the closed Kurdish courses aren't because of lack of interest but because of so many years of restricting the use of the language—making it socially still not right and because the courses aren't economically well backed.^[3]

See also

★ Cultural assimilation

★ Devshirmeh

★ Janissary

References

1. Turkey - Linguistic and Ethnic Groups - U.S. Library of Congress
2. http://www.cnnturk.com/TURKIYE/haber_detay.asp?PID=318&HID=2&haberID=114032 Kurdish courses close one after the other because of lack of interest, July 2005
3. http://www.ozgurpolitika.org/2005/07/19/hab21.html