Kurds Of Modern Turkey

The role of the Kurds in Turkey has long been a controversial issue, although discussion has generally been focused around the political and cultural rights and activities of the Kurds. This book aims to bring a new approach to this contentious subject by shifting attention to the changing popular image of the Kurds in Turkish cities. It focuses particularly on the ways in which the middle-class in Turkish cities develop an exclusionary discourse against the Kurds. Cenk Saracoglu investigates the social origins of such a perception by bringing into focus how neoliberal economic policies and Kurdish migration have transformed urban life in Turkey.

"The role of the Kurds in Turkey has long been a controversial issue, although discussion has generally been focused around the political and cultural rights and activities of the Kurds. This book aims to bring a new approach to this contentious subject by shifting attention to the changing popular image of the Kurds in Turkish cities. It focuses particularly on the ways in which the middle-class in Turkish cities develop an exclusionary discourse against the Kurds. Cenk Saracoglu investigates the social origins of such a perception by bringing into focus how neoliberal economic policies and Kurdish migration have transformed urban life in Turkey."--Bloomsbury Publishing.

This book examines the circumstances of the Kurds in 21st century Turkey, under the hegemony of the AKP government. After decades of denial, oppression and conflict, Kurds now assert a more confident presence in Turkey's politics - but does increasing visibility mean a rejection of Turkey? Recording Kurdish voices from Istanbul and DiyarbakA r, Turkey's most important Kurdish-populated cities, this book generates new understandings of Kurdish identity and political aspirations. Highlighting elements of Kurdish identity including Newroz, the Kurdish language, connections to religion, landscape and cross-border ties, it offers a portrait of Kurdish political life in a Turkey increasingly dominated by its president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Within the context of Turkey's troubled trajectory towards democratisation, it documents Kurdish narratives of oppression and resistance, and enquires how Kurds reconcile their distinct ethnic identity and citizenship in modern Turkey.

First Published in 2005. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

An examination of the link between the economic and political development of the Kurds in Turkey, and Turkey's Kurdish question.

The question of Kurdish identity and belonging is counted among the most controversial and challenging topics in modern Turkey. This book cuts to the heart of this debate in an exploration of shifting Kurdish identities brought on by extensive rural-urban labour migration. This has shaped the lives of many rural Turkish Kurds as competing discourses on religiosity, gender relations and social hierarchy redraw the boundaries of traditional life. The focus of this book is migration from Kurdish villages in eastern provincial Turkey to the regional capital of Van and to Istanbul in the west, what started with seasonal migration of young men in the 1980s and has resulted in whole families leaving their emptying villages behind. This pattern of migration has created translocational networks through which discourses are created, maintained and also challenged. Village life, for instance, becomes discursively romanticised or disparaged, depending on the situation of the migrant. These networks come to consist of people who share lineage membership or origin; migrants may activate these links for marriages, favours and political advantage. At the same time, migration has led to more socio-economic differentiation between Kurds, and some have transcended ties based purely on ethnic origin. Increased education, both a motive for and a result of migration, has become an instrument of linguistic assimilation as families lose Kurdish as a language of communication and a marker of ethnic differentiation. 'Traditional' social paradigms characterised by a gender-age hierarchy and religious piety are challenged by and coexist with alternative gender roles and images. The everyday experiences of rural-urban migrants from Van province, on the south-eastern borders of the country, are central to this book, but they are inextricably linked to conflicting discourses on Kurdishness and the place of this minority in Turkey.

"The question of Kurdish identity and belonging is counted among the most controversial and challenging topics in modern Turkey. This book cuts to the heart of this debate in an exploration of shifting Kurdish identities brought on by extensive rural-urban labour migration. This has shaped the lives of many rural Turkish Kurds as competing discourses on religiosity, gender relations and social hierarchy redraw the boundaries of traditional life. The focus of this book is migration from Kurdish villages in eastern provincial Turkey to the regional capital of Van and to Istanbul in the west, what started with seasonal migration of young men in the 1980s and has resulted in whole families leaving their emptying villages behind. This pattern of migration has created translocational networks through which discourses are created, maintained and also challenged. Village life, for instance, becomes discursively romanticised or disparaged, depending on the situation of the migrant. These networks come to consist of people who share lineage membership or origin; migrants may activate these links for marriages, favours and political advantage. At the same time, migration has led to more socio-economic differentiation between Kurds, and some have transcended ties based purely on ethnic origin. Increased education, both a motive for and a result of migration, has become an instrument of linguistic assimilation as families lose Kurdish as a language of communication and a marker of ethnic differentiation. 'Traditional' social paradigms characterised by a gender-age hierarchy and religious piety are challenged by and coexist with alternative gender roles and images. The everyday experiences of rural-urban migrants from Van province, on the south-eastern borders of the country, are central to this book, but they are inextricably linked to conflicting discourses on Kurdishness and the place of this minority in Turkey."--Bloomsbury publishing.

Seminar paper from the year 2010 in the subject Politics - Topic: Peace and Conflict, Security, grade: A, University of Flensburg, language: English, abstract: The Kurdish issue in the contemporary history is becoming more and more salient considering the geopolitical and strategic area of Middle East. Particularly in Turkey this issue becomes crucial for the future of the whole region since almost half of the worldwide Kurds live in Turkey, who consists of the biggest ethnic minority of the country. It is essential to understand the emergence of this conflict, mainly the distinct Kurdish identity and formation of the collective Kurdish groups that claimed the rights of Kurds. Furthermore, it is important to understand the formation of Turkish Republic and the factors that contributed to the perpetuation and in to some extend the expansion of this conflict. Furthermore, the factors that affected the conflict and led to its recent formation and also the various parameters that this issue has in the country should be analyzed in detail. Eventually, in order to understand a fruitful solution to this issue it is essential to highlight all these variables that have an impact to Kurdish population not only in Turkey but in the whole area of Middle East.